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[OFFICIAL] SFG 2021 | Level 3 | The Last SFG for Prelims 2021 | Details and Important Announcements | Updated 1st August @6:30 PM

SFG 2021 - Level 3 : The Last SFG for Prelims 2021

Dear Students, 


As we enter the 3rd year of SFG – Select Focus Group – one of our most innovative programs for successfully cracking the Prelims Examination. Based on your feedback, we continuously innovate and update our programs, keeping in mind the dynamic nature of the Civil Services Examination, the rising standards of Civil Services preparation, and increasing competition – partly because of capacity development and fast-paced self-learning programs like SFG. 


Note: Please subscribe to the "SFG 2021 - Level 1, 2 & 3" channel for all the updates related to SFG 2021.

https://forumias.com/channel/SFG-2021-7th-Jan

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Update #8

Instructions for attempting the SFG 2021 - Level 3 tests:

https://go.forumias.com/538

The tests will go live strictly at7 AMand will get auto-submitted at8 AM.

Update #7

Results declared for SFG 2021 - Level 3

Results for SFG 2021 - Level 3 has been declared, please check if you are selected for Select Focus Group (SFG) or Reserve List Group (RLG).

Ranklist for SFG 2021 - Level 3:https://go.forumias.com/529

Payment link for students selected in SFG (Select Focus Group) - Rs. 2400 + GST (18%) per month

https://go.forumias.com/530

Payment link for students selected in RLG (Reserve List Group) - Rs. 2900 + GST (18%) per month

https://go.forumias.com/531

Note: Deadline for accepting the fees is 31st July by 5 PM. After that fees will not be accepted

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Update #6

Registrations for SFG 2021 - Level 3 are now closed. If you have missed the registration for any genuine reasons, you can fill up this form below, and our team will reach out to you. No phone calls or emails will be entertained apart from the form below.

Click here:https://go.forumias.com/528

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Update #5

Instructions for attempting the SFG 2021 - Level 3 Entrance test:

https://go.forumias.com/527

The test will be conducted in Online mode on 25th July at 09:30 AM in the morning.

Update #4

The detailed exam plan (Calender) for SFG 2021 - Level 3 is now available. 

You can see the detailed plan - https://go.forumias.com/sfglevel3-calender

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Update #3

Syllabus of Entrance test for SFG 2021 – Level 3:Candidates can expect 30 questions distributed across History, Polity, Economy, Environment, Science & Technology, International Relations and Geography. Further 10 questions will be from Current Affairs of May, June and July months of 2021 and 10 questions from CSAT.

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Update #2

Entrance Test Date - 25th July 2021

Registration Link - https://go.forumias.com/525

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Update #1

SFG 2021 Level 3 - Calendar Released - 20th July | 08:00 PM

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SFG – How it works 

              • Select Focus Group (SFG) is a small group of students who are selected by ForumIAS every year for coaching them to clear the UPSC Prelims Examination. Every single candidate selected and retained consistently in the group with Top ranks has cleared the Prelims examination in the past.
              • 100 Students will be selected for the Select Focus Group, through the SFG Entrance Test, who will be required to report at 7AM every day 6 days a week to write an hour-long test based on a pre-planned syllabus, followed by a discussion on the same. 
              • Candidates who are unable to make it to the SFG will be maintained in a Reserve List, who can also write the tests. 
              • Tests are conducted daily and results are provided within 8 hours of test with a Name and Rank list for candidates and parents to evaluate their daily performance. 
              • All candidates writing the CSE 2021 are eligible to apply for the entrance test. 


              SFG Level 3 - The Last SFG for Prelims 2021 


              The SFG Level 3 is a 40-day capsule program with the following objectives:


              • Developing problem-solving skills for solving analytical, conceptual and thought based questions. 
              • Developing skills to solve questions based on the application of the reading that they have done for Level 1 and Level 2. 
              • Mastering the art of handling questions from unknown areas and applying concepts from their wider reading which is relevant for the Civil Services Prelims Examination. 
              • Developing time management skills, and being through with the syllabus 
              • Providing a reliable, time-bound framework for revision just before the examination. 

