The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) released the CSE 2021 results on Monday afternoon, changing the lives of 685 candidates who managed to clear it. Clearing it is a life-altering moment for the candidates as Civil Service is considered the most prestigious service in the country. Arpit Chauhan from Uttarakhand is one among these 685 aspirants and was listed at the top with All India Rank 20.
By securing such a high rank this year, which was his third attempt, Arpit will fulfill his longstanding wish of becoming an IAS officer, a dream which he pursued even after clearing UPSC in his second attempt.
Indian Masterminds spoke to Arpit Chauhan to know about his road to success, how he reached the administrative corridors from Uttarakhand through sheer hard work and dedication.
SON OF TEACHERS
Arpit Chauhan comes from the Udham Singh district in Uttarakhand. He completed his schooling in Kashipur and B Tech in Mechanical Engineering from G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar. Brought up in a teacher’s family, where both his parents were teachers, he was a bright student throughout his schooling and college days.
Unlike others, Arpit was sure about choosing civil services as a career very early on in life. While talking to Indian Masterminds, he said “Somewhere in the seven or eighth grade, I knew that I have to appear for this exam in the future. I started exploring the exam when I entered the engineering college for my graduation.”
IMPROVING WITH FAILURE
Arpit joined the engineering college in the year 2015 but he had his eye on the UPSC exam from the very beginning. In the first year of his college, he started collecting the study material for the UPSC exam and started studying it in his second year. However, his major preparation started in the third year when he started following a proper routine for the exam, which included reading newspapers, etc.
Arpit sat for the exam for the first time in his final year of engineering in 2019. He said, “I gave the exam when I was in college itself and wasn’t that well prepared. I failed to even clear the Prelims but my main motive was to get the feel of the exam.”
Arpit was right as he got a better idea of the exam in the first attempt and soon after completing graduation, he sat for the exam again with better preparation. He managed to clear the exam and secured AIR 297 to get into the Indian Defence Accounts Service.
He said, “My preparation was fairly good, but I felt that I could not write properly in my optional subject, Political Science and International Relations (PSIR), because of which my score remained low. In the third attempt, I focused more on ethics and my optional subject and saw an improvement in both these sectors this time.”
INTERVIEW EXPERIENCE AND TIPS
According to Arpit, his interview this year was completely “random”. “I prepared for two months for DAF, current affairs and all sorts of things. But my interview was based on ethics, transparency, governance, etc. It was not factual, rather it was more based on ethics.”
As Arpit emerged among the toppers and got listed in the top 20 candidates who were selected this year, aspirants from all over the country would be curious to have some tips and suggestions from him to clear the CSE exam.
He readily complied: “According to me, aspirants need to make up their mind early to appear for the exam and need to be very selective while choosing the resources to follow because there is an abundance of study material in the market. They should have a proper strategy about revision, writing, preparation for the mains, giving ample time to the optional subject, etc. So, aspirants need to work on many fronts, and this will take time but will be very helpful for them in the long run.”
Arpit got what he aimed for and will hopefully get IAS (Indian Administrative Service), something he has been yearning for long. He is looking forward to the responsibility this service brings along with it and is happily willing to be a part of the system.
