[Toppers Interview] Harshika Singh (AIR 8 /CSE 2011) Without Coaching, shares her journey and strategy with us
Introduction
| Name | Harshika Singh |
| Roll number | 006368 |
| Rank (CSE 2011) | 8 |
| Optional Subjects |
|
| Medium for Mains Exam | English |
| Mains Examination Centre | Delhi |
| Number of Attempts | 2 |
| Details of Graduation and Post-Grad. |
|
| Schooling (Medium) | English |
| Extracurricular activities, hobbies, achievements etc. |
|
| Are you a working professional? | No |
| Did you take Coaching? | Prelims: No Mains: No Interview: No |
| Did you buy any postal courses? | Yes |
| Did you join any Mock test series? | No |
| Did you appear in any other competitive exams? | No |
| If yes, provide the details: | NA |
Inception
Q. When and how did the inspiration and idea of joining civil service come in your mind?
To be a Civil Servant was a childhood dream for me and especially when I realized and understood the intricacy of the service it became a passion for me.
The Choice of Optional Subjects
Q7. After a person decides to appear in civil service exam, the first big obstacle is “Choice of optional subjects”. What factors did you consider before selecting your optional?
In my case as I have a background in Economics so that was a natural choice and for my second optional my keen interest in Anthropology was the sole reason for selecting it as my second optional
Momentum
Q. People initially prepare with much enthusiasm but then a boredom phase comes – they don’t even find the motivation to read the daily newspapers, let alone studying the books. How did you sustain the study-momentum throughout the year?
I prepared a balanced strategy at the very beginning of preparation. I roughly made a mental preparation plan and ensured on a daily basis that I am following it thoroughly.
Any person who is preparing for CSE faces the frequent bouts of enthusiasm and boredom. Even I faced it especially in the evening hours.
Any person who is preparing for CSE faces the frequent bouts of enthusiasm and boredom. Even I faced it especially in the evening hours.
When I was bored or lacked enthusiasm ,I took a break..saw TV ,went on Facebook etc-did anything that diverted my mind but only for max 10 mins.
After that I reminded myself of my dreams and was back on my study table.
After that I reminded myself of my dreams and was back on my study table.
Hours
On an average, How many hours did you study per day? How many months did it take you to complete the core syllabus of GS and optional subjects?
I studied till the time I was able to concentrate..roughly 8-10 hrs daily and I was preparing for CSE since 2009 December for my first attempt in 2010(AIR Rank-640).
However I feel 1 year of intensive study is sufficient.
However I feel 1 year of intensive study is sufficient.
Internet
How did you use computer and internet for your exam-preparation?
Since I did my preparation from home (ranchi) Internet was the only source of information and guidance for me. I used internet for keeping myself updated on the front of the news and world affairs,for updating myself on recent developments in the field of economics and anthropology and also for Science and Tech portion.
Essay
- How did you prepare yourself for the essay?
- Which Essay did you write in Mains-2011?
- What were your keypoints in that essay?
- How many marks did you get in that essay?
I did not do anything special for Essay.I used to read the editorials of newspapers seriously and in case I found some interesting quote etc I noted them down. I also made a tentative list of essay topics and practiced writing on one of it.
I attempted the essay on the topic “creation of small states and its implications”.
I tried to keep my language very simple. I also ensured that my essay is very comprehensive. I got 100 marks in essay.
I attempted the essay on the topic “creation of small states and its implications”.
I tried to keep my language very simple. I also ensured that my essay is very comprehensive. I got 100 marks in essay.
Phoenix
Q. Serious players get mentally shattered and depressed after failure in competitive exams. How did you cope up with failures and rose from the ashes again? What had gone wrong in your previous attempts? How did you fix those issues in your 2011’s attempt?
Yes, I did went in depression after my first attempt’s result in 2010(though I got AIR 640 then) .Maybe I had more expectations. But thanks to my parents who helped me to regain back my senses .In my first attempt paucity of time and associated superficiality in my preparation was a major problem.In this attempt ,I tried to rectify this.
Profile
Many aspirants fear the interview, thinking that “my profile is not good because
- I’ve low marks in SSC/HSC/College,
- I don’t have any extra-curricular certificates,
- I don’t have work experience,
- I graduated from some unknown college,
- I’m from non-English medium and so on…”
So, How important or relevant is the profile of a candidate during interview?
