How Hard is the UPSC Exams?

Posted 2020-10-29 03:55:25

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A common question that most UPSC aspirants ask themselves and their mentors are ‘How hard is the UPSC exam?’ But it can be rightly said that nothing is easy and nothing is hard. With some hard work, determination, patience and honesty, everything is easy and possible, or otherwise, everything seems to be so hard. So, you can clear the UPSC exam, following the same logic.

A lot of aspirants think that cracking UPSC exams is a herculean task. But clearing UPSC is not a hard nut to crack. There exists a misconception that only university toppers are able to make through the exam. But even a student with average academic records can crack the UPSC exam. But what he/she needs is the perfect mixture of smart work, hard work and determination. Take a look at a few of the factors that possibly help you find out the answer to the question 'How hard is UPSC exam?' and what makes the exam stand out from the rest competitive exams.

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Pattern of Exam

The prime factor that makes the exam hard is the pattern of UPSC examination. It consists of three stages:

Prelims Exam
Mains Exam
Personality test or Interview

In order to get into the next stage, you have to clear the previous stage. And with each stage, the level of difficulty also increases. Cracking the personality test is the most challenging task, since not just your knowledge is tested, but your ability to deal with practical challenges, your personality and administrative traits is also put into test. So it won't be wrong to call the UPSC exam as hard when it comes to clearing the Interview. You need a special kind of preparation to get through the UPSC board interview. The best way to prepare for the personality test is to enrol for mock interviews.

UPSC Syllabus

The next factor that showcases the difficulty of the UPSC exam is its vast syllabus. The syllabus consists of a diverse range of subjects, in contrast to other competitive exams, where you only need to master one or two subjects.

In fact, the exam is hard, as far as its syllabus is taken into account. The diversity of subjects demands long study hours and more determination. Since the role of an IAS isn't merely limited to a certain field, the UPSC subjects consist of different streams. You have to cover each subject, no matter whether you like it or not.

Aspirants are supposed to develop administrative traits and improve their knowledge. The UPSC prelims syllabus includes subjects from almost most of the fields. So, it's essential that a candidate should have basic knowledge regarding all of them.

Never complicate your studies by resorting to too many study materials, sources or guides. Stick to a few resources and that will be enough.

Pass Percentage

If you check the success rate of the UPSC exams in the past, then you will certainly get an idea of how hard is the UPSC exam. The cut off mark is typically low for UPSC exam, owing to the high level of competition. Each year lakhs of aspirants appear for the prelims exam, but only 25% of them makes through the prelims. And those who pass the mains exam is only less than 15%. Whereas when it comes to the personality test, the rate of success is comparatively high.

Taking into account everything, the UPSC pass percentage is below 1%. So, you can easily make a rough guess of how hard the exam is. But fret not, with the right kind of preparation, you can be one among that 1%.

Negative Marking in UPSC Prelims

Prelims exam puts into test an aspirant’s general awareness and aptitude, which includes basic numeracy, logical reasoning and analytical ability, english comprehension, general mental ability, decision making skills, interpersonal skills and problem solving skills. The Prelims exam is typically objective in nature. Even though opting the right answer out of the four options seems to be easy, there is negative marking. For each wrong answer, 1/3rd of the marks allotted will be deducted.

Therefore you have to be 100% sure about the answer you will be marking, or otherwise, its wise to skip that question. Another factor that makes the exam hard is the negative marking, since you can’t proceed with the guess-work and can’t test your luck. Also, through eliminating the options given, you can make an intelligent guess. But it involves risk. So you need to be very prepared.

Time Taken For Preparation

Usually, it takes a relatively long time to properly prepare for the exam. On an average, it takes at least a year to satisfactorily prepare for the exam. Some might take more than an year- even a year and a half, but some might take just ten months. It all depends on the candidate’s style of preparation and interests. Dedicated exam preparation and right way of planning is essential.

Many students study for 17 to 18 hours per day but fail to crack the exam. But many students who study just for 7 to 8 hours with the right approach are able to successfully crack the exam. So it can be rightly said that the approach to UPSC exam is of immense importance and can make all the difference. It’s essential to ascertain what to study and what to skip and then only you will be able to properly utilise your preparation time.

What Makes UPSC Exam Hard and How to Crack it Easily?

You have got thousands of sources to choose from. Therefore you need to prefer only the best one and then follow it. Many candidates fail due to bad or wrong guidance. If you get the right guidance, to walk you along, then the exam will be quite easy for you.

Sometimes a preparation time of one year plan can turn into a five year plan due to several reasons- mainly the lack of consistency. It can also be due to changing your current location, job, strategy, guides, or optionals. Therefore you have to be consistent and faithful to just one thing.

Each year, a lot of candidates clear the UPSC exam in just one attempt. And it depends on how many mistakes you steer clear of during your exam preparation. It will be easy to crack the exam if you make very few mistakes, and consistently follow the right things during preparation. Just ask yourselves- why you wish to become an IAS officer? If you have a strong motivation and strong desire, this takes care of maintaining your preparation momentum.

Post analysing the aforementioned factors, it can be rightly said that the UPSC exam is quite hard. But it's not insurmountable. The level of toughness for UPSC exam is absolutely fair, and one needs the ability to prefer the relevant study material, right guidance, good understanding of syllabus, and knowledge of current affairs.

Once you crack UPSC exam, you will be having both the power and prestige, since its one of the most sought after jobs, in India. Also, with the right strategy and if you prepare with the right approach and move in the right direction, you can surely crack the UPSC exam.

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