IAS Topper 2013 Munish Sharma Shares his strategy for IAS Prelims Exam

AS Topper 2013 Munish Sharma who got the 2^nd Rank in the most coveted Civil Service Examination 2013, talked to Rachit Kumar Saxena about his plan and strategy he followed for the IAS Prelims Exam.

Civil Services was his dream since childhood. He got this grand success in his second attempt. He expressed his desires to serve the people and make long lasting contribution to society and nation per se. He indeed provided valuable tips for the IAS Prelims Exam. He also shared his strategy for the IAS Prelims Exam.

Dos and Don’ts

While elaborating the Dos and Don’ts for the IAS Prelims Exam, he cautioned against blindly following the different blogs and people. He said grapevine and hearsay must be avoided to save time. Further, he advised to follow standard books and try to avoid too many books. While expressing his views on mushrooming magazines, he suggested reading only standard magazines.

Changed IAS Prelims Exam Pattern

He said that changed pattern has streamlined the things. He sought to tone down the fear about the CSAT Paper-2. He said that simple questions from Mathematics, Aptitude and Comprehension have been asked in IAS Prelims CSAT Paper -2. So candidates should not fear that CSAT is comparable to CAT and GRE. Optimum effort and proper time management can bring desirable result.

Importance of Coaching

He did not criticize the importance of coaching centres. Instead, he said that coaching centre can provide right direction. Candidate must not reply fully on coaching centres. He suggested that candidates who have written CAT and other related exams can manage the IAS Prelims General Studies Paper II - CSAT without going for coaching. He emphasized the importance of writing mock test. Further he elaborated on importance of group discussion. Candidate must indulge in group discussion whenever they feel the need. Discussion should be relevant and no need to indulge regularly.

Strategy for General Studies Paper I and General Studies Paper II

He emphasized on getting maximum marks in General Studies II - CSAT and said that the candidates must make target of getting more than the 100 marks in General Studies I. Further, he said that making notes out of newspapers could be beneficial in IAS Prelims Exam. He suggested basic NCERT Books for History and Geography for the preparation of IAS Prelims Exam. While pointing out the importance of Constitution of India, he emphasized on standard books since NCERT book on Polity is not sufficient. He cited the importance of newspapers for Environment, Ecology and Science and Technology.

Suggestions for future IAS Aspirants

While sharing his thought on spiraling IAS Prelims Exam cut-offs marks, he emphasized the need to play on the strengths and work on weaknesses. He said that candidates should not lose the heart if they fail in IAS Prelims Exams. Further he cited examples where many candidates were figured in top 50 who even could not clear IAS Prelims in their first attempts.