Will be taking a live class on CSAT, on Everyone's truly Kaptan Jack Sparrow's telegram channel.
I'll try to make CSAT easier for those having trouble with it.

See you at 20:00.

https://t.me/TeamKJS

*Small correction - Wo scale wale ques me, 7.5 ft and 3.25ft jiska answer maine 1ft btaya tha. It seems ek aur step kia jyga coz official ans - 0.25 hai!
So, 1ft ko use kr ke 3.25ft pe marking karenge aur finally 0.25ft bachega and that is the answer.
0.25 foot!!!

AnsKey-CSP-20-Paper-II-091121.pdf

This is not for people giving UPSC CSE 2023 prelims.
For people aspiring for next year or so, sharing the raw and real video (civilsdaily) of Kaptaan Jack Sparrow (Ghanshyam Sir).
Best bit - 2021 was my worst mains and 2022 was my best mains.
This line perfectly summarizes the struggle with UPSC of every aspirant!

Bit long but quite engaging. Once you start watching, it's actually very interesting; especially coming from Kaptaan the storyteller.

https://youtu.be/aBF4ScYhOsQ

How many mock tests to give?

Depends on attempt.
If it is first or second attempt, I'll advise to give all sectional tests and atleast 4-5 full length test of any coaching, I preferred Vision. Because you need to learn the static part very thoroughly.

If it is your third attempt, you may need to give more of Full length tests and sectional of subjects in which you are weak.
Although a completely personal choice, I am just giving a direction.

If it is your fourth or above attempt, you already know the significance of these tests. You know there'd be hardly any ques repeated from these and tests are more for your revision and practice, so give at your ease. But do revise your notes and give a few FLTs.

Bottomline - Should give one complete test series of a Coaching (I did Vision Or Forum)

For People scoring Low/Very low in "Test series" -
UPSC is very different from Coaching tests. In coaching tests, people score 120 or 130 + and still fail to qualify prelims.

Why test series is not a good measure of your potential?
1. They ask very complex facts hidden somewhere in the books
2. They ask questions from "their material" - be it their monthly magazine or News analysis etc
3. Early birds in test series often score low whereas Senior players score 100+ easily, reason being - Senior players know the pattern of that coaching or the more tests you solve, the better you get.

So to all the first attemptors or people who are giving test series for the first time, I'll say - You will score low, but you should not focus on the Score!!

What should be your focus??
1. Recognise the area from where you are making mistakes. If its from what you have read, then congrats you will now remember for life whatever mistake you did.
2. If you are making mistake from some topic that you have not read about, then there are two possibilities -
i) Its from current affairs that you have no idea about - its alright, there are million of such facts. Just see if you feel its important, then read it, else ignore it.
ii) Its from static portion that you have not yet studied - Make sure to read the solution and get your knowledge about that topic from the solution itself.


At the end, if you are making mistakes from Static portion, revise that topic again
If you are making mistake from Current affairs, stay calm and just go through that fact/info.

Performance in prelims is decided by following -
1. Can you make mistakes from static part?
2. Have you gone through PYQs?
3. How fast and focussed you can be in doing MCQs?

If the answer of above three questions is No, Yes and Very - you will probably qualify prelims or will be in Cutoff - 5 marks.

"If he drops it, shoot him! "

A very powerful and motivational scene, Inspired me a lot.
So sharing for all of you!

I didn't realize that UPSC asked this many question from Mapping and many students had been asking me, How to do mapping wala portion and I responded bluntly "We don't do that" and if one is aware of newspaper then she/he must be knowing these things. Because either the places were very simple like Anatolia - Turkey, Senkaku islands or something that no one has ever heard of!
But this video highlights the importance of mapping. So, see the themes in Mapping questions and go through PYQs!!!

https://youtu.be/_0Yuu7OhdYY

If I was to wait for my preparation to get over, and give the exam only when I am completely ready & done with syllabus, I'd not have given any attempt till now.
Till my fourth attempt, before prelims, I used to think "Oh this time is not my best attempt, but Agla attempt ekdm full serious dunga". (Next sem fod denge feeling)

Always used to feel that I am forgetting Laxmikanth, don't remember the Socio religious reform movement chapter, forgot about Geography, couldn't complete current affairs etc

No one else can take decisions for you, whether to skip this attempt or not, if you're ready or not.
It is a completely personal opinion, depending on number of attempts you have etc.
If you have read the basic books twice or thrice, gone through current affairs, given a few tests - your level of preparation for prelims is enough.

