Ashish Kumar Singhal was often questioned about his decision to appear for one of the most challenging exams in India — the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services Examination (CSE).

“I would be asked why it was taking me so long to clear the UPSC exam. I was told this exam wasn’t for me. People said I should prepare for other less competitive exams,” he shares.

Instead of getting affected by the taunts, Ashish remained determined and today he has fulfilled his dream after securing an All India Rank of 8 in 2023 UPSC-CSE.

He shares how he changed his strategy in the fifth attempt to clear the exam.

1. Be Consistent Ashish shares it was lack of consistency that led to multiple failures in his UPSC journey. He advises aspirants to be consistent in daily studies.

2. How to read the newspaper He says the strategy to read the newspaper should be different for aspirants. Look for topics related to the constitution, environment, or economy.

“A few coaching centres like Vajiram also publish important news items on their social media pages, mark those in the newspaper and read about them in detail,” he adds.

3. Set a timer Instead of studying for 12 or 14 hours, Ashish focussed on studying dedicatedly for seven hours daily. He started using a stopwatch for focused studies.

4. Source optimisation He also advises aspirants to minimise source material. “Rely on one or two sources that help you complete the syllabus for a subject. Do not get distracted by multiple sources.”

5. Use colourful highlighters Ashish would underline or make circles on important points during revision. “I would also use different colours of highlighters to mark the important topics. Make short notes for points that you keep forgetting even after multiple revisions,” he says.