                

              Application Procedure 


              • The program will commence from 2nd August, admission to which will be entrance based. The Entrance Test will be conducted on 25th July. The results of the Entrance Test will be announced the next day i.e. 26th July. 
              • Admission to the SFG and RLG are based on the rank of the candidate in the merit list of the SFG Entrance Test. Students can apply for the program by registering for the Entrance Test by paying a fee of Rs. 500+ GST. Candidates can register by visiting https://go.forumias.com/525. The candidate must appear for the entrance test on the designated date and time, subsequent to which he/she will be admitted to the Select Group or the Reserve List. 


              • The candidate must pay the program fee as per the group he/she is allocated. 

              Note:   Admissions to the SFG / RLG Group will only be on the basis of the merit position of the candidate in the entrance test. The Entrance Test will be held on 25th July. Candidates must register for the SFG Entrance Test by visiting https://go.forumias.com/525. No admission will be granted to the candidate without appearing for the Entrance Test. 

              Fee Structure and Details: 


              The course duration is about 40 days and fees will be charged after your selection to the SFG/RLG list. Fees for the full duration of the program is to be paid before 1st August. 




              Important Dates:


              SFG 2021 Level 3 - Calendar Released - 20th July | 08:00 PM

              Entrance Test – 25th July 2021 | 9:30 AM 

              Result of Entrance Test - 26th July 2021 | 05 PM

              Last Date for Fee Payment – 1st August 

              Program Commencement – 2nd August 


              -- 

              Wishing You Success, 

              Always, 

              ForumIAS Academy 

              Neyawn,ssver2and25 otherslike this
              267k views

              333 comments

              UK01said

              @Neyawn Sir If possible please have a strategy session or kinda motivational session for SFG aspirants while just odd 50 days left. It will a boon for everyone in such a crucial time.


              @UK01 give some tips man.. How were you able to handle today's paper so well.. ??? What all sources did you refer to?

              necromancer,
              6.6k views

              Neyawnsaid

              @sator But imp topics like AIPA (Paris committee), IAIS being asked in SFG tests are missing. How to handle them? Even topics that are mentioned (like ADMM Plus) are mentioned like the subscript in MF forms. Cannot solve qns even after a thorough read. How do you attempt them? CA is giving a hard time.

              Hello,

              You may feel lost sometimes, but trust me you are not. You need to be very clear with your strategy,

              And at this point it should be -

              #1 I will do one magazine thoroughly, and answer anything that comes from it.

              #2 I will try to do test papers, and if something is from the monthlies, I should solve it, or revise the monthlies. If it is not from the monthlies, I will just add to my knowledge / database.

              You are good to go, daughter of the Mountains ( if that is what your screen name means ! ) 

              Sir ji,@Neyawn 

              It will be great if forum ias comes up with yearly compilation of atleast 'pointly' subject wise, if not 'factly+pointy', it will be of great help in revision. Please consider this. 

              sjerngal,
              6.9k views

              @Neyawn Hi sir ,one query is there 

              till now for geography i have covered 6 to 12th class ncert thoroughly but i have not covered G C leong yet .what to do @ this right moment.i am not able to solve many sfg questions too.


              6.4k views

              @Neyawn 

              Sir , please do a session involving must do things in these two months considering  non SFG candidates as well. I have watched the last year videos on youtube. But with every session you have some new tips to share. Please do a strategy session Sir. 

              sjerngal,Muffin
              6.4k views

              Neyawnsaid

              satorsaid

              I have got a huge doubt after reading Corrigendum of Test 3, for question 28.
              Earlier@Neyawnclarified that "general" statements are to be treated true, without going into the exceptions.
              In Q28 of Test 3, Statement says All business pending before Lok Sabha's Committees lapses on its dissolution. Which is true "generally". But exception is the pending assurances before Committee on Govt. Assurances, which do not lapse.
              Despite knowing the above facts I got the question wrong yesterday, due to this confusion.
              Can anyone please clarify.

              Hello,

              I am sorry an advice on the Internet put you through this jeopardy. This is not what I meant when I said you should think if a statement to be generally valid , it is true.

              I should have given a more radical example.

              When we have statement that says All X is Y, if you have an explicit exception, sometimes just mentioned in the same chapter or the next paragraph , you must count that exception and mark it as an invalid statement.

              Think of saying like this "We cannot say that All business pending before Lok Sabha's Committees lapses on its dissolution" as ....

