CSS Brainstorming
by Adnan Mahmood Awan
4th Position, CSS 2008
Different people have different experience of preparing and appearing for the CSS exam and this is understandable, keeping in view the diverse backgrounds of the candidates appearing for the examination. I would share my experience which, I feel, might be useful for the CSS aspirants.
Following are some of the tips which I found useful for preparation related to written portion, psychological tests and interview.
Written
It is very important to read at least two good newspapers and journals because it would help you for the preparation of Essay, Current Affairs, Pakistan Affairs and Islamiat.
Please do not attempt any essay the meaning of which is ambiguous to you. Analyze the topic from various angles like political, social, religious and economic perspective.
Try to solve past papers especially for English Composition and Everyday Science.
Take short notes of everything you study for compulsory as well as optional papers. It would help you a lot for the final preparation just before examination.
Psychological Tests
Although there are no separate marks for psychological tests and interview, it is very important to perform smartly in these tests. There could be questions related to your statements and choices mentioned in psychological tests during final interview.
Day 1
On day 1 candidates are asked to solve various tests. Some of them are related to personality while others are related to IQ.
Pay special attention to sentence completion and write only those words which you could defend.
Usually, there are questions in the final interview on your favorite books and personalities? So write only those books which you have thoroughly read and understood. It would help to discuss these books with other people. Same goes for your favorite personalities.
Just be yourself and dont try to hide anything.
Day 2
On day 2 there would be group discussion in Urdu and English followed by command task and a brief interview.
It helps practicing discussion in group of 5-6 people for the preparation of group discussion.
People are usually in a great hurry to participate sometime without understanding the topic. In their eagerness to participate they usually give statements which are difficult to defend. A common problem is that people are too much focused on the point which is in their mind and do not bother to listen what other person is saying. It is important to note that in group discussion listening is more important than speaking. During group discussion there is sufficient time and everyone gets enough time to speak.
There is no harm in contradicting others if you have genuine reason and supporting arguments. However, this should be done politely.
Please keep in mind that people participating in discussion would have diverse backgrounds. So the discussion should be general and not about a particular subject which goes way above heads of others.
Interview
The purpose of interview is to judge a candidates depth of knowledge, analytical skills and cool and calm temperament.
There is one very common question on the choice of your group. You should have at least basic knowledge about the merits of the group you are going to opt and where do you see yourself in next five years if you are allocated to the group of your choice. It is not enough to say that it was your childhood dream to join a particular service or group. There should be some logical arguments behind your choice.
If you do not have clear answer of a particular question, do not try to guess.
Do not try to be unnecessarily diplomatic. Take a point of view for which you have arguments to defend.
[Courtesy: Jahangir World Times]