Also keep in mind, the experience gained in the exam helps a lot in further attempts! !

Whatever you decide, All the best!
Do the best with what you have read!!

If you improve daily by 1%, by the end of the year, you'll have improved by 3778%.

Just keep pushing. . .

On the other hand, if you degrade by even 1% daily, you'd have self destroyed yourself to 0.03%.

Keep breathing!! Keep working!!

Result jab aayega, tab aayega!

Jinhone interview nahi diya hai, wo result speculation se duur rahein!

Jinhone interview diya h, All the best to all! These few days will test your anxiety and patience to the max.

If you make it, it'll change your life (for next few days :))

If you don't, stay strong. . . It is you and only you, who decides the kind of life you'll have! No one else can!

You have reached till here, be proud for that.

My best wishes to all!

This is for upcoming IFoS interviews.

Kaushal Kishore along with his other IFoS fellow officers are starting DAF Discussion Program + Mock Interview for UPSC IFS 2022. You can send your DAF on
@kaushalifs

He will upload his interview notes by evening.

All the best to candidates qualified for IFoS interviews.

His channel link -
https://t.me/kaushalkishoreifs

Prelims 2023

The paper had new types of questions, definitely lengthy and more relying on probability of your guesses being correct.

See, the paper had new types of questions and everyone had the same expression after exam - "Ye kya hai, ye kyu hai, Kya iske liye mai apne life ke most precious years de raha hu" ,

but if you must know, that has been my reaction after every stage of this exam every year.

It feels impossible and uncertain at that time, but after checking ans keys/results, many must be getting 70+ even in this paper, that goes on to show that no matter what UPSC asks, you are getting marks. That is the exam.
In mains, this "Doubt on quality of paper" is even greater. Imagine being asked, "Significance of lion and bull in ancient history", "decomposition of cellulose in wild", "method of election of France's president", "aims and objectives of SCO" and many more such questions.
Nobody knows good perfect answers on these, we all just write whatever we can and then results are out, some get 110, 130 while some get 70,80 marks
But that is the thing, the exam is about being better than others and not the best. And this is a fact that Every year, UPSC gives a paper that is A Great Leveller, it bring Veterans, new aspirants etc everyone on same ground. No matter how many books one has read, one can't solve the paper easily. At the end, it comes down to Two options and you choose one and that decides your fate. That is sad and frustrating, but after 2023 results, it will be us only, who will praise the "hardwork and merit" of toppers, when we know this paper requires more than that. And every serious aspirant is working very hard.

I believe that You can't ace UPSC rather, you work as hard as you can, check all the boxes (syllabus, tests, content) and then, wait till its your time :)

But definietly, there are people consistently acing this exam and they certainly are Legendary. Because despite the uncertainties, they are qualifying this multiple times, but that is definitely not the norm.

For most of us (people who qualified this exam), we did everything that every other serious aspirant is doing, and attempts after attempt, we ultimately reached the threshold and luck favoured.

So, my advice to all is "Don't blame the paper, don't blame the random questions (as it'll weaken your spirits); just do your best and keep improving, keep writing answers, keep studying optional, keep the hopes high"

If you get in prelims, be ready to deal with an even greater monster!!!

Also, IMO, CSAT will be an equally huge Eliminator this year, if not more than GS. CSAT was the toughest and most challenging of all time. It is unfair.

Hello All,

I have tried to analyze the Prelims 2023 paper from the perspective of senior aspirant. It's not much useful for senior aspirants, but I hope fresh aspirants or who have not written prelims yet can see it and gauge the usefulness of different sources and work on their time distribution.
Feel free to engage in Constructive criticism of the review, my views might be different from yours. I'm very much delighted to hear your differences of opinion.
I have categorized questions in 4 classes -
1. Easy - too much in news, very simple, straight from books
2. Medium easy - heard/in news, we know something but not fully, we should mark it and it'll probably be right, guessable
3. Medium tough - might be in news, but we have little to no idea, we might mark it, but most probably it'll be wrong.
4. Tough/Random - never heard, can't guess either

So, earlier it was about not making Static questions wrong, but now it is about taking educated guesses and making them right as well.

We don't know right answers to many questions, I don't trust the Answer keys by non-UPSC institutions, the review is very raw and real, I may be wrong in my comments, feel free to make me right.

Best wishes.

PS - Start preparing for Mains, you're getting in or not, if you have a next attempt, Strengthen mains preparation.