Announcing Applications for FRC 6

Dear Friends,

Dreams are made of these.

From the very first batch of ForumIAS Residential Coaching, Sharma ji ka ladka, Abhishek Sharma has secured Rank 38.

We are delighted to share that we are now inviting applications for FRC 6.

We are looking for Civil Services aspirants who are appearing for the Civil Services Examination 2026, have written 1 or more attempts ( and have 2+ attempts left ), and have not found success so far.

The candidates must be willing to commit to 8-10 hours of studying on a daily basis, and meet the demands of the rigour of the program. They must be physically fit to sit for long hours that is needed to prepare for the examination.

The ForumIAS Residential Coaching provides an integrated facility with accommodation, library, classroom and mess in a single campus so that time of the candidate is saved in commuting. FRC -6 will be held at Tapasya Campus, which falls within Delhi NCR region.

Previous experience

We are also happy to share that Abhishek Sharma from the very first batch of FRC – FRC 1 has secured Rank 38 in the Civil Services Examination. Abhishek was part of both FRC -1 for prelims and FRC -4 for the Mains examination. He had given two prelims before but could not find success.

You can watch the feedback for the program in the video below.

FRC – 6 is a rescue batch, inviting applications from candidates who have given two or more attempts at the Civil Services but are facing issues in clearing the exam in their previous attempts. Admissions to the batch is strictly on the basis of merit through an entrance examination based screening process and an Interview.

Compared to FRC – 1 which was a prelims batch only ( FRC 4 was the Mains Batch only ), FRC – 6 will be a pre-cum-mains batch.

FRC 6 will be conducted in 3 phases and students program for the full fees cannot be paid at one go. Students will have to pay fees for the stages of the program as they progress. Further non-performing students will be eliminated at different stages so that they do not end up wasting money in coaching without any output for themselves or for the academy.

FRC is a result oriented merit based coaching initiative by ForumIAS that aims to provide candidates an academically rigorous course based on classroom and regular test taking along with competitive peer group, right environment, guidance and mentorship that can enable them to clear the examination in one go.

We have already had an iteration of the program for our students. Here is what Shri A K Sharma, a teacher in Navodaya school whose son Abhishek Sharma cleared the exam has to say

“After not clearing Prelims two times, a candidate loses hope. ForumIAS identified the potential of my son and groomed him to become an IAS.”

Phase 0 – online / remote / at home

This is the phase that precedes Phase 1 ( which will be offline only ). Once a candidate is accepted in the FRC – 6 Batch, he will be required to finish some assignments and finish off some online class before he comes to the residential academy ( “Tapasya Campus” ). The reason behind this is that in the initial batches of FRC – students claiming to have been preparing for 3- 4-5 years had not studied much in reality and had read half of laxmikant, bit of spectrum, some lightweight courses on YouTube / lightweight edTech coachings assuming it to be Civil Services preparation. Two weeks into the program and in the campus, a number of students realised that they had not studied anything from past year apart from few months of annual prelims preparation. Thus, going henceforth we want students to finish off some assignments and modules if needed before coming to the campus. This will prepare them for the competition that follows once the course begins.

Phase 1 – residential only

Phase 1 is likely to commence from August 5th and will be of approximately 4.5 months duration. During this there will be classes + daily tests and targets so as to ensure coverage of Mains subjects. We would like to have a good Mains preparation as with earlier batches our experience was that candidates claiming to have been preparing for UPSC for 2 or more attempts had zero preparation for Mains and thus, as an academy it was very difficult for us to get selections in the final list from the students who cleared prelims. Learning from our experience, we have redesigned the program on the lines of the CGP program where we were able to get dozens of selection including Minal Karanwal ( watch video ). Phase 1 will be completely residential.

There will be a break of 1 week to 10 days between Phase 1 and Phase 2. Candidates who are not able to qualify for phase 2 due to poor effort / attendance / scores in test will be required to leave the campus to enusre quality of peer group and avoiding unnecessary expenditures on coaching without results.

Phase  2 – residential only

Phase 2 is 5-5.5 months program starting in the second week of December. This will be completely be prelims focused. In Phase 2.1, we shall have a mix of classes and daily test taking at 7AM covering the prelims syllabus. In Phase 2.2 we shall have SFG level 2, Current Affairs classes, CSAT Workshops. The program will carry on till 1 week before the Prelims examination.

How to apply?

Selection to FRC is based on merit, through a screening process.  Interested students may apply for the program by paying a non-refundable, non-adjustable registration fee of Rs 200+ GST by visiting https://academy.forumias.com/events/

Once registered, the applicant will be sent a QCA booklet ( Question-cum-Answer ) Booklet within 48 to 72 hours of registration. The candidate is expected to take a print of the booklet and write the questions in one’s own handwriting and in own language.

The candidate then must scan and send the PDF of the copy back to us. Once evaluated, the candidate will be informed of his selection. After this, in case the candidate is accepted in the program, the candidate must sign the acceptance document and send it back to us. The timeline for acceptance will be provided in the ensuing email after which the seat will be given to other deserving students.

Merit Based Selection with diversity 

FRC 6 is a merit based program with about 40% seats for women candidates. Further, to have an All India character ( as is the service ), we try to take 2 candidates from every state. [Fun fact : FRC 1 had two students from the NorthEast. Nickolson from FRC 1 ( Manipur ) also cleared the prelims for the very first time. ]

Who should NOT apply?