              When you have a known exception, sometimes clearly listed in text, the statement will cease to be valid.

              Also, the statements which can be generally true will likely be in an unexplored area such as environment and science & tech ( such as an application of bio tech - which you have not heard of ) and there you must take it as a general statement.

              Also, if a statement is given, and it is from an unexplored are in the standard text and you have to solve it by application of knowledge ( and not knowledge itself ), you can consider a statement to be valid, if there is a "possibility of it."

              For example, drones can help fight wars in land , air and water. Now you dont know of drone inside water, but is there a possibility of naval use of drones in some way? If yes, it will be avalid statement.

              Thanks sir, for the reply and the clarification. 🙏🏻

              6.4k views
              @sjerngal I had followed NCERT alongwith Khullar for remaining topics. Nowdays (Level3) syllabus is too vast to cover specially in Geography. Even it's a challenging one,Considering it one of final thorough revision of all topics with current affairs entire single day is not enough.

              sjerngal,Shailputri
              5.9k views
              Hello PEOPLE... IS ANYONE OUT HERE who is about to start studies for tomorrow's  test ? For any reason whatever if yes do reply
              5.6k views
              Is it just me or did someone else also feel that there is extremely low cost benefit analysis in preparing History for the prelims. Highly demotivated today even after revising so many times, had a pretty bad paper.. 
              BigChonk,Infinitybeyondinfinityand2 otherslike this
              5.1k views
              @sjerngal same.
              For me it was the worst SFG score ever lol

              Jitna 2 ne build kiya confidence, utna hi level 3 feels like Vision's ABHYAS to me.
              OR
              maybe I was grossly underprepared, I'm still processing :3

              Infinitybeyondinfinity,Rashmirathiand2 otherslike this
              5.4k views


              Recounting this sweet memory from SFG 2019 :)

              Much has changed now wrt my outlook towards scoring low in mocks.Low scores are not bothering anymore. Earlier, it was a roller coaster ride every morning. Overtime, it has added to emotional strength and stability.

              Keeping a note of what works and what doesn’t on daily basis really helps in the long run. Good luck dostoen : )


              Neyawn,Joeyisthebestand7 otherslike this
              6.4k views
              Is it just me or did someone else also feel that there is extremely low cost benefit analysis in preparing History for the prelims. Highly demotivated today even after revising so many times, had a pretty bad paper.. 

              Umm... *JustLegPulling after ranklist update*

              sator,
              4.1k views

              does anybody feel like that completion of syllabus is a challenge in itself? and even completion of syllabus for the said day guaranteeing good marks? 

              or is it just me?

              Blueberry,Infinitybeyondinfinityand3 otherslike this
              4.6k views
              does anybody feel like that completion of syllabus is a challenge in itself? and even completion of syllabus for the said day guaranteeing good marks?

              True.
              Syllabus is an endless chase. never been able to cover more then 60-70% of given syllabus (saving the rest for another round). But also realised that marks are not directly proportional to covered syllabus as it happened in today's test where I was 90% syllabus prepared. *Sadness engulfs*

              THE_MECHANIC,reachanukriti834
              4k views
              Is it just me or did someone else also feel that there is extremely low cost benefit analysis in preparing History for the prelims. Highly demotivated today even after revising so many times, had a pretty bad paper.. 

              Umm... *JustLegPulling after ranklist update*

              I wanted to do the same 😅

              4.3k views
              @sjerngal I've given 2 prelims, and cleared one.
              The trick with Ancient, Medieval and Modern History is to know the minimum. Your guide should be the PYQs and nothing else.

              What I mean by 'Know the minimum' is you should know certain things. You can't go into the exam not knowing details about Battle of Panipat, or Ashokan Edicts, or the biggest IVC site, 4 Buddhist Councils etc. Basically these questions are easy, and every serious candidate will mark them correctly. You cannot afford to miss out on those +2 marks. The medium ones are open to guess/elimination, based on your knowledge. and the difficult ones should not be your concern. 

               In modern history, look at the kind of questions that have been asked over the last few years. There are 2-3 questions which nobody knows, and the 6-7 are medium to easy which more or less everyone will attempt. Your focus should be on those 6-7 questions, not the 2-3. There are certain things which you should know, eg. Gandhi in national Movement, Pre Congress organizations, some peasant revolts etc. These are non-negotiables(refer PYQ). The rest, including Rakmabhai, Desher Katha etc is completely unnecessary for candidates. The time you put into finding an answer for some obscure question is better utilised in revising the core areas.

