The UPSC conducts many competitive exams and one among them is the Civil Services Exam, and it is considered hard to crack this exam. After graduation, when the candidate decides to start preparing for this exam, they do a lot of sacrifices like not taking up the job after graduation and being unemployed for ‘n’ number of years till they get selected in this exam or any other competitive exam. 

Even though lakhs of candidates aspire to get selected in the UPSC Exam, only a few get lucky to see their name in the final list. This is the hardest truth of the UPSC Exam and people aspire to become IAS Topper knowing all the pitfalls in the journey. A few know how to handle the downfalls in the journey and few struggle to cope up with it. 

Once the exam is cleared, and the aspirants see his/her name in the final list, then their life will change entirely after that. But before that, the aspirants have to pass a test of patience, knowledge and perseverance. In this article, you will learn a few tips on how to secure final selection in the IAS Exam. 

Tips to Secure Final Selection in UPSC IAS Exam

Here are some tips to secure final selection in IAS Exam:

1. Have a Definite Goal – Have a proper reason regarding why you want to join the services. It is a cliché question asked by the UPSC Interview Board to all the aspirants who attend the interview phase. The answer to this question is important because when you are low in your preparation phase, the answer to this question will be your inner motivation factor to bring you back on track again. 
2. Focus on Personality Development – While preparing for UPSC Exam itself, imagine you will be joining the services soon and develop your attitude towards that and build your personality to become an Officer. Also, the aspiring candidates can imbibe a few interpersonal and intrapersonal skills which will gain an edge over other candidates in the interview. These qualities cannot be built overnight and have to be worked on over a period of time. 
3. Study Hard – There is no shortcut to success. The syllabus is vast, and this exam has dynamic subjects. In addition to this, this exam is so demanding in nature and needs full concentration while preparing for the exam. 
4. Minimise Distractions – It is an obvious fact that it is tough to stay motivated and focused for a period of two years (one year preparation period, one year is the exam process period). Since the period is long, the aspirants become tired in between and get distracted. Even though the aspirant has studied harder, has finished revising all the subjects and doing pretty well in all the mock tests, the aspirants have to try and minimise the distractions as once fallen out of the trajectory, it will take time to catch that pace. 
5. Small breaks – The aspirants can take small breaks and reward themselves for a week’s hard work or 2 weeks effort. This will help in reducing the stress during the preparation phase and these small breaks will make you come back with more energy needed. 
6. Be prepared for all the Levels – Do not start preparing with an attitude to prepare for Mains and Interview only after clearing Prelims. This exam has three stages with interlinked and inter-related topics and subjects. Therefore, a full view approach is needed to crack the exam. 
7. Know the exam pattern – Always have the scheme of the exam in mind and concentrate on things that will secure your selection. For example, Indian language paper and English are compulsory but at the same time, it is qualifying in nature and not counted for the final merit list. Likewise, the marks of prelims are also qualifying in nature. The marks of other papers in Mains and Interview are counted. So, focus on that to get maximum marks. The more marks, the better rank, the higher chances of getting your choice of services and cadre. However, the qualifying papers should not be ignored for that sake because they also hold significance in the selection.
8. Appropriate selection of Service and Cadre – After you clear the Mains, you will be asked to fill a Detailed Application Form, which will ask for details related to service preference and cadre choice upon selection. The commission says that there will be no change in the choice made after the final merit list. Therefore, the candidates have to fill this form with great caution and assurance. 

Not everyone on the final merit list gets posted as IAS Officers. There are many types of Civil Services Post and depending on the rank, category and many other criteria, the posting or the service and the cadre will be allocated. After the final merit list is out, 2-3 weeks later, the service and cadre will be allotted to the selected candidates by the commission.