1. Candidates who cannot and do not have Civil Services examination as the only priority during the course of preparation.
2. Candidates who do not have the physical fitness to sit for long hours
3. Candidates who just want to get away from home and enjoy a staycation in the foothills of Aravallis ( some rooms have the Aravali view)

Eligibility

1. Candidates must have appeared for at least one prelims before.
2. Candidates must have at least 2 attempts left for the Civil Services Exam.
3. Candidates should be willing to move into the FRC Tapasya Campus located in Alwar ( In Delhi NCR )
4. Candidates should have a consent form from their parents allowing you to do so.

Procedure for application

1. Candidates who are interested in joining the program must apply by paying a registration Fee of Rs 200+ GST by clicking here.
2. After paying the fee they will be sent a Question paper with space in it to write down the answers in their own handwriting. Candidates must take a print out and answer the questions in their own handwriting. They should then scan it  and make a PDF ( not click photos and send a jpg file) . Use any app like Oken or Adobe PDF and send it back to us ( Instructions will be there in the booklet itself ).
3. Once the booklets are received, they will be confirmed for the SFG ( Residential ) within 5 days of their QCA submission.
4. Candidates must send acceptance for the program within 14 days along with the seat reserve charges. If they fail to do so, the seats will be passed on to other deserving candidates.

Approximate Costs of Accomodation

1. For twin single occupancy rooms  – Rs. 30,000+ GST/month . For students enrolled in FRC 6 – Rs 19,800 per month – payable in two installments for the full course duration phase wise ( 75:25 ratio ) .
2. As of now we have done away with twin sharing rooms given that habits such as listening to music, loud snoring at night, socialising in the room leads to ruining the result of the roommate and directly impacts our result.
3. Electricity charges will be extra at Rs 12/unit and will be through a third party pre-paid meters based on actual consumption.
4. Accommodation. Food, Basic Wifi and library facilities will be provided to selected students at no additional cost.

Important Dates

1. Date of Announcement of the Program – 30th April 2025
2. Date of commencement of Program – 5th August, 2025.
3. Registration Commencement Date – 30th April, 2025

Academic Fees & Charges* ( Estimated cost and may change by 10% )

1. Application fee – Rs. 200+ GST Non Refundable – Click here to pay
2. Course Fee :
   1. Phase 0 & Phase 1 – Rs. 44000 for Group 1 ( 50 students ) and Rs 59000 for Group 2 ( 100 students ) [ Pre-cum-Mains & Mains – Covering all 4 papers )
   2. Phase 2 – Prelims only – Rs 19000 for Group 1 ( 100 students ) and Rs 33000 for Group 2 ( 100 students )
3. Seat Reserve charges* ( if selected ) – Rs. 8,500 – non-refundable and to be paid at the time of acceptance so that we do not get frivolous acceptances
4. SFG Level 2 fee – Rs. 0 ( Entrance Fee will have to be paid and they will have to clear entrance like other students )
5. Study Hal / Library Fee – Rs. 0 till the Prelims examination.

*Seat Reserve charges = These charges will be payable to ensure that students should be serious about the program, given the limited number of seats. In case after paying the student wants to withdraw from the program no refund will be made. However in lieu of this, the student will be provided with Study material from ForumIAS including Prelims toolkit and Red Books.

Refund Clause for academic fees ( except seat reserve charges )

Fees are to be paid by the students in a phase wise manner, and fees cannot be paid for the full course duration at one go. We have a fair refund policy as per below.

1. 1. Withdrawal up to 15 days before the actual program commencement date = 100 % refund of hostel fees. ( 0% deductions)
   2. Withdrawal within 15 days but up to 72 hours / 3 days before commencement of program = 90% of hostel fee. (10% deductions)
   3. Thereafter there will be no opportunity for withdrawal for the students. All fees deposited will be forfeited. (100% deductions).

For any queries or questions, you may write to ravi@forumias.com

Frequently asked questions

Can I do this online?

This is not an online program. Candidates interested in this will have to move to our Residential Coaching in Tapasya Campus

Can working students join this?

The rigour of the program is such that it will be difficult for working candidates to join the program

Is there an entrance Test for joining the SFG – FRC ?

Yes, there is no other way to join the program apart from through entrance test

Will I get free stuff? Will I get free coaching?

Umm, ForumIAS will provide the classes and a lot of tests free of cost, but don’t come for the free stuff. We are looking for 50-100 competent students, who have not cleared the exam before and to help them to nail it. We think that as a professional academy for IAS exam, it will be challenging for us to do so, and we enjoy taking up such challenges. The hostel / accmodation/ food/electricity charges will have to be born by you.

Is this a social service?

We are a coaching, and we don’t see it that way. If at all it is a social service, then it is so because it will probably help a few dozen people clear the exam, after having given up on umpteen things.

How many students do you plan to admit?

We plan to admit 30 students into the program as of now, who are willing to give their blood, sweat and tears.

What if I don’t study or have other goals in life that I want to pursue?

It is likely that some students may realise that during the course of the program that they want to do something else in life. Even if SFG program, we see students not have the consistency for doing one thing everyday ( and choose to do new things everyday ). In such a case, on the basis of comprehensive assessment and attendance ( including test performance ) , students may be asked to leave the campus after Phase 1. This will help save the candidate’s financial resources and the academy’s reputation of producing good results.