How to Choose the Correct Optional for the UPSC Civil Service Exam?
The UPSC civil service exam is notoriously unpredictable. Each year, UPSC establishes the difficulty of the thesis and the weights assigned to each part of the study program. The general research focus is broad and offered to candidates. The only decision UPSC leaves to applicants is the subject of any of their choice like sociology optional for UPSC.
This choice is critical and should be taken seriously. Many applicants do not think enough when choosing their options. If a long time has passed, it is difficult to change the options.
Importance of the optional subject:
Being an option may be your greatest asset or your most significant responsibility.
Analysis of the previous year’s excellent test scores reveals that the four general research theses are within a narrow range. Scores from essays, optional dissertations, and interviews are essential factors determining selection and ranking on the benefits list.
Frequently, two candidates who did the same in General Studies and Essay are faced with a different fate due to optional. One is named on the merit list with a choice mark of over 300 in the dissertation, and the other is excluded from the competition due to a choice mark of 200-230. This massive gap in Mark could change the overall picture of UPSC’s journey.
Factors to consider when choosing an optional subject:
Benefits
A keen interest in your choices is significant to maintaining your enthusiasm through multiple attempts. If you are interested in the topic, you can spend a lot of time preparing and developing conceptual clarity.
Duration of the study plan
The length of the optional curriculum can be a deciding factor if you have less time to prepare. Options like sociology for UPSC and psychology can be completed in 3-4 months, but other options like math take much longer.
Your educational experience
You may consider the subjects you studied during graduation optional because you already have much exposure to them. However, if you are not interested or confident in a graduation course after studying for several years at the university, do not take the graduation course as an option.
Availability of resources such as orientation and educational materials
If none of your subjects is the subject of your graduation, you may need guidance. Guidance from professional teachers or qualified applicants can help steer your preparations in the right direction. Also, consider the availability of educational materials. Popular optional subject will be available easily. However, it cannot be easy to find non-traditional optional ingredients, such as animal husbandry.
The previous performance of the topic
Evaluate the performance of students who received materials in previous attempts. Check the total number of choices in recent years and the qualifications they have acquired. Success or failure cases are not lost in the evaluation.
Common mistakes to avoid:
- You can talk to others, but don’t let them choose the option that suits you. It is essential to decide after careful consideration.
- It is a mistake to choose an option just because it is expected.
- Don’t be affected by the results of a particular year. Evaluate subject performance over several years.
- Avoid choosing options based solely on your friend’s advice.
Optional subject selection strategy:
- If you are accustomed to them, consider your graduation subject in your choice.
- Omit other subjects that require academic coaching. For example, graduates of humanities should not consider medical science as an option.
- Consider some subjects that do not require academic coaching to prepare and have a short learning program.
- Discuss with some of the senior applicants and mentors to clarify questions about the topic.
- UPSC syllabus review and previous year’s survey of omitted articles.
- Take a look at some introductory books to learn about the topic. NCERT Standards 11 and 12 books are usually suitable for this.
- Take a look at some of the lectures on this topic online to evaluate your interests further.
- At each stage, skip topics that are difficult to focus on and narrow down your options.
It is essential to consider several aspects before finalizing your choice. Please evaluate the highest score obtained by the option, the average, and the lowest score obtained by the opportunity.
For all candidates, a single subject is not an option. Find your profession. Accurate selection of optional is probably the most critical decision on a UPSC journey. The right decision allows you to get a good score on the exam.
To conclude, Civil Services exam is considered as mother of all examinations, so if you feel difficulty is understanding the intricacies of the examination – it is recommended to join any reputed IAS coaching. This will save your time and money.
