Know The Exam Pattern and Syllabus for PSIR Optional In UPSC CSE Exam
Knowing the exam pattern and the syllabus for PSIR optional in UPSC CSE exam is the first step towards preparing for it. If you know the syllabus well, consider 5% of your battle is already won. Remember, the journey to becoming an IAS officer is obstacle-strewn, and it tests your resilience and covet.
Over time, it has been observed that there has been a significant shift in the questions’ pattern. For instance, in the past, the questions were simpler and easier to answer with the tried-and-true technique of “mugging up.” In today’s time, you will not receive good grades if you attempt to cram answers without understanding.
Analyze & Plan To Cover Syllabus: Plan Your Strategy
Analyzing and planning for the exam will go a great way, This is the first step after knowing the syllabus. Understand the pattern of the exam and plan your timetable accordingly. It is important to focus on the quality of hours rather than the quantity of hours when preparing for the exam.
Go for quick objectives. Set daily, monthly, and annual goals for yourself and evaluate your preparation for on a regular basis. This will assist you in reevaluating your strategy in light of your present development.
Seeking advice from UPSC mentors and fellow candidates might be very beneficial for your PSIR optional in UPSC CSE exam.
Read The Right Books For The Right Preparation
If you are someone who is beginning the journey of learning PSIR for the UPSC optional subject, you must start with NCERT books. This will give you static knowledge of the PSIR subject which you can later advance with.
Only on learning the basics and getting your foundation strong on PSIR concepts you can read advance books. These advance books will help you get a clearer knowledge of each concept in depth.
Some of the top recommended books for UPSC PSIR optional are:
You must also make your own notes from these books. You can also find pdf notes from top IAS coaching institutes like Plutus IAS, Yojna IAS, Kautilya IAS, and Gyanaj.com (a cost-effective app) from websites like examophobia and onlinekhanmarket.
Answer Writing Practice: The Key To Success
Think of answer writing practice as the heart and soul of the UPSC CSE examination. When you are preparing for the Mains Optional paper that carries 500 marks, it becomes rather compulsory to make notes of what you study. The syllabus is lengthy and aspirants refer to many books when learning about topics.
Writing notes help you in compiling all your answers in one place that are ready for the exam. PSIR is one such subject that you require not only books but also newspapers to make notes from.
Make Reading Your Habit: It Goes A Long Way
For the UPSC CSE exam, preparation is essential. In addition to testing your academic knowledge, the objective and subjective questions also assess your ethical and intellectual capacity. Reading books will help you learn a lot of new things and broaden your perspective on various subjects.
If you have the habit of reading, learning will automatically come easy to you and hence the success of becoming an IAS officer.
Take Online Courses or Watch Video Lectures
Attend online classes or watch video lectures: Reading books and learning from them is definitely not something that can be replaced. Attending classes that incorporate both texts and videos will, however, help you develop a greater interest in the subject. You can follow YouTube channel for PSIR optional for better understanding of the subject.
Solve Test Series and Mock Tests For PSIR Optional In UPSC CSE Exam
It is impossible to overlook this. For PSIR optional paper, test series solving is essential. This will assist you in evaluating your overall development and comprehension of the subject. You’ll be able to organize your study more effectively and change the exam preparation schedule to better fit your needs as you advance.
Taking guidance from mentors who are UPSC PSIR optional experts will help you better with your answer writing skills.Mr. Bijendra Jha is the best PSIR optional teacher. He has completed his PhD in one of the best colleges in India, JNU, and has written many papers focusing on socio-economic matters, governance, and political studies. His interest now lies in helping UPSC aspirants and has helped many with UPSC PSIR optional. Currently teaching at Plutus IAS, he has also taught at Yojna IAS. He has helped many aspirants in their UPSC journey. He says, “Political Science and International relations is a dynamic subject…in PSIR optional students become aware of many thinkers like Socrates, Aristotle, and utilitarian philosophers”. He further adds, ‘ students of PSIR become always happy to see the Essay paper as it is very much related to their optional and they write very comfortably…students of PSIR, since their study is in-depth of the subject matter, they feel very comfortable in the final stage of selection, which is the interview. Therefore, PSIR as an optional paper is a full happiness package for UPSC preparation.”.
Mr. Vikas Gupta is also one of the renowned names in UPSC PSIR optional subject. He has a strong academic background and has even appeared for UPSC interview multiple times. He presently teaches at Plutus IAS and has previously taught at Gyanaj.com. He divides the preparation for PSIR optional in UPSC exam in 4 stages. For the first stage, he says,” First, the student must complete the classroom program and revise class notes. Now, in the second stage, here read the relevant books, as recommended by the relevant teacher and update the notes. Along with stage two, the third stage must run in parallel, here students should trace scholars of PSIR through use of digital medium. Lastly and most importantly, focus on current affairs program. For this, read editorial section and international news section of newspaper and makes notes out of it.”
Motivate Yourself
It takes a lot of effort, commitment, and consistency to pass the UPSC test. Even though the exam requires a lot of study time, it’s crucial that you allow yourself some downtime. You can accomplish this by setting aside time for your interests and hobbies.
These will sustain your enthusiasm and stop you from deviating from your UPSC exam preparation plan.
