How to crack Indian Economics Service exam easily
You may often hear that the IES exam is a pretty hard exam to crack but we believe that it’s not entirely true. Economics has real life applicability, everything we see and hear around us has an economic implication. So you just need to have a more evolved understanding of the subject to crack your IES exam along with the right strategy, mindset and techniques. If you have a bachelors in economics or a masters then you’re already on the right path because you already have more knowledge of economics then a layman does. So let’s see how you can crack this exam easily as well.
If so, then what are the main obstacles you face during your preparation ?
There are were mainly two obstacles which you may face during your preparation, the first is consistency as you may start with a high drive but eventually it fizzles out when you think that you have studied enough and now you don’t want to anymore but consistency is very important which we can master by reminding ourselves that why we did we start in the first place.
The second obstacle especially for this exam would be that there are a lot of books for common wisdom but when you read those books and then when you attempt the actual papers you realise that there are a lot of gaps but you shouldn’t get disheartened and understand that this is the nature of this exam. You’ll always have to put extra effort to be a part of the top 15. So an aspirant shouldn’t be disheartened when what they have read is not a part of the previous paper. We believe it is a matter of trial and error and you learn that along the journey.
How do you mentally prepare yourself for this exam?
This journey and its outcome is very unpredictable so you should be prepared for everything and keep going. Apart from that you are the person who you should be convincing, not your parents or friends for which you can refer to the material available online or talk to seniors and friends and get to know more about the service itself, which would motivate you further as then you’ll have purpose in your journey and you’ll know why you’re doing it.
Also when it comes to preparing yourself mentally you should take every day as a new challenge and think I’ll learn something today which I haven’t before, which was an interesting part which will keep you going. So always think more about the journey rather than the end result. This may not work for everybody but the fact that everyday you would get to learn something new will keep you calm yet focused.
What should be the paper wise preparation and what extra should be done that sets you apart from others.
- Starting with English, that is something which can give you an edge over others because people tend to ignore that and focus only on the four main economics papers. It is something which has a higher rate of return if you invest in it, which means even if you invest a little on it the returns you’ll get will be high. We would suggest taking out quotes for all the broad themes so for eg. health is a theme, women is a theme so you can note down those quotes and put a quote in the beginning and at the end with some anecdote in between that it will set you apart from the common crowd. Try adding anecdotes as well as, that is something which will give an extra edge to your answers. Apart from that we would suggest you go through previous years papers to understand the level of difficulty of the grammar which gave me a good idea.
- For general studies the exam is divided into four parts, history, geography, economics and polity. So economics gets covered when you are preparing for the rest of the papers so for history, geography and polity start by doing the past year papers.
- . For micro economics read H.L Ahuja, because it has everything repeated ten times which gives you a lot of confidence but you shouldn’t get scared by its length as it will give you a lot of confidence. After going through H.L Ahuja, start by solving previous year’s question for microeconomics as there are a lot of numericals in GE1, so it’s important that you do this for both Econometrics and microeconomics.
- For GE2 focus on reading Froyem for microeconomics, apart from that refer to Salvatore for international. Since GE2 is pretty vast, do the rest of it with the help of internet reading and try picking topics, type them on google and add UPSC at the end and try making your own notes which are very short and crisp.
- In GE3 there is public finance, a significant part of public finance is covered in microeconomics. taxations , moral hazard, asymmetric information which is why it was more or less covered so you don’t need to read any books for it. Remember to make notes for GST, finance commission, FRBM and all these things, where were the correct dynamic topics.
- For environment , your whole preparation can be more or less current since it’s a static topic, if you mention points related to dynamics that will give you those extra bonus marks because environment and climate is a very current topic. So your preparation for environment can be done from the newspaper only to a very large extent.
- For state market and planning there is a pattern of questions that come, so if you bucket them in broad themes there won’t be more than six or seven. So make questions for those board themes.
- For Indian Economics study every theme which is there in the past papers and the syllabus and google it. Watch a lot of Youtube videos but don’t try to make notes right away and focus more on developing an understanding of what it is then after that I begin making my notes which are very concise and in the form of points. This process can make Indian Economics very interesting as you’re not trying to learn things, instead you’re trying to build an understanding of what Indian Economics is.
6. Since we know that for IES, it’s three days and six papers so how did we cope up with the mental pressure and the pressure of having the proper handwriting and speed at the same time?
There is physical as well as mental pressure when it comes to this exam as it is obviously a lot. Till the Indian Economics exam you may lose the motivation to write which is tough to go through. What you can do is, try not to think about the previous two papers, go home and try not to think that I have already given two exams. Go for a walk in the evening after coming back and then sleep early and not touch anything to study that day. Before the english exam you can just revise the quotes but in the rest of the exam try to realise that there isn’t any point in mugging up at this very last moment and it would just cause more stress. Sleep early which will make you feel very fresh for the next exam, which is very important and you should forget what you have done in the previous papers because every paper can make or break your game so be as optimistic and relaxed as you can be in those three days.
As we know, in the exam you have to attempt completely different subjects in the gap of two hours which can be tough and needs a mental framework to switch between subjects. So what can we do to handle this mental pressure ?
We would suggest that in the last 10 days focus on your mental framework solely. What you can do is solve PYQs or study microeconomics or macroeconomics in the first half of the day and you can switch the subjects and see if your brain is adjusting to that well or not. One more thing that you can do is and we have already mentioned before, to forget about the previous exam once you have given it and start thinking about what you’re going to write about next. Start thinking in that direction only.
What is the role of revision in the preparation ?
For this exam we would say that revision is more important than content building. When you’re giving the exam you would be so short on time that you wouldn’t have the time to think and if you have not revised well then you won’t be able to recall what you have learned quickly. You might forget the sequence and important points and sometimes the one entire section. Even when you are practising for answer writing, stick to the time limit no matter what. You have to realise that this exam is very different from the exams in college where you have a lot of time to think and do some mind mapping around how you’ll answer the question. Here you have to remember everything on your finger tips in order to attempt the exam on time.
How can one prepare for answer writing for this exam?
Decide to start with practising answer writing rather than building more content and apart from that we would suggest that you can start answer writing at any point in your journey and give yourself a time limit while doing it rather than practising it in a leisurely manner.
In G1 1, 2 and 3 try adding anecdotes from current affairs from wherever you can in your answers. Try substantiating your answers with current happenings and there will be questions where you can relate the answer with the current happening. So incorporate these bits and do time yourself.
Is coaching for IES the right choice ?
While self-study may sound like a great idea joining an online coaching means increased productivity as you’ll be on schedule with their video classes and live sessions and have a strategy for your preparation and have a flow when it comes to studying. Also, online coaching can be quite beneficial because it saves you a lot of time as you don’t have to go anywhere and can prepare for your exam right at your home, in your comfort zone.
While there are a lot of free resources available online coachings provide you with their exclusive study material which include test series and notes. Also no wasting time on doing a lot of research to find the best books and PYQs as at an online coaching all this is served on a platter to you. The most tough part when it comes to IES is current affairs and online coachings provide you with great resources for that as their content is daily updated. Most coachings also have their own test series which can prove to be vital for regular practice and help your crack IES exam.
Signing with an online coaching also means having a lot of freedom and flexibility which means you can continue working at your job and still prepare for your exams with expert guidance as a lot of coachings now have recorded classes and you can download their study material as well and study anytime and anywhere you want and not worry about missing out on anything.
A good coaching will always have the best faculties which means you get expert support, Whether it is doubt resolution sessions, feedback on your answers or having the perfect strategy. Choosing a good coaching means that your preparation is in the right hands and you’re heading in the right direction. At Echolics each student’s answer sheet is checked by our expert faculty to give your personalised feedback also with one-on-one mentorship to build up your confidence and guide you in the right direction. But the hard part is choosing the right coaching for your preparation. WHich is why Ecoholics is a fine choice for your preparations. Ecoholics is the one-stop destination for all your learning needs. Study economics the smart way and get an in-depth understanding of this dynamic subject with our holistic approach. Our team of expert faculties help you polish your knowledge and provide you with one-on-one mentorship and doubt-clearing sessions, so you leave no stone unturned when it comes to your preparation. By signing up with us, you can access our live classes, video lectures, test series and get the hard copy of study material delivered to your doorstep, so your preparation never hits a bump!
So that is how you can crack IES as well. We hope that this blog gives you the confidence boost you need to make sure that IES is not as hard as you think it is.
