Preparation of Central Superior Services (CSS) exam is a long journey; therefore it needs a proper long-term plan. The difficulties a CSS aspirant faces during the preparation include lack of confidence, certainty, direction, time management, and productivity. A proper long-term plan can solve these issues to a large extent. So they rightly ask how to plan and prepare for CSS?
The most important aspect in the preparation of CSS is to draw a proper long-term plan. So here I try to mention the most important tasks every CSS aspirant should carry out while preparing for the Competitive Exam (CE).
The plan
Prepare a plan which must include an estimated time of completion for each subject. Quantifying goals always help in achieving the goals. Therefore, you must know how much time does it take you to complete a particular task and how much time a task would take on average for everybody. In this way, you would understand if you have to work on a certain skill so that you can improve your speed.
For example, if you have a reading speed of 200 words per minute, you should improve it through various techniques particularly by reading a lot on daily basis. Your speed should be 400wpm.
Once you get to know how much time all the topics of each subject would require, you write an estimated date of completion of each subject.
Once you list all the subjects’ topics, divide the subject material into two parts: Reading and writing. This means you would not only read the syllabus topics but also practice writing on those.
Be prepared to complete all your subjects by November so that you can start revision and writing practice. After November you would need to write for 6 hours daily.
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Daily schedule for CSS
Now try to make a daily schedule so that you can prepare a subject in a given time. For example, if you have to prepare 30 topics of International Law in 15 days, you would need to do study 3 topics daily so that you can end up reading all 30 topics in 10 days, and then for the next five days, you would practice writing and solving questions from past papers. The other way is that you prepare 2 topics and write for 2-3 hours daily, in this way you would complete both reading and writing tasks in 15 days in the preparation of CSS subjects.
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CSS is a written exam!
You should be very clear that CSS is a written exam. If you do not do regular writing practice, you are ultimately going to lose the game. It’s a competitive exam and if you are not better than the top 300 candidates, you are not going to become a bureaucrat. If you want to drastically improve your writing, you should get it evaluated by some senior.
Input & output
Again, for building a mindset, you should know that you would need input and output in the preparation of CSS.
Input includes:
- Reading (books articles, magazines, newspapers, research studies, and reports)
- Watching (video lectures, author talks, and documentaries), and
- Studying MOOC (Massive Open Online Course)
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Output is all about practicing what you have studied. It means getting things out of your brain so that your brain becomes efficient. Neurons develop myelin sheath when you repeatedly do some things. A thicker myelin sheath helps in the easy transmission of data in your brain. Output includes:
- Writing (notes, outlines, full-length questions, and essays)
- Speaking or teaching the topic to someone or something such as a video camera.
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If you have already decided to give your youthful energy and time to the preparation of CSS, then do it properly by developing a nearly accurate course of action. If you plan well and achieve those targets on daily basis, you would gain confidence which is very important in this journey because you are never sure about the outcome of the exams.
Fahad Aziz Taherani is the Coordinating Editor at Global Village Space (GVS) News Publication. He has a keen interest in Central Superior Services of Pakistan. The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.