I believe CSE interview is solely “PERSONALITY TEST” and as it is CSE is a great leveler where a post doctoral is competing with a simple bachelor’s degree holder.So one’s profile doesn’t play a much important.In stead its You and your dedication that matters. As far as I am concerned ,I would accept that I had a “so called relatively better profile” but with my two years of CSE interview experience .i can say that at the end of the day ..its your personality test..that’s it.Varied medium people should never feel that they are at any disadvantage.If you are confident about what you are and can be original in the interview room …you are bound to succeed.
Backup
Q. In case you had not cleared the UPSC exam, what was your career/future backup plan?
I would definitely be disheartened. However, in case if things would have gone in different direction than I had expected, I would have moved towards a career in academics.
Family and Friends
Q. Behind one topper are many people who stood by her during those uncertain times when she was merely an ‘aspirant’. Would you like to tell the world, who were those people in your case? Any specific incidence that you would like to share with the readers?
Definitely ,in my case there were many people behind the scenes who helped me to achieve my dream. My parents who stood by me through thick and thin.Their one statement after my first result in 2010 attempt that “You can do it and you will do it,give it a second try” helped me to regain back my senses and I decided to give my 100% for that one dream.
My elder brother and sis –in-law were always there for that much needed “confidence boost” ,my friends who were there as my “vent for frustration” and most importantly some of my professors /teachers who were my true friend,philosopher and guide.
One instance , I would like to share….usually by the night , I was so drained out that I did not had the strength to read out loud (and I would admit I am in the habit of reading out loud)my GS and Anthropology materials. At that point in time , my mom would just read them for me and I used to hear them while laying down.At the end of a chapter, I used to summarize it and that was how I covered some portions!!!!In the evenings , when any aspirant is facing that bout of frustration, my dad would take me to a close-by ice-cream shop for that much needed “Ice-cream dose”…these are small instances but would like to say these instances mattered a lot !
Your Study plan
CSAT (Paper I) General studies
| Topic | Source of your preparation | remark, if any |
| Current Affairs | Thorough and intensive reading of newspapers like TOI,The hindu,IE(only for editorials),ET,magazines like frontline ,CSR,Chronicle,Yojana and the Economist. | Always keep yourself updated with issues happening around you.I am a news maniac ..won’t ask you to become one but start loving and following news..i am sure you will start enjoying it as well. |
| History Ancient/Medieval/Modern | Spectrum and Vajiram Yellow book +some NCERTS | |
| Physical Geography | All the four NCERTS of 11th and 12th | Be very thorough with them |
| Geography of India | “ | |
| Geography of World | ||
| Polity and Governance | DD Basu/Laxmikant/Vajiram yellow book | |
| Public Policy | Internet and self made notes | |
| Rights issue | Same as above | |
| Environment and Biodiversity | Internet, IGNOU materials | |
| Economic and social Development | Economic Survey/PD special issue on Economy/Internet | |
| Science | Sriram notes+internet+chronicle special issue | |
| Economy | Economic survey/India year book |
CSAT (Paper II) Aptitude
| Syllabus Topic | Source of your preparation | Remarks, if Any |
| Quantitative Aptitude | R.S agarwal+Manuals like that of Unique,arihant,intenet sources and even some basic practice papers for CAT | |
| Data interpretation | Same as above | |
| Logical reasoning | ||
| Reading comprehension | ||
| Decision Making and Problem solving | I tried to practice some questions which were available on net | During exams just read these questions very nicely and calmly . |
Mains Examination
Compulsory Language papers
| Source of your preparation | |
| English | Went through the previous years question papers |
| Indian language paper | Went through previous years question papers and practiced writing essay in Hindi almost like a month before the exam |
General Studies paper I
| Syllabus Topic | Source of your preparation |
| History | Spectrum/Vajiram yellow book |
| Culture | Spectrum+internet |
| Geography of India | Four NCERTS of 11th and 12th Std. |
| Polity | DD basu/Laxmikant/Vajiram yellow book |
| Issues of social relevance | Internet +magazines like chronicle |
