As the Civil Services Exam to be conducted by UPSC for 2020 is just 6 months away, it’s only natural for the IAS aspirants to plan the preparation for the same. Prelims is the first stage faced by the candidates in order to clear the IAS Exam. And what’s more important, (and needs to be understood with crystal clarity by all the IAS aspirants) is that though UPSC is not going to include the score in the Prelims to decide the final rank when the Civil Services Exam result is declared, you must clear the Prelims for it is the qualifying Exam.
In case, you fail to qualify the Prelims, UPSC would simply not allow you to appear for the Mains. Thus, it’s but obvious that if you do not take the preparation for the Prelims seriously, you are only erecting a barricade in between you and your goal, i.e., the Indian Administrative Services.
Preparing Notes: the most effective strategy to prepare for the Prelims
As it’s mandatory to qualify the Prelims, if you want to go ahead with the next stage of the Civil Services Exam, i.e., the Mains, almost all of the IAS aspirants would like to equip themselves with some suitable strategy or another and also keep some time for revision as well.
Though every IAS aspirant might have a relevant preparation strategy of his own, preparing the notes effectively for the topics you have been studying, often proves to be the most effective one. Preparing the notes simultaneously while you go ahead with the syllabus UPSC prescribes enables you to keep a track of all what you have been studying.
Thus, the probability of skipping over any important details, facts etc., gets minimized while you would be revising for the Exam. It would help to manage the time as well for you would not have to turn the pages all over again for finding the information required, specifically when you already do not have much of the time before the Exam.
5 Important Tips to Prepare the Notes Effectively for the Prelims 2020
It’s important to note that once you prepare the notes for the Prelims in an effective manner, you are also paving your road to success for clearing the Mains with a good score. Once you qualify the Prelims, the very same notes would help you save the trouble, and time, of course, to read all the books all over again in order to prepare for the Mains. Your notes would help you keep in touch with all the knowledge you have already gained while preparing for the Prelims and make it easier for you to study further from thereon for the Mains.
Read on to get familiarized with the important tips to prepare the notes effectively for the Prelims.
1. Study and prepare the notes simultaneously:
Wherever and however you prepare for the Exam, be it a classroom session or self study, it’s always advisable to prepare the notes simultaneously. Preparing the notes while you attend the classroom sessions and revising them regularly would help you understand (and retain in memory for longer than usual spans of time) whatever has been taught by the faculty in the coaching institution.
Besides, be sure that your notes are selective and as per your requirements for every student understands what he finds easier to grasp and what is a bit more complex for him. And, apart from being selective, your notes should have the entire relevant information that might be required by you in order to qualify the Prelims with a greater ease. Besides, the self prepared notes prove to be quite useful while making revisions.
2. Be precise:
Your notes should be precise and to-the-point. There is absolutely no scope for any diversions and/or digressions. Making use of flowcharts and/or tables and maintaining the notes for various topics in different notebooks would also help you to keep them organized.
3. Keep it simple
Remember you are taking down the notes in your words so that you may revise with ease and retain all what you have been studying in your memory for longer than usual spans of time. So, why make it complex? It’s best to keep it all simple including the language and whatever tables/charts/graphics and quotes etc., that you prefer to include in your notes.
4. Stay unbiased
It’s best to stay away from any kind of bias. You might find a particular perspective/topic/subject etc., more interesting than others. But, it’s best not to waste time on any of these issues. Simply stick to the UPSC syllabus and maintain an absolutely unbiased perspective rather than studying any of the topics with a prejudiced bent of mind for such an individual does not make up for an IAS officer who can do justice to his job.
5. Keep a provision for the new inclusions
What if you have been preparing notes for the current affairs that are subject to change as further developments take place. So, it’s advisable to leave a page blank after you finish taking down the notes for a specific topic in order to leave a provision for the new inclusions, be it current affairs or whatsoever.
Finally, the notes prepared by you should aim at making your preparation and revision for the Exams easier. So, keep the notes simple, crisp and precise as far as possible. It’s best to keep the complexities at bay for that would only make the process of revision quite cumbersome. And revision is something that is simply indispensable and must be undertaken as frequently as possible. Thus, the notes that you prepare should be such that it gets easier to revise and you are left with enough time to undertake the activity as often as required.
Useful Article to Read:
A Few Quick Tips For IAS Preparation
Top Trickiest Questions Asked in IAS Interview
UPSC Exam Preparation Strategy for beginners
