CSAT 2012: Last minute preparation guidelines

Posted on April 24, 2012 by VPM Classes

CSAT stands for Civil Services Aptitude Test which was introduced in 2011 by U.P.S.C. CSAT is like an elimination round and selects candidates who can appear for Civil Services (Mains) Exam. The cut-off/pass score for the exam is expected to vary each year depending on the difficulty level of the questions and the number of vacancies projected.

The CSAT has two compulsory Papers of 200 marks each and of two hours duration each.

Paper I tests the General Awareness.

Paper II tests Logical Reasoning skills/Decision making skills/problem solving skills/Communication skills/mental ability/analytical ability/Comprehension skills/numerical aptitude/Data interpretation/English Language Comprehension skills

CSAT this year will be held on May 20, 2012. About 3, 00,000 people are expected to take the test and about 11,000 people will be qualified for the Civil Services (Mains) Exam.

Last Minute Preparation Tips:

At times, we at VPM Classes worry about how we can touch the lives of Civil Service aspirants and make a meaningful contribution that makes the difference between rejection and selection for an aspirant. We have come up with some tips that would help our aspiring civil service candidates in their CSAT exam.

Mock Tests: I know the exam is around the corner, and I would suggest the candidates to take as many mock tests as possible. Mocks are a valuable tool to understand what’s missing in your preparation, and, later, to realize that if you know everything – what changes you still need to make in the way you handle yourself during the real exam to get an optimum score. Your score on the CS (P) E will not only depend on your knowledge, intelligence and attitude but is also dependent on certain requirements that become clear only when you take the test.

Mock tests can give you clues on the following:

1) Easy questions on which we make silly mistakes which means that either we are not concentrating enough or we lack the stamina for concentrating for 2 hrs. You need to develop the ability for concentrating for longer hours.

2) A clear idea about your comparative preparation of the various topics and the delicate balance in your preparation between Paper I and II.

Always try to strike a balance in your preparation. Your purpose should be to master all those topics in which you are good at and convert your weak topics into your strength areas.

Work hard and smart – Nothing beats hard work but towards the later stage of your preparation, you need the edge of smart work to rise above others. Revise and master the concepts and rules taught in books and classes. Attempt practice exercises according to stipulated time and have the attitude – How can I get even a single question wrong?

If you get any question wrong analyse and figure out what made you select the wrong answer.

1) Am I completely familiar about the topic?

2)Is there a rule/concept that I knew but I could not apply it as I did not get the hint or keyword?

3) How does the right answer compare with my wrong choice? Refer to your textbooks, friends or teachers to find the response

Continue to practice regularly until you take your exam. Finish the last remaining practice material a few days before your exam. It’s best not to do it the day before, as you’ll want time to review the last test and work on any last-minute problem areas. If any specific topics are still giving you trouble, do some targeted work in those areas. Review your class notes, and practice questions dealing with those topics. Continue to work problems in the books that you trust.

During the examination be analytical in your response. In the first round attempt only those questions about which you are absolutely sure. Do not get stuck at any question. Go on moving from question to question and come back to the difficult ones at the end. Since there is a negative marking hence in the second round, attempt only those questions in which out of the four probable answers you are sure about two , so that there is a fifty per cent chance that the answer marked by you is correct. Try the elimination technique to arrive at the best answer.

Good Luck for your Preparation!

UPSC increases the number of seats for the All India Services

Posted on April 20, 2012 by VPM Classes

An increase in the number of seats for IAS and the allied services this year is good news for serious candidates who want to make it to the All India Services this year. IAS has been one of the dream jobs for many in the country ever since the services were created by the British Raj in the nineteenth century. At that time, the nomenclature was different, and the services were referred to as the Imperial Civil Services. The Indian government retained the system of administration, even after Independence, although it made some changes to the pattern of selection. The civil servants were given tremendous power and facilities, which made the services all the more attractive. Every year lakhs of candidates sit for the selection tests but few get lucky enough to crack the exam. Preparation for the exam is nothing less than a grueling exercise, what with the exam being conducted in three stages and each successive stage tougher than the previous one. However, increase in the seats is a relief for those category of candidates who although manage to score the desired cutoff, but are unable to make it to the final list because of less number of seats.

In 2008 the number of seats was 650, in 2009 it increased to around 800, and in 2010 it became 965 which happened for the first time in 20 years. This year the number of seats has increased upto 1037. What makes the IAS exam all the more special is that not only will it feature the new CSAT syllabus introduced from 2011 onwards but also the pattern will be different from the 2011 IAS exam.

