Harsimran Singh Cheema achieved an All India Rank of 16 in UPSC Indian Forest Service (IFS) in 2022.
Initially, he focused solely on Civil Services Examinations (CSE). But after five attempts at CSE, he decided to pursue the IFS on his final attempt – a decision that proved fruitful as he successfully cleared the exam this time.
Sharing the tips that worked for him, Harsimran says he focused on UPSC question papers from the last 10 years. This helped him understand the exam’s expectations and gauge the adequacy of his preparation.
Additionally, he stressed reverse engineering to gain an edge over his competitors. This means that he concentrated on mastering subjects that typically challenge other candidates.
“I identified the most challenging questions from previous years’ question papers and diligently searched for relevant information online. Once I found the appropriate source books, I stuck to them to gain a deeper understanding of the subjects,” Harsimran says.
After clearing Mains, he dedicated about a month and a half to prepare for the interview round.
“It is to be noted that the interview rounds for both the CSE and IFS are different. While the former is on general questions, the latter stresses the technicalities of the forest service,” he adds.
So, Harsimran focused on preparing for the technical aspects of forestry, once he had covered basic questions on his background, job experience, degrees, hobbies, and interests.
During the interview round, he was asked about various types of forest fires and strategies to improve groundwater quality affected by the overuse of chemical fertilisers in farms.
“While general answers might suffice in the CSE, the board for the IFS expects scientific and sustainable solutions,” he says. This strategy helped Harsimran secure 210 marks out of 300 in the interview round.