              Have been giving SFGs since my last attempt, and I know a lot of the questions look very very difficult. Please don't let mock test scores dishearten you. They are primarily there for practice, honing your strategy, extra information etc. Consider it a learning experience, rather than a matter of life or death. Nobody is going to ask you how much did you score in X SFG test.

              Addendum- I don't mean to say you should leave somethings in the syllabus, but you should be practical with the time that you have left.
              sjerngal,THE_MECHANICand3 otherslike this
              3.8k views
              @Shailputri glad to know that we all share the same kind of problems. i agree the completion of syllabus has no bearing on the test marks sometimes 


              4.2k views

              TH14said

              @sjerngal I've given 2 prelims, and cleared one.
              The trick with Ancient, Medieval and Modern History is to know the minimum. Your guide should be the PYQs and nothing else.

              What I mean by 'Know the minimum' is you should know certain things. You can't go into the exam not knowing details about Battle of Panipat, or Ashokan Edicts, or the biggest IVC site, 4 Buddhist Councils etc. Basically these questions are easy, and every serious candidate will mark them correctly. You cannot afford to miss out on those +2 marks. The medium ones are open to guess/elimination, based on your knowledge. and the difficult ones should not be your concern. 

               In modern history, look at the kind of questions that have been asked over the last few years. There are 2-3 questions which nobody knows, and the 6-7 are medium to easy which more or less everyone will attempt. Your focus should be on those 6-7 questions, not the 2-3. There are certain things which you should know, eg. Gandhi in national Movement, Pre Congress organizations, some peasant revolts etc. These are non-negotiables(refer PYQ). The rest, including Rakmabhai, Desher Katha etc is completely unnecessary for candidates. The time you put into finding an answer for some obscure question is better utilised in revising the core areas.

              Have been giving SFGs since my last attempt, and I know a lot of the questions look very very difficult. Please don't let mock test scores dishearten you. They are primarily there for practice, honing your strategy, extra information etc. Consider it a learning experience, rather than a matter of life or death. Nobody is going to ask you how much did you score in X SFG test.

              Addendum- I don't mean to say you should leave somethings in the syllabus, but you should be practical with the time that you have left.

              Thanks a lot man. I agree with whatever you said, it does make a lot of sense. The schedule has been so busy that I haven't been able to devote time to analyse PYQs completely. Hopefully , I'll do that tomorrow. .. 

              3.7k views

              ForumIAS PLEASE DON'T MANUFACTURE FACTS

              Q45 in SFG T-11, both the statements appear to be general statements rooted in truth, seemingly matching with the Scheme given in the question. According to your answer key, they're both incorrect. Do you expect us to remember all the features of a random scheme?

              On top of a below average performance in the test, one has to deal with such questions, which are literally the figment of the examiner's imagination.

              It is considered to be a general thumb rule that UPSC doesn't manufacture facts, and if such statements are encountered in the real exam, we will mark both statements correctly. I don't think it is healthy to upset our strategies, and make us second guess ourselves, that too when the exam is near.

              3.2k views
              I disagree mate. UPSC regularly features such kind of questions where even after releasing the answer key people are disputing their versions. ‘Horse bones’ would be a well known example. Last year you had the free legal services question. 

              In this question, there isn’t any manufacturing of facts. There’s a scheme, the options listed aren’t provided for in the scheme and thus incorrect. We can’t simply expect the options to be correct because they’re seemingly in line with the ‘feel’ of the scheme. 

              Instead, such questions teach you how to be better. You either know, in this case I can understand most wouldn’t because we can’t remember all aspects. So you don’t, and you could either deduce, here you can’t clearly say that your deductions would be correct. Or you could simply leave the question. 0 is better than -0.67

              If you go by the rule that ‘seemingly’ correct statements should be marked correct, your strategy is faulty and that’s where your frustration should be directed. While Forum might not set ‘perfect’ papers, the level is generally good enough and in this specific instance, I feel your grievance isn’t rooted in reality. 
              Nehab,
              3k views
              Where do we post our doubts in Qn/explanation? Feedback form?
              3k views
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