The 2012 IAS Prelims: What You Need to Know

Some basic and important information about the Prelims -:

Most questions carry a negative penalty or negative marking of 0.33 marks for each wrong answer
Each paper will be of 200 marks each and 2 hours in duration. The number of questions in each paper is not fixed and can vary every year

2012 Prelims Syllabus

The new CSAT or Prelims syllabus was introduced from the 2011 exam and is as follows.

(Paper 1) (200 marks) – Duration: Two hrs

Current events of national and international importance
History of India and Indian national movement
Indian and World Geography- physical, social, economic geography of India and the world
Indian Polity and governance constitution, political system, panchayati raj, public policy, Rights issues, etc.
Economic and social development sustainable development, poverty, inclusion, demographics, social sector initiatives etc.
General issues on environmental ecology, bio-diversity and climate change-that do not require subject specialization
General science.
(Paper II) (200 marks) Duration : Two hrs

Comprehension
Interpersonal skills including communication skills
Logical reasoning and analytical ability
Decision making and problem solving
General mental ability
Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude etc. (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. Class X level)
English language comprehension skills (Class X level)
Questions relating to English Language Comprehension skills of Class X level (last item in the Syllabus of Paper-II) will be tested through passages from English language only without providing Hindi translation thereof in the question paper.
The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type.

How to prepare for UGC NET 2012?

Aside

The UGC-NET will be conducted in objective mode from June 2012 onwards. This move from subjective to objective pattern is significant, since this will fundamentally alter the approach towards the preparation of this prestigious national level exam. What is noteworthy is that there are minimum cut-offs for EACH of the 3 papers, i.e., paper I, II & III. Read below the details of this new pattern and the best approach towards cracking UGC NET.

The new pattern for UGC NET JUNE 2012:

The Test will consist of three papers. All the three papers will consist of only objective type questions and will be held on the day of Examination in two separate sessions as under:

Session	Paper	Number of questions	Marks	Duration
First	I	60 out of which 50 questions are to be attempted	50*2=100	1 ^1/4 Hours (9:30 am: 10:45 am)
First	II	50 questions all of which are compulsary	50*2=100	1^1/4Hours (10:45: 12:30 am)
Second	III	75 questions all of which are compulsary	75*2=100	2^1/2Hours (01:30pm:4:00 pm)

The candidates are required to obtain minimum marks separately in Paper-I, Paper-II and Paper-III as given below:

Category	Paper 1	Paper II	Paper III
General	40 (40%)	40 (40%)	75 (50%)
OBC	35 (35%)	35 (35%)	67.5 (45%) rounded off to 68
PH/VH/SC/ST	35 (35%)	35 (35%)	60 (40%)

Only such candidates who obtain the minimum required marks in each Paper, separately, as mentioned above, will be considered for final preparation of result.

However, the final qualifying criteria for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and eligibility for Lectureship shall be decided by UGC before declaration of result. The syllabus of Paper-I, Paper-II and Paper-III will remain the same. The candidates will be allowed to carry the carbon printout of OMR Response Sheets with them on conclusion of the examination. One big relief for students is that there will be no negative marking.

Preparation strategy for cracking UGC NET June 2012:

Now that the UGC NET exam is all set to be administered in the objective mode for the 1^st time from June 2012, the question arises, how should an individual prepare and what all should he keep in mind to qualify UGC NET.

The new Objective type test pattern would require candidates to practice each topic because questions can be expected from any area of the subject thus, extensive studying is required. What is particularly interesting is the apparent de-emphasis on the electives in paper III of UGC NET. Traditionally, paper III used to be the dreaded subjective section of this exam in which out 19 questions, 5 were from electives. Typically the number of elective would range from 1 to 5 depending on the subject. It appears however, that now no choice of electives may be provided, as paper III of UGC NET in the new pattern would consist of 75 questions, all compulsory. Nevertheless, while there is no change in the syllabus of UGC NET, one may wonder whether the expectation of UGC NET is that the aspirant be good at all the electives !!!

I would advice candidates to go through their course materials twice or thrice before taking up the exam, not to forget keeping sufficient time for revisions. Regular mock tests, atleast once a week should form a part of the routine. Mock tests gives the candidate, an insight on what his speed and level of preparation is and where all he should improve. For example, if a candidate is preparing hard and is still not performing well in the mock tests, he can analyse where his weakness lies and he can subsequently improve upon it.

Given that there is no negative marking, the objective paper would help the well prepared candidates to be luckier during the exam. However, taking sufficient number of full length tests under timed conditions can do wonders in scoring in an objective paper.

All the best for your preparations!