Whether to resign the present job for IAS preparation
Almost all working professionals who aspire for Civil Service have this question(also tension) in mind. Whether without resigning I will have sufficient time to prepare for Civil Service Exam. Whether I can compete with competitors who are preparing full time 24 x 7. My answer is, 'DO NOT RESIGN". I am not telling out of sympathy or empathy from your family's financial point of view if you resign. I am not telling because of the reason, 'What will happen if you do not qualify in CSE after resigning'. Rather if you plan your preparation intelligently, you have certain advantages when compared to full time aspirants who prepare 24 x 7, especially if your age is above 25 years. Why its better not to resign? My conclusion is based on following reasons.
1. UPSC does not check knowledge alone in the process. This 1 year preparation tests your mental strength also. Full timers have more stress when compared to working professionals. Many buckle under pressure before Prelims or Mains or Interview. Whereas working professionals are comparatively less stressed because they have a fall back option. Full timers after 25 years of age will have tremendous societal pressure in a country like India and that stresses the candidates like anything. Stress is one of the major barrier for success in Prelims, Mains or Interview. As an IAS/IPS officer you are expected to be cool despite pressure from multiple corners. So this examination process implicitly tests your stress management during Prelims and Mains, and explicitly during Interview. So working professionals have this advantage because they are comparatively less stressed.
2. If you have crossed 25 years, UPSC expects you to be working. You should not be a liability to your family or society. You are supposed to contribute to the GDP of our country. So many committees like Alagh, Hota, ARC II have stressed this factor and asked Government to reduce the age as it is a social cost. I am not for age reduction. But UPSC Interview panel will give more marks for a working professional who has crossed 25 years of age when compared to a full timer who has crossed 25 years of age.
3. Every year so many working professionals successfully clear this exam(so why not you also next year). Twice I have successfully cleared all 3 stages of Civil Service Exam. First time I got 294th rank and landed in IRTS and second time I got 59th rank and landed in IAS. Both times I was working(first as Lecturer and then as an IRTS officer). Not only me, so many of my batch mates were working professionals before they qualified CSE. Amongst my students in Officers IAS Academy, I see not only full timers but also working professionals equally qualify CSE every year.
So my suggestion is, DO NOT RESIGN especially if you are above 25 years of age. But don't be of the assumption that you can clear the exam without hard work. You have to be passionately attached to your goal of IAS every minute. Even during Office hours try to read newspaper/Current affairs magazines when ever you get free time. Try to revise in lunch breaks(You can take notes in palm sized cards and take subheadings of what you have read in the previous night or early morning at home). You should not waste even a single minute. Every day after office hours you have to read. Every day get up in the early morning and read.When we get up early morning and read(4 am to 7am), we can cover many more chapters compared to day time reading.
Therefore my suggestion is, if you are fresh from college, then better go for full time preparation. But if you have crossed 25 years of age, then its better to work and prepare for Civil Service Examination.
