Preparation Strategy C-SAT Hone Your Skills

Exam: 23rd August 2015

Government’s decision to make General Studies Paper-II C-SAT qualifying in nature for the Preliminary stage of UPSC Civil Services Examination 2015 has cleared the uncertainty prevailing over the format of Preliminary Examination 2015. The decision would remain in force till the next announcement by the government. Now General Studies Paper-II C-SAT marks will not be considered for merit. C-SAT Paper-II consists of the following topics:
• Comprehension
• Interpersonal skills including communication skills
• Logical reasoning and analytical ability
• Decision-making and problem solving
• General mental ability
• Basic numeracy (class X level)
• Data Interpretation (Charts, graph, tables, data sufficiency etc) (Class X Level)

Tips for preparation Comprehension
Comprehension plays a major role in C-SAT Paper-II with approximately 1/3rd questions based on passage. The first and the fore-most thing is that the candidates should follow only the given passage in isolation with all the knowledge and information they have and answer the questions on the basis of the passage only. Understanding the passage and comprehending the information conveyed by the passage is the key to answer the questions. Reading newspaper regularly helps a lot.

Interpersonal Skills Including Communication Skills
Examiner can give real life situations and expect the candidates to show their communication skills in choosing the right response. In such questions, it is important to read the hypothetical situation or an analysis of it carefully. It is required to use both common sense and knowledge of how a good leader and administrator might react.

Logical Reasoning and Analytical Ability
It is one of the sections in C-SAT paper II. It checks thinking ability. The Candidates cannot develop the reasoning skills overnight. Regular practice can only help them to develop such type of skills. It consists of problems related blood relation, syllogism, sitting arrangement, series completion, puzzle test, logical sequence etc. The Candidates should never make any assumption other than what is already stated in the questions, however illogical it might seem. Choose only the conclusion which must definitely follