What reforms would you suggest in the Civil Services Examination if you had a choice?

1. Prelims: Conduct prelims twice a year. It's so frustrating people are lossing a year for a Russian roulette.

2. Mains: Reduce the number of questions. It has become a content vomitting contest. It should be made even more analytical to reduce the subjectivity of personality test.

3. Interview:  Reduce the marks variance.

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I feel only one recommendation is needed:

They should let a draw of lots determine the selection and i should be made the incharge of the draw of lots. No RTI to apply. Only one chit to be drawn at one time, rest to be thrown away without seeing. 

(DM me if you want to be friends with me)

On a serious note:

The paper this year were good. Not crazy not easy. Continue with that.

There should be around 18 questions only in the paper. 20 questions make it a race to write "something".

My Recommendations

Prelims

• Scores of both GS and CSAT should be included. A 60:40 (or similar) weightage scheme can be used
• CSAT should be standardized and should include English, Reasoning and Quant sections.

Mains

• Prelims score should be valid for a certain period(say 2 years). Mains should be biannual so a student can write multiple mains and improve his scores without having to go back to first stage every time.
• Optionals should be scrapped and so should the compulsory English language paper

Other suggestions:

• Increase the number of selected candidates after interview stage who should then be assigned an intern role starting at lower level with the Govt. 
• Final selection as well as allocation of services should be based on eventual performance in the internship period.

Prelims:

1. CSAT IMO is quite useless given that it is only qualifying in nature. Prelims as a stage requires minimal human input for correction. If someone is anyway going to scan all the CSAT papers in an OMR reader and then the OMRs for paper 1 of those that qualified, isn’t it much easier to just scrap CSAT altogether and just scan all the OMRs for paper 1. It reduces the randomness to a large extent as well and the amount of logistical expenditure.

Mains:

1. writing 2 language papers is redundant. Instead there should only be 1. For those who chose English as a medium should have to write an Indian language and those who chose other indian languages as their primary medium should write an English paper. Most of us already write 2 full essays in the essay paper and answers across the rest of the papers in one or the other medium, which makes one of the language papers entirely redundant. 
2. I feel optional papers could be done away with (despite really enjoying my optional). I find it just drags the exam over the course of two weekends which btw is really unfair for aspirants from less fortunate economic circumstances who require to travel to their centres and stay in hotels to give the exam. 

General:

1. Centres need to have uniformity with regards to their infra, which I’ve already seen some people mention here. After giving 4 prelims and 2 mains I’ve seen the disparity in the infrastructure of the centres. The first centre i gave my prelims had dimly lit classrooms with entire chunks of desks missing (yep you read that right) and barely had functional washrooms for girls. While the centre i gave my mains in had really nice facilities. A good centre does wonders for your mental composure.
2. Reduce either the age or the number of limits. Even though this would adversely affect a lot of older aspirants like me, but I seriously feel that too many people put in far too much of their time and continue out of sheer sunk cost fallacy.
3. People in service should be allowed to write for rank improvement only if they do not join service (like in the case of IAS or IFS). I feel it would make the system much fairer for 1st attempters.

REMOVE THE OPTIONAL...

SOME OPTIONALS ARE PERFORMING VERY WELL...SOME NOT...NOT A GENERAL RULE..

BUT TREND CAN BE EASILY OBSERVED IN RECENT TIMES...

IF NOT... THEN DO SOME REALISTIC NORMALISATION IN OPTIONAL

UPSC  should release model answers for Mains GS and optional just like answer key of prelims so that people have some idea what are the parameters of a good answer. It will be very  helpful for candidates who cannot afford costly coachings in Delhi  for years together or start late & lack good mentorship , preparing with a job or have graduation background other than humanities 

GS 4 should be removed . It cannot ensure that ethical candidates are being recruited rather has added one more subject for coaching institutes

Optional should be removed or if retained should have even lesser weightage. 

Prelims marks validity should be atleast for two years and Mains should be twice a year

In interview, name and personal details should not be  given to the panel to remove fear of biasesness from candidates

Based on my experience:-

1. People giving interview who don't get into the final list should not be put through the entire exam cycle without any benefit. There is a serious loss of talent happening given that only ~800 people find their names in the final list. 

2. I feel UPSC doesn't ensure quality of benches/infra at all in the mains. It should be a prime concern because it is not a 1 day affair. In this year's mains, we had 84 people writing in a small room at the Patna center. Optional paper had 2 people of same optional writing on the same bench. And this is after assurance of taking all precautions by the UPSC.

3. 1-2 years of preparation should not be invalidated by a 2 hours prelims test. Even if you have a 10-15 minute distraction in the exam [which may not be under your control], you are essentially out of the race.

4. It is extremely difficult to ensure parity of marks in different optionals. That, in my opinion in an inherent flaw.

5. There has to be some regulation on the amount of irrelevant stuff that is dumped on YouTube in name of UPSC preparation. This is not in UPSC's domain but still!

Reforms 2.0- 

Ask this question, as written in the title of this thread, in Gs 2.

I think every concern and suggestions have been addressed above. (I also think that Forum should form a committee to recommend changes to upsc :p) My thoughts/suggestions are:

1. Prelims stage is the most unfair one. It should not be framed just to eliminate a large number of people. In my opinion, prelims syllabus should be clearly defined and individual cutoff should be decided for each section of the syllabus. (Warna to toss hi kara lo. It would be a more fair process)
2. People with English medium and elite upbringing have a clear edge. UPSC should be more inclusive of other regional languages. Or, introduce “Latin” or any other alien language to make everyone equal. Or one should know atleast 3 languages for appearing in the exam. 
3. Optional paper should be scrapped. GS syllabus can be increased to add some essential topics from some optionals. Number of questions in each paper should be reduced.
4. At Interview stage, background information should be hidden, as it sometimes lead to the biasness. Psychometric test should also be included. A list of Assignment/topics (just like a list of essay topics) can be published before interviews, to prepare any one of them thoroughly, to gauge the conceptual depth of the candidate. BARC interview method can be emulated. They let candidate to choose the subject and topic of his choice and then frame chains of questions, to gauge the conceptual depth and clarity.
5. Minimum age limit should be increased, preferably around 5 years after graduation. The impatience with fresh graduates, to crack the exam at young age, render them exploited and vulnerable after some failed attempts.
6. A common recruitment agency should be made for union and state PCS.

 Inherent biases in the recruitment process should be addressed.

नहीं फूलते कुसुम मात्र राजाओं के उपवन में,

अमित बार खिलते वे पुर से दूर कुंज-कानन में ।

Prelims -

1. Transparency - why does this examination want to mess with an aspirant's head so bad? Releasing prelims marks once mains is conducted would be a good start. Why such secrecy and mythical imagery?

2. Vagueness - why is there so much vagueness when it comes to the prelims syllabus? I get the point of prelims as an exercise - totally fine by me - but why include vagueness to the mental trauma of an aspirant? One man's Prelims 365 is another's monthly compilation notes.

3. Inclusion - let both papers count. The ratio can be skewed, granted, but let folks who are good in English + Reasoning/Maths have a chance. If your objective is to create a low fruit cut off in CSAT with an obscenely difficult paper, what exactly is your motive? To remove candidates (some of who might be deserving) or to test talent?

4. Experience - At least a year of professional work experience be made an essential eligibility to fill up the form. This is pertinent from many aspects.

Mains -

1. Optional - As much as I would like to disagree, but I strenuously feel that Optionals should go. Today, it is Anthropology. Tomorrow, it will be Maithili Literature. The cycle will go on and on and folks will diminish their original source of knowledge in the zeal of finding an optional that is 'safe'. Super, super unfair to others who have a strong base in a particular subject - such as Pub Ad. Let the concept of 'butchering' and 'scaling' evaporate as a whole.

2. Time - I feel Mains needs patience and composure. Two papers a day is something I feel should be done away with. Hell, even life defining exams such as our boards had a paper a day.

3. Infrastructure - Candidates prefer writing mains from Delhi because of schools that have 'better' benches. This needs to stop. Why can't I write Mains from the comfort of my hometown of Kohima (for example) and be assured that it will have the same level of rigid & comfortable benches and other amenities as a candidate who is writing his Mains from Dholpur House annexe?

4. Relief - Upload answer sheets. If not for public viewing, then at least for the candidate. How do you expect someone to figure out their mistakes if they don't know what they are in the first place?

Interview -

1. Opportunity - For the love of mankind, please encourage PSUs + PSCs + other corporations to hire folks who have appeared for the interview but not made it to the final list. Give them some latitude or a pedestal. They have worked their tails off for something others wouldn't even think to.

2. Recording - This is something I feel every UPSC interview should have. Video recording. If not for anyone, but to be shown to the candidate every time he messes up in his professional career. Also, serves as a legible proof of record of a candidate's personality test, the questions of which can be analyzed later vis-a-vis other candidates.

3. Selection - Once selected, let the commission debar candidates from writing the exam further for the next one year or two. Controversial, I agree. But this is extremely unfair towards that one guy in the reserve list who would otherwise have a rank because this Jack decided that IIS isn't his cup of tea.

Peace.

For prelims:

1. Upsc should increase penalty marks for wrong answer to one-half, this will ensure people taking blind risks are disincentivised. This will encouRage attempting only those questions which one knows about. Tukka gangs will have to mend ways.

2. If 1. Not possible then merge gs 1&2 so that total of 150 question remain in one paper, 100 for gs and 50 for csat related. This will reduce the lottery system of sort that has developed in the last few years.

For mains: 

1. Do away with optionals. 

For interview: 

1. Two boards interview, 

Attempt and age should be relaxed .

Age should e increased to 35 at least as State pcs have their age limit of 40 years .

Ias needs much more mature people than pcs 

Second attempts should not be limited within the age limit .

It's a candidates personal choice to gve as many attempts he/she wants ..just like ssc cgl doesn't have attempts limit .