The Kothari Committee of the UPSC, has listed the qualities that should be rated in

the interview as, ''clarity of expression, grasp of narrative and argument, reasoning
ability, appreciation of different points of view, awareness and concern for socio-
economic problems, ranges and depth of interests and personal attributes relevant to
interaction with people.''
The nterview for the civil services examination also known as the Personality Test is
exactly that. t is aimed at assessing the candidate's personality, whether he is
suitable to be a competent administrator or not. The candidate is tested not only for
his/her intelligence but also for his/her overall personality development, his/her
attentiveness, balance of judgement and qualities of honesty, integrity and
leadership. Therefore preparation for the nterview requires proper planning.
The selectors look out for some attributes in the candidate and decide whether
he/she is suited for a career in civil services or not. For this,the candidate should
have a positive attitude, should have an alert mind with quick reflexes, should be free
from any sort of prejudice, should be good at making quick decisions and should
have the ability to act under stress and to handle difficult situations.
Preparation for the Interview is a continuous process. This involves a wide
reading of books, journals, magazines and at least two newspapers. One should try
to improve his/her conversational skills with the right pronunciation. The candidate
should be prepared to answer questions on his background, hobbies and extra
curricular activities. t is a good idea to discuss current affairs and recent issues with
friends. One good way of rehearsing possible questions would be to have mock
interviews and discussion groups. The candidate should make a self analysis of his
strengths and weaknesses and make a conscious effort to play on his strengths.
Some usefuI tips for a successfuI interview at UPSC are:
1. To have a positive body language
2. To have a good personal turnout and ensuring the right posture
3. To answer questions clearly and confidently
4. Try to remain calm and composed even when faced with provocative questions
5. Try not getting into long winded explanations and answer to the point.
Things To Be Avoided at the UPSC Interview
O Avoid the expression, ' am sorry.'
O Avoid conversational cliches, like: 'as you know', 'that's correct', 'of course',
'indeed', 'obviously', etc.
O Avoid technical jargon. However, if a member continues to probe you in any
technical field, you can use technical expressions.
O Maintain a cheerful disposition. Now and then you can appear serious; but most
of the time keep smiling or look cheerful and composed. One caution here: if the
board laughs, you should only smile. t is only when you maintain some amount
of distance that the board begins to wonder about the depth of your personality.
O Do not give long introductions. Come straight to the heart of the matter.
O Show human concern whenever possible in your answers.
O You should be logically consistent and analyse things rationally while talking. You
are supposed to defend what you say, but with due respect to the views of the
board. Stop trying to defend an answer if it becomes difficult to do so logically
and fairly.
O Do not make hasty or sweeping generalisations.
According to UPSC report, it has been observed that from 1979 onwards, 90 percent of
the candidates who qualify for interview hover around the minimal percentage of 55
percent that is prescribed for the test. However to be assured of a Class service, one
has to generally obtain about 58 percent marks. t has been noticed that only those,
securing 60 percent and above are sure of getting a service of their own choice. The
figures clearly reveal that the marks in the interview test play a determining role in final
selection of candidates.
More....
Types of questions asked at the UPSC interview.
O #eIating to your name. Any famous personality who has a similar or same
name or surname.
O our career choice. Why you want to opt for the civilservices.
O our Hobbies. Why you pursue such a hobby or questions related to your
hobby. So reasearch well on your hobby.
O Hot topics of recent days Iike the Bird FIu and TamifIu, Office of Profit,
Sahara airIines deaI and the growing airIines,Terror attacks in India, India
US NucIear deaI, CommonweaIth games, Saurav GanguIy etc.Keep reading
and watching the news. f the recent headlines have something to do with your
subject then specially revise those portions. For example if you are a veterinary
doctor, Bird flu may go on to other animal diseases that can infect men. f you are
an MBBS, then you might be asked about human to human spread of epidemics
or any other epidemics and precautions etc. You may even be asked about the
influence of MNC or drug manufacturers responsible for the spread of fear etc. f
you are from an economy background, the same topic will veer towards the
economic implications of the Bird flu.
O How you are going to use your specific knowIedge(Iike if you are a doctor,
Iawyer, engineer etc) in the services.
O SituationaI questions. Like f you were the collector/SP of Varanasi, what would
you do after the Bomb Blast?
O Choice of services. The order of your choice of services can raise questions
too.
O About your institution and reIated.f you have studies at M you may be asked
about the rising salaries, if from GNOU then even about ndira Gandhi and so
on.
O From your form. You must go through the form you have filled because most
questions will arise from there. f you have changed subjects, mentioned
anything out of the way, watch out for questions on them. nterviewers take cue
from the form you have filled.
Some actuaI questions asked of UPSC candidates.
O on't you think you can serve your country better by remaining a doctor
and treating poor patients? Why do you want to be a civiI servant?"
t would be best to answer this question very practically rather than emotionally
saying you want to serve the country, because even a doctor serves the people.
A doctor from Kerala was asked this Question and her reply was - "Because
want to treat the primary malady that afflicts our country, that creates so many
poor in ndia. As a doctor can treat only secondary maladies." She even came
up with exact statistics and suggestions on a rubber plantation for poverty
alleviation indicating that she had spent considerable time and thoughts on her
future plans. She was awarded a score of 85 per cent.
O "What are the probIems faced by wheat cuItivators in your state?" an M.Sc.
(Agriculture) student from Palanpur was once asked. "The problem is not so
much to do with agronomy but with the lack of a seed bank in Palanpur," came
the reply and the candidate walked away with an 80 per cent score.
O "Is there a Iaw in physics, which is reIevant to administration?" a law
graduate was prompted. "Yes. Newton's third law of motion: for every action
there is an equal and opposite reaction." He scored a cool 80 per cent.
The above questions can give you an idea of how relevant questions are
asked from your subjects even as they are not directly from the syllabus