Free IAS Counseling session - How to choose the best optional subject in UPSC Mains - by Rau’s IAS

Importance of Optional subjects in UPSC Mains examIt’s a known fact that some of the IAS aspirants end up making a wrong choice of optional subject in UPSC Mains because of lack of information and als

It’s a known fact that some of the IAS aspirants end up making a wrong choice of optional subject in UPSC Mains because of lack of information and also due to certain misgivings and myths regarding some subjects. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that selection of an unsuitable optional subject could become Achilles Heels for any civil services aspirant! Once an optional subject has been chosen and humongous effort has been invested in preparing for it, it becomes very difficult, if not impractical, to change it in between. It also becomes a conundrum to consider changing it for the next exam attempt as aspirant would face this dilemma to either prepare a new subject altogether leaving the one which he or she has studied already or to continue with the same one with a nagging doubt about scoring well in it the next time. It is thus imperative that optional subject be chosen wisely. For the benefit of those aspirants who have just been initiated into preparations of upsc civil services exam (CSE), let us quickly understand the relevance of optional subject in the overall merit. In the IAS Mains Exam, out of seven papers which are considered towards the merit list – Essay paper, GS Paper I, GS Paper II, GS Paper III, GS Paper IV, Optional Paper I and Optional Paper II – the two papers of the Optional Subject, each comprising 250 marks, add up to