UPSC CSE experts share tips on choosing right optional subject

UPSC CSE: With a month to go for the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary tests on May 28, followed by the main exam on September 15, 2023, the IAS Exam is one of the most sought-after government exams, drawing more than 10 lakh people annually.

Candidates taking the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination in 2023 will need to provide information such as the centers for the Civil Services (Main) Examination, the Indian Forest Service (Main) Examination, and the optional subject they intend on taking.

With numerous considerations to make, choosing the right optional subject requires thorough evaluation of many factors. As the bulk of UPSC candidates endure tremendous stress and confusion at this stage, a select group of IAS officials and experts offer a few recommendations.

Importance of choosing right optional subject

Mr. Bankesh Pawar, an IAS officer who earned an AIR 516 in the 2020 UPSC, believes that selecting the first optional subject is tremendously important and one must select a subject that they are certain to perform well in.

“There are 48 UPSC optional subjects from which the candidate can choose one subject. Each optional subject in UPSC comprises two papers (Paper I and Paper II) carrying 250 marks each, making it a total of 500 marks. Hence, the weightage of the optional paper is 30% of the final score,” he added.

Another UPSC ranker from Maharashtra, Mansi Narendra Sonawane, claims that the choice of the first optional subject will determine whether you make it to the list and your service.

Best Optional Subject in UPSC

According to Mr. Bankesh, “The candidate should select a subject that they are passionate about. For example, if you are an engineering student but literature intrigues you, choose it. But other objectives that one needs to keep in mind are the availability of materials, Guidance and Overlapping syllabus with General studies.”

While Ms. Mansi feels that there is no such thing as the best optional subject. “You will have to assess your comfort level with the subject as one has to study in depth for the optional. So if you are not comfortable or if you don't feel interested in an optional , it is not the right optional for you,” she said.

IAS Omkar Pawar, who secured AIR 194, in UPSC 2022 suggests that technical subjects like Mathematics fetch higher marks as the answers in it are absolute. However, non-technical subjects such as Political science and Sociology give more preparation time and reading material as it has good overlap with the General Studies syllabus.

Coaching can help candidates make right decisions

According to Ms. Mansi, coaching has minimum utility in guiding a candidate through the pattern of the exam, and getting acquainted with concepts and syllabus.

“However, the tendency of generating herd mentality can arise due to coaching which can be harmful as upsc demands authenticity which is the only way you can differentiate yourself from rest of the aspirants,” she further added.

While Mr. Omkar feels that since there are now sufficient resources available, coaching is not necessary.However, if one is financially secure and there are no hardships, one can unquestionably select the ideal coaching facility,” he stated.

Things to keep in mind before finalizing the optional subject

Mr. Bankesh advises candidates to examine the previous year's test questions and read the fundamental texts or books of the optional subjects one is interested in.

According to Mr. Omkar, candidates should consider their graduation subject, the appropriate materials accessible, and their enthusiasm in a certain subject before finalizing it.

Other factors to consider

After a certain amount of preparation, Ms. Mansi believes that the UPSC is essentially a mental game in which everyone is roughly on equal knowledge ground. When preparing for the exam and on the day of the exam, it is more important to maintain mental stability and consider it like an exam without attaching any significance to it.