Check the best approach to be followed in essay writing for civil services examination 2023 along with the highly recommended books on this page.
The UPSC Mains exam comprises a total of nine papers which includes essay writing for civil services examination as well. In broader terms, the essay paper in UPSC mains is divided into two sections i.e. section A & section B.
Each section also comprises four UPSC essay topics with a maximum mark of 125 each. Out of these, candidates need to choose one topic from each of the sections and write two UPSC essay papers in about 1000-1200 words each.
Thus, it is important for the aspirants to use the best strategy and practice essay writing for civil services examination thoroughly to maximize their score in the UPSC essay test.
In this blog, we have shared the useful steps to write the essay for the IAS exam including the books, past year IAS essay test topics, and everything that an aspirant must know about UPSC essay writing.
Some of the major highlights of the essay writing for the civil services exam 2023 are shared below:
IAS aspirants should formulate a strategy that aligns with the exam requirements in order to excel in the UPSC essay papers. Hence, we have shared the top six easy steps to be followed in the UPSC essay writing in order to excel in the upcoming IAS CSE 2023 exam.
The first and foremost strategy of every aspirant is that they should finalize the topic only after reading all the topics carefully. This will also help them to collect sufficient points to write about the UPSC essay topics.
One should go through all the topics carefully in order to avoid switching topics in between as it would lead to a waste of time and unnecessary stress. Hence, it is advisable to read the topics 2-3 times and think about the IAS essay topics carefully.
After finalizing the topic, do not rush to write the essay immediately and think about the same for at least 30 minutes. Anyone who commences writing immediately without thinking twice may forget important pointers to be included in the UPSC essay papers.
Hence, it is advised to utilize the first 20-30 minutes to think carefully about the topic, correlate the topic with current events, talk about historical/past events, and jot down all the important points in the sheet.
Moreover, they must also arrange all the points in the proper sequence in order to excel in essay writing for civil services examination.
The next strategy of the aspirant is that they should follow a proper format in the UPSC essay writing papers. Once they have recalled and noted all the important pointers, the next step is to format it well as elaborated below:
To excel in essay writing for civil services examination, candidates must jot down inspiring sentences, and quotations whenever they come across them.
However, it is advised to learn the quotes correctly with the name of the individual who has quoted them. Also, if they are unsure about the quote then they must skip it instead of writing the incorrect one.
Candidate should be clear with theessay topics for effective essay writing for civil services examination. This approach will allow them to stick around the topic and write relevant content in the essay UPSC test.
With this, they should ensure that they do not criticize any individual or government or mention anything in an offensive way in their UPSC essay writing which is not recommended.
Essay writing for civil services examination requires regular reading of a variety of topics and reference books recommended by mentors/friends/previous toppers.
Thus, the candidates must read the editorial section of the newspaper, and current affairs magazines every day. Moreover, they should watch discussions/debates, and solve previous question papers UPSC essay topics regularly.
Reading books and newspapers will enhance their vocabulary skills, and provide them with all the latest updates and a variety of ideas for using appropriate language in their IAS essay writing.
Along with the best preparation strategy, aspirants should also pick expert-recommended books to cover all types of essay topics for the exam. Here, we have compiled the best books and resources that would be helpful in practicing essay writing for civil services examination:
Candidates should check the previous year’s essay topics for the UPSC exam to understand the UPSC IAS syllabus 2023 in a better manner. Hence, it is advisable to practice essay writing on the past year’s topics to determine the level of their preparation.
Thus, we have shared below the last five years’ IAS essay topics to smoothen the preparation of the aspirants.
| Year | IAS Essay Topics | Download Previous Year UPSC Essay Topics PDF |
| 2022 | Section-A
Section-B
|
Click Here |
| 2021 | Section A
Section B
|
Click Here |
| 2020 | Section A
Section B
|
Click Here |
| 2019 | Section A
Section B
|
Click Here |
| 2018 | Section A
Section B
|
Click Here |
Q1. How can I write a good essay for UPSC?
Ans. To write a good essay for UPSC, candidates must read the editorial section of the newspaper, and current affairs magazines on a daily basis. With this, they should watch discussions/debates, and solve previous question papers UPSC essay topics regularly.
Q2. What kind of essays are asked in UPSC?
Ans. Going by the trend analysis, most of the UPSC essay topics are related to Indian Democracy and Bureaucracy, Administration, Poverty, Economic Growth, Politics, Judiciary, Education, Indian Culture, Science & Tech, etc.
Q3. How to write introduction for UPSC essay?
Ans. You can start writing the introduction for the IAS essay with a powerful quote and then elaborate on the quote in the rest of the introduction by explaining its relation to the topic.
Q4. Who got highest marks in UPSC essay?
Ans. In 2014, Ira Singhal scored 160 marks on the UPSC essay papers.
Q5. Which is the toughest optional subject in UPSC?
Ans. Geography is considered one of the toughest optional subjects in the UPSC civil services examination.
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