Clearing the highly prestigious, yet extremely difficult, UPSC exam is an aspiration of many, but only a few manage to taste its success. Haryana’s Devyani Singh is one among those lucky few. She was finally able to taste the sweetness of hard-earned success this year. She aced CSE 2020 with the top rank of 11 and is now going to become an IAS officer. However, this success came after a series of failures. She experienced the bitterness of three failed attempts in a row.
THREE FAILURES IN A ROW
Devyani had given UPSC exam in the years 2015, 2016, 2017 but couldn’t crack any of the exams. In 2017, she reached till the interview round but couldn’t clear it. In 2019, she again appeared for the exam and managed to secure 222nd rank. She was selected for the Central Audit Department and was training for it when she started preparing for the exam again. Since there were time constraints, she could manage to study only on the weekends.
HER FATHER IS HER INSPIRATION
Devyani hails from Haryana’s Mahendergarh. She has completed her graduation in Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering from Goa campus of BIITS Pilani in the year 2014.
Her father, Mr Vinay Singh, is also an IAS officer and is posted as Divisional Commissioner, Hisar. According to Devyani, her father is her inspiration. She says, “I have grown up seeing my father working as a civil servant, and, therefore, I also wanted to serve the country.”
STUDIED ON WEEKENDS ONLY
After securing 222nd rank in the year 2019, Devyani got busy with her training for Central Audit Department. Therefore, it was not easy for her to give time to her UPSC preparation. She studied only on the weekends. She wanted to appear again for the exam to get a higher rank so that she becomes eligible for IAS. She says, “This was my fifth attempt and I never thought I would bag AIR 11. As I was already in Central Audit Department, there was never any pressure on me.”
PREPARATION STRATEGY
This time Devyani made a target to score good marks in her optional subject, which she managed to do. She says that she started giving many mock interviews for practise. Apart from this, she focused on her writing and read newspapers daily. Not just newspapers, online study also helped Devyani a lot. “Online education helped me a lot. I improved my rank by focusing more on self-study. Self-motivation, and my parents support and faith in me helped me achieve the goal,” Devyani revealed.
TIPS FOR ASPIRANTS
Devyani says that the whole UPSC process can be very hectic, so one must have a hobby that can act as a stressbuster. Also, “it is very important to maintain your self-confidence during the exam. Believe in yourself and think, ‘if others can do it, so can I’,” she summed up.
