UPSC exam: New format will test your aptitude

Those writing the Civil Services Preliminary Examination (CSE) 2011, pay heed. Instead of choosing an optional paper, you will have to appear for two compulsory papers of 200 marks each.

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) had earlier announced an imminent change in the syllabus and pattern of the preliminary examination to be known as Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT).

This change is in accordance with the UPSC's argument of being able to choose civil servants with the right aptitude, and also end the use of the scaling system.

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The new structure

Paper I

It will include current events of national and international importance; history of India and Indian national movement; Indian and World geography -- physical, social, economic geography of India and the World; Indian Polity and governance -- Constitution, political system, Panchayati Raj, public policy, rights issues, etc; economic and social development, sustainable development, poverty, inclusion, demographics, social sector initiatives etc; general issues on environmental ecology, biodiversity and climate change -- that do not require subject specialisation and general science.

Paper II

It will comprise questions on comprehension, interpersonal skills including communication skills, logical reasoning and analytical ability, decision making and problem solving, general mental ability, basic numeracy of Class X level (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude etc; data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc) also of Class X level; and English language comprehension skills (Class X level).

The questions for both the papers will be of multiple choice, objective type.

It may noted that while UPSC has announced changes in the CSE (Preliminary) with effect from 2011, the pattern for the second and third stages, namely the CSE (Mains) and Personality Test in the scheme of the examination , would remain the same.

Focus of preparation

Dr Parul Yadhav, a trained a psychologist, who has been coaching Common Admission Test (CAT) students for the last six years, decodes the aptitude test. According to her, the syllabus is quite vast and all encompassing. "Since the level is kept minimum, the surprise element in the test will be high. Prelims are after all an elimination test," she says.

So the number of questions would be high, and the test would primarily check the speed and accuracy of the test takers. The questions would also assess candidate's ability to examine and understand complexity. The verbal comprehension invariably would be the least surprising according to her, and she is seconded by Prof Sanjay from the New Delhi-based Excel Academy.

Since the English language has so far been just a qualifying examination, the test at least in the initial years would not have the difficulty levels of say a CAT, he predicts. The model questions, which the UPSC will put up in the coming days, will give a clearer idea to the candidates.

According to him the preparation strategy must be to expect the worst. Since it is a two hour exam, he says the comprehension passages would be short but complex and very situational. So one needs to develop a keen sense on how to compartmentalise information and establish quick relationships. A good command over the vocabulary would also help.

Practice makes perfect

Commenting on the change in syllabus, Prof P S Ravindran, Director Vajiram & Ravi (coaching institute for CSE), said, "It is a welcome change and the introduction of an aptitude test would certainly engage the students' mind." Students must not get carried away since of the two compulsory papers, the General Studies (GS) paper will dominate, he cautions.

However, at the preparation level, he said, the aptitude test would require a lot of practice. The change would be slightly advantageous to students with a science background, which the UPSC might consider to even out.

Until this year, though the candidates had to appear for two papers, they could choose a subject paper of their interest, obviously their strong area. From next year, there will be no subject-specialised paper.

A disadvantage to non-English medium students?

Some aspirants say, the difference would be that the candidates will have to focus on the English language and General Awareness, and at the same time prepare and practice more on reasoning and mental aptitude.

Student reaction has been quite diverse. Priyanka Singh, an IAS aspirant, for the last three years, will attempt the exam for the last time in 2011. She is totally against the change. A student from the regional language medium, she contends that making English language comprehension compulsory with marks, would put students like her -- with just about average English language skills -- at a disadvantage.

On the other hand Virbadhra Singh, a fresh MSc graduate from BHU is all for the aptitude test. A first time test taker, he argues that this change would make preparation easier and open up other career avenues for Civils aspirant.

"After the first attempt, if I did not qualify I can at least now compete for other competitive examinations like Bank PO with out much additional preparation," he says.

"Overall the long awaited change is quite encouraging. The inclusion of contemporary subject matter such as environmental ecology, biodiversity, climate change is good. But need to wait for the detailed syllabus by UPSC to comment further," says Prof Neetu Singh, a renowned academician who also runs coaching classes for CSE in New Delhi.

Scoring pattern

A crucial factor concerning many is the imbalance in scoring pattern. Up until CSE 2010 Prelims, the General Studies paper (GS) accounted for only one mark per question while the optional paper had 2.5 marks per question.

Now both papers will have the same weightage. Two, due to the varying number of candidates appearing with a particular optional and its difficulty level, the final result was prepared after a process of scaling. This new pattern will provide a level playing field without any scaling in the Civil Services Preliminary Examination.