Starting the preparation with an imaginary cut off in mind: Many people have this mistaken notion that there is some magic cut off, above which you are bound to qualify the preliminary. I was also swayed by the discussions of this sort during my first attempt. This would unnecessarily unnerve you during the examination if it is a tough paper. Remember always, there is no laid down cut off mark. If it is a tough paper for you, if you are a serious candidate, it will be tough for everyone, and the cut off will go down. Don't chase an imaginary golden deer.
Believing thumb rules given by toppers: Many toppers advice students to attempt a large number of questions, so that your chance of getting more marks increases. I think you should borrow the investment principle that Benjamin Graham preaches in the book “Intelligent Investor”. You should always keep a margin of safety. Do not blindly attempt 80/90 questions. It is a sure shot way out of the prelims list. Unless you keep to this rule , you are bound to be bogged down by your own mistakes.
Studying till the last day: All study and no revision is no better than no study. Keep this etched in your mind. Your revision should start atleast a month before the exams. Do not listen to this advice, if you have started studying only a month before the exam. In fact, don’t listen to any advice at all. You are all on your own.
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Delaying that test paper: Test papers are not practice boards to just score yourself. It is almost like reading pages picked from random text books. If you delay writing mock papers, you are delaying your selection into the civil services too.
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Group Discussions: I will let you in on a secret. Group discussions, in 90% of the cases, are a waste of time. You swerve from the path, and end up discussing that latest movie. Or it ends up being a debating competition where you are at each others faces to show who is the more knowledgeable one. Don't try to be all that. Your job is to study. Unless and otherwise it is a subject that you need help with, don’t talk too much. It saves energy and time.
Being the late comer: Many people roam around the exam hall and finally enter the hall only at the last moment. I consider this a mistake. You should enter the hall well before the prescribed time. It is a time to reflect on your studies for the last few months, and congratulate yourself on having chosen this path. I always used to tell myself before the preliminary paper, that whatever be the result, I did a great job. It gave me immense courage to attempt that extra question of which I knew only half the answer. Find out what puts you in the mindset of a fighter and do that in those final few minutes.
Filling the OMR sheet carelessly: It doesn’t matter how well you have studied for the exam, if you end up marking your roll number wrongly. You might think this is an uncommon error. Believe me, this is one of the commonest mistakes candidates make during the exam. Another mistake is to try to wax off a wrong bubble from the OMR sheet. Don’t risk you entire exam over 1/3rd marks lost.
Not giving the respect that CSAT deserves: CSAT is an easy paper. I feel that way. It is debatable as it is relative. However, this does not mean that you should study for the CSAT paper all through the year. Do some model question papers and figure out how much time you need to put in for this paper. Remember, this is a purely qualifying paper, the syllabus of which will be totally useless in the remainder of the exams. I never studied for CSAT. I think this might very well be the case for all engineers ( atleast the ones who studied for engineering entrance properly)
Studying exclusively for prelims: Preliminary Examination is only qualifying in nature. This means that it doesn't matter whether you score full marks or barely scrape through. I am reminded of the numerous debates on “Tina Dabi” during my year. Remember, whatever be the case, she scored the first rank even though she barely scraped through the preliminary examination.
Worrying too much: Take this from an elder brother. Don’t worry too much about the exam and its result. UPSC examination is an experience that you will savour for many years. It is so atleast in my case. If you don’t enjoy preparing for this exam, then you are missing a lot. Believe in yourself and study things with a curious mind. From this side of the exam, the road that you travelled is much, much more beautiful.
A lot many other things come to mind. But let me stop it at this. These were the main mistakes I made during my first attempt. I made sure I avoided all of this in all the subsequent CSE Preliminaries that I wrote. And I can tell you, I managed to comfortably get through the preliminary without any worries.
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