GENERAL STUDIES STRATEGY: ForumIAS Follower Sipu Giri, Rank 175, Tips on Answer Writing Practice

GENERAL STUDIES STRATEGY

Sipu Giri, AIR 175, CSE-2016

I believe one of the core reasons for me being able to crack the exam in my very first attempt is giving this attempt as my final attempt. I took all the stages of exam very seriously.

I wrote test series and got it checked from seniors. Regarding test series, I would just say that test series are very important in bringing you in the mood of the exam and your practice of test series help you in finishing the question paper in time.

I had decided that I would attempt all the questions in exam and would not leave any question because of paucity of time.

Regarding form of answer writing, I followed the general intro body conclusion format. I preferred writing in points with suitable heading and subheading and highlighting the key words. I believe this heading and subheading with underlining makes the answer very attractive and easier for the examiner to read.

Regarding approach to each question in mains should be to first read each question at least twice and underline the key words. Then, ask yourself what the question asks. This is important because usually all the questions in mains have 2-3 sub-parts and most of us tend to answer only one aspect. Besides this, it also helps us in answer the question to the point. This is important because this way we can answer the question to the demand and also in short time. I would like to emphasis more on this as i believe this is very important.

In the initial days of my answer writing practice, I usually used to take 12/15 min per question besides often diverting from the point which the question was asking. This is where i understood the importance of reading the question twice/ thrice , underlining the key words in the questions and understanding the key aspects which the question demanded to be answered.

Once i was clear with the demand of the question, I just put it my answer framework. It is common for all questions. It has two components. First, in intro body conclusion and second is addressing the various aspects/ parts of questions in heading and subheading format.

Also, I would say that answer writing practice is very important. You should try and write as many answers as you can. In mains, more than reading a lot of books writing a lot of answers is more important.