Sonnet Jose (AIR-54 CSE-24) Comprehensive Strategy

Hello everyone,

I am Sonnet Jose, and I secured AIR 54 in this year's UPSC CSE. I come from Kottayam district of Kerala. This was my second attempt. In my first attempt, I reached the interview stage. My optional subject was Geography.

My Journey So Far

I graduated from Miranda House, University of Delhi, in 2022 with an honors degree in Physics. In June 2022, I joined the Prelims-cum-Mains batch of Fortune IAS Academy in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Since Geography as an optional subject was not available at Fortune then (it is available now), I joined iLearn IAS Academy for the Geography optional foundation course.

After clearing the first Prelims, I joined Guidance Academy, Delhi, for the 500+ program. I reached the interview stage in my first attempt but didn’t make it into the final list. (I scored only 90 marks in the Essay and 150 marks in the Interview).

In my second attempt, I continued my Prelims, Mains, and Interview preparation with Fortune IAS Academy. I also joined Edukemy for the MSP program. This time, I took only three mock interviews but regularly attended one-on-one sessions with the faculty at Fortune IAS Academy and participated in peer mock interviews. This time, I secured 201 marks in the Interview.

I am sending this message to clarify the coaching institutes I was associated with and that truly helped me during my preparation.

Institutes I was associated with

1. Fortune IAS Academy, Kerala – (Entire preparation)

2. iLearn IAS, Kerala – (Geography optional foundation course, Geography test series, and interview preparation in the first attempt)

3. Lead IAS, Kerala – (Only Interview preparation and mock interviews in the second attempt)

4. Guidance, Delhi – (500+ program in the first attempt)

5. Edukemy, Delhi – (MSP program)

6. Mudit Jain Sir's Essay and Ethics Modules.

Sources I Studied for History

1. Our Pasts (Parts 1, 2, 3) – read multiple times.

2. Themes in Indian History (Parts 1, 2, 3) – selective reading.

3. Spectrum – mainly from Advent of Europeans to Independence.

4. Class notes from Fortune IAS Academy.

My Strategy

1. First, I analysed previous years' history questions to understand how UPSC frames them and identified the important topics.

2. I read NCERTs 2–3 times during my prelims-cum-mains classes for NCERT-based tests.

3. After the third reading, I wrote important facts in the blank spaces of the pages (or highlighted them in the digital copy).

(I will share a picture as an example.)

4. For revisions, I only read the facts I had written in the blank spaces of each page.

5. I practised many question papers, analysed the questions carefully, and studied the answer keys.(I will also explain this analyses part in detail.)

6. Towards the end nearing prelims, I did selective reading and prioritied hottopics that repeatedly asked.

7. Making timelines will also help to create connections between events and easy recollection of information.

Sources I Studied for Polity

1. Lakshmikanth

2. Classes and value-added materials from Fortune IAS Academy

3. Prahaar magazine (for mains only)

4. ChatGPT (for collecting examples and case studies)

My Strategy

1. I attended polity classes at Fortune IAS Academy.

2. I read the corresponding portions from Lakshmikanth the same day after Sylesh Sir’s classes.

3. For weekly tests and revision, I took polity sectional tests and analysed the question papers.

4. I went back to Lakshmikanth and re-read the portions where I made mistakes.

Active Recall Method:

* First, I studied a topic (for example, the President chapter).

* After a few hours, I tried to teach that topic to myself or someone else.

* This helped me understand what I had actually retained.

* After teaching, I revisited Lakshmikanth (President chapter) to find out the facts I had missed and studied them again.

📍 Why is it important to analyse question papers?

1. It helps you identify topics that are difficult for you.

2. It helps you understand where you are lagging (e.g., topic coverage, revision, logical application, etc.).

📍How I Analysed Prelims Question Papers?

After each test, while checking the answer key, I classified the questions into four categories and analysed the mistakes carefully.

Categories:

1. Simple Questions

* Direct questions from standard sources.

* These must be answered correctly.

* A high number of mistakes in this category means you need to re-read and strengthen your basic sources.

2. Applied Questions

* Answers are not directly given in textbooks, but can be solved by connecting multiple topics.

* Requires a comprehensive understanding of the subject.

* If you get many of these wrong, it means you need to improve your conceptual clarity instead of just memorising facts.

3. Logical and Experiential Questions

* Can be answered through general observation and logical thinking.

* Example: Identifying deciduous trees based on backyard observations.

* Getting these right gives you an edge.

* It requires curiosity and the habit of connecting real-world observations (e.g., YouTube shorts, advertisements) to exam topics.

4. Unnecessary/Left-out Questions

* This varies from student to student.

* If you attempt very few questions, check if you are skipping questions unnecessarily due to fear.

* If you attempt too many (above 90) and have a lot of wrong answers, check if you are over-attempting unnecessarily.

* Overthinking often causes mistakes here.

* Solving many practice papers and analysing PYQs will definitely help manage this.

Analysing question papers like this helps you clearly realise where you need to focus more.

Insights after analyzing two years' mark sheets:

GS1:

Jump from 85 to 101 (+16 marks)

* This paper requires strong content and good examples.

* This time, I combined my Prelims and Mains preparation for GS1.

* For example, in the History section, while studying for Prelims, I also collected examples for Mains.

Eg : While learning about Tolkappiyam (a book from the Sangam Age that discusses grammar), I noted it down as an example for questions related to the Sangam Age.

This process helped me enrich my content.

GS2:

* Marks fell from 115 to 105.

* This was mostly because of the type of questions asked.

* I was not able to write even average answers for a few questions.

GS3:

* 87 to 88

* Slight improvement

* General GS3 mark range is in the 80s and 90s.

GS4:

* Jumped from 116 to 123 (+7 marks)

* Collected a lot of examples from toppers' copies.

* Joined essay classes by Mudit Jain Sir and used the value addition materials.

* Wrote a lot of answers.

Essay:

* Jumped from 90 to 101 (+11 marks)

* Wrote around 35 essays between the Prelims and Mains period.

* Got them checked by mentors and sometimes rewrote essays.

* Brainstormed for most of the Essay PYQs.

* Maintained a dedicated folder to collect examples and quotes for essays.

(This year's essay preparation was quite taxing. Due to last year's low marks, I had a lot of stress regarding essay preparation. However, I worked diligently.)