I managed 463 in GS in 2017 CSE. Many people make a mistake while trying to get more marks. They try to jump directly to answer writing and skip notes making.
I have mentioned before that I used to write 10 points and 15 points for 10 & 15 markers respectively.
From where these points will come? Of course from well made pointed notes that are revised about 5–6 times.
Hence I gave due importance to notes:
Made current notes from The Hindu+ vision monthly.
E-notes help in easy mutations-editing-additions-sorting.
As you revise your e-notes, edit them& make them as concise as possible.
Process:
Divide content paper wise and topic wise. Example make separate doc for GS-2 IR, GS-2 Policies, GS-3 Science, GS-3 Security etc.
For newspaper, you can use hardcopy or online edition. In my last attempt, I read The Hindu online and directly copy-pasted important lines. It saved time.
Vision monthly magazine has a time lag of 15 days. So there is no option but to wait.
Meanwhile, revise your newspaper notes once. This will give you good idea of what news you have in notes.
From vision magazine pdf add to your newspaper notes only what’s missing.
Mains REVISION Strategy
Revise notes at least 4-5 times during the course of preparation. I used to revise all my MAINS notes 5 to 6 times.
Revise according to test series plan or create your own plan in line with a test series if you are doing self study.
It is MANDATORY to write 1 test per week.
Make sure that you give each and every test after proper revision only.
As optional revision is also needed (3-4 times), concise notes shall be kept ready in advance. Then only revision of whole optional is possible in 1 rest day provided before optional exam.
Keep reviewing your timetable.
For last 15 days before MAINS, newspapers can be skipped and entire course shall be revised.
Revise relatively easy subject first.
Keep GS-1 last and revise society notes for essay paper.
Ethics shall be prepared so well that you don’t need to study it at all in last 15 days.
Guess Questions In Advance
Prioritize issues with multiple revisions.
Once notes of particular issue like GST, Privacy, Energy security, Cyber etc cross 2–3 pages, it becomes important.
At times there are questions from one-off news.
Keep important dates/events in check. Example, WIA 100 years of formation led to women rights question in 2017. 100 years of Champaran can lead to a question in CSM 2018.
Check syllabus. Questions in 2017 GS-3 were asked from syllabus topics like terrorism, insurgency, cyber, food processing etc. These topics become less important for CSM 2018.
About 3 months is what one gets between Prelims and Mains. With experience of 4 Mains, I can say with full confidence that these 90 days end quite quickly!
IMPORTANT FACTORS TO KEEP IN MIND: Rest, Timetable, Newspaper backlogs, Notes making, Balancing Current & Static GS, Balancing optional & GS, Multiple revisions, Answer writing practice / Tests and Regularly updating oneself with latest trend
DETAILS:
First thing that comes is a couple of days REST. Key here is to not prolong this rest beyond 3-4 days. Even here, one should be planning for next stage.
Formulate TIMETABLE. If you are joining a test series, which is much recommended, then follow its timetable. Otherwise, make your own. Without a timetable, the preparation becomes directionless.
Normally, these tests begin after 10-15 days of Prelims. So plan ASAP.
Do not panic because of NEWSPAPER BACKLOG. One can read even 6-7 newspapers in a day and clear 1 month’s backlog in 4-5 days. Thereafter read newspaper on daily basis and MAKE NOTES either daily or weekly. Do not let backlog develop again.
Newspaper / Current make for GS-2 and GS-3. Let the content grow! Writing GS-2 & 3 tests in first month with not enough current build up makes no sense. This is BALANCING CURRENT & STATIC GS.
Hence, in 1st month or so, prepare static GS including Essay, GS-1 and GS-4. Prepare Optional along with static GS. Write tests for Essay, GS-1 and GS-4.
Meanwhile, enough content will build up for GS-2 and GS-3. Prepare these and optional. Write tests. THIS BALANCES OPTIONAL, CURRENT AND STATIC GS.
Generally, following a test series religiously would help you in revising a content 2-3 times if you prepare for and write all the tests.
But 2-3 revisions are not enough. One needs 4-5-6 revisions. Accordingly, one has to make space for MULTIPLE REVISIONS in timetable. 5-6 revisions help in easily recalling 10-15 points in exam.
Also, ANSWER WRITING PRACTICE is needed apart from tests. Here focus must be on answer structure rather than clock!
Lastly, a mistake many (especially ‘veterans’) commit is not UPDATING ONESELF with trends in ‘market’. New optional notes or a trending new book can come handy!
Answer Writing Strategy
My scores in GS: 2013: 340, 2014: 387, 2015: 426, 2016: — and 2017: 463
Assuming that you have worked on basics of answer writing which include:
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