| Indian economy and planning | Economic Survey |
| Public health | |
| Law and order | |
| Good governance | |
| Environment |
General Studies paper 2
| Syllabus Topic | Source of your preparation |
| India and the World | Prepared self notes while reading newspapers |
| Indian diaspora | internet |
| India’s Economic interaction with world | Extensive reading of Business newspapers |
| International affairs and institutions | Newspapers |
| Statistics | Practiced from Spectrum esp the graphs etc(but since I have economics background,did not need much preparation for this) |
| Science & Tech. | Sriram study materials+internet |
Optional Subject #1 and #2
For both my optional I emphasized on making my concepts very clear and re-read the textbooks. I read all of these books, different books cater to different portions of the syllabus so i have just enumerated them
Economics
For Paper 1
| Microeconomics | Ahuja and Koutsyansis |
| Macroeconomics | Ahuja Mankiw |
| International Economics | Salvatore basically and for some random parts M.C Vaish |
| Public finance | Lekhi Dalton H.L Bhatia |
| Money and banking- | S.B Gupta Ahuja RBI website |
For growth and development i followed Mishra and Puri/there is another book by lekhi on it(it covers the syllabus so its bit handy)/ debraj Ray-development economics an extensive use of internet for some new developments in same
Paper2
| Indian Economy part from | Dutt & Sundaram Mishra & Puri Uma kapila |
| Economic survey | http://indiabudget.nic.in/index.asp |
| Economy and Political Weekly | http://epw.in/epw/user/userindex.jsp |
| any one business newspaper like ET/FE etc | http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/ http://www.financialexpress.com/ |
Anthropology
- The comprehensive list of Anthropology books i followed was
| Topic | Books |
| Physical Anthropology | B M das/P Nath |
| Social Anthropology |
|
| Indian Anthropology | |
| Anthropological Thought | Upadhyay/ Gaya Pandey |
Extensive use of internet for keeping myself updated about any new anthropological development.
Interview
How did you prepare for the interview? What questions were asked?
For my interview ,I brushed up every small aspect of my background,my home state,my optional etc(all the information furnished by me in DAF).
I was in Vijay Singh Sir’s Board.Interview board was very cordial and cooperative. Questions were mixture of World economics+my hobbies+world affairs+some decision making questions and some questions on my home state ,Jharkhand
I was in Vijay Singh Sir’s Board.Interview board was very cordial and cooperative. Questions were mixture of World economics+my hobbies+world affairs+some decision making questions and some questions on my home state ,Jharkhand
Marksheet
ROLL NO:006368
NAME:HARSHIKA SINGH
CIVIL SERVICES (MAIN) EXAMINATION, 2011
NAME:HARSHIKA SINGH
CIVIL SERVICES (MAIN) EXAMINATION, 2011
| SUBJECTS | MARKS |
| ESSAY (PAPER-III) | 100 |
| GENRAL STUDIES (PAPER-IV) | 144 |
| GENRAL STUDIES (PAPER-V) | 132 |
| OPTIONAL-I(ECONOMICS) (PAPER-VI) | 133 |
| OPTIONAL-I(ECONOMICS) (PAPER-VII) | 213 |
| OPTIONAL-II(ANTHROPOLOGY) (PAPER-VIII) | 196 |
| OPTIONAL-II(ANTHROPOLOGY) (PAPER-IX) | 175 |
| WRITTEN TOTAL | 1093 |
| PERSONALITY TEST | 204 |
| FINAL TOTAL | 1297 |
Remarks: Recommended.
Message
Q. What is your message to the aspirants?
Dream a dream and make a determined effort for that….you will surely succeed. Never get disheartened. CSE preparation is a beautiful and life changing experience. Live it and you will enjoy and relish it forever. All the very best for all your endeavors.
Finally the most important question!
Magazines related to competitive exams, have established the most sacred unwritten rule of conducting Topper’s interview: the last question has to be a loaded question :
“how did our XYZ magazine help you in preparation?”
In the era of blatant marketing propaganda, I also have two similar but unloaded questions.
- Did you use indianofficer.com for your preparation? If yes, How did it help you?
- Did you use mrunal.org for your preparation? If yes, how did it help you?
And You can reply “No”, yet it’ll be published without distortion.
Ans. I was an IO member and the forum helped me a lot from compiling the book list for my optional to serving as a platform visiting which helped me to stay connected to the world of CSE aspirants from across the country.Thank you IO for that.
I never visited mrunal.org though.
I never visited mrunal.org though.
End of interview.
If you wish to congratulate, compliment, or ask any follow up questions to Harshika Singh
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