I first attempted this exam in 2015 .I gave 5 consecutive attempts and reached two IFOS interviews. I opted out of this process in 2019 after failing to clear the interview.After that worked in state pwd department as Assistant Engineer and went to iim b for mba in 2022. I threw the dice again and attempted this exam in 2023 one last time in middle of hectic internship. I cleared prelims and gave the final mains in 2023. I married a girl who was a upsc aspirant herself and upsc prep played some role in getting AE job and later getting iim b admit.
From my experience, It is always better to be on the lookout for better opportunities rather than wasting time like i did till 2019. prepwise It is diminishing marginal returns after 2nd attempt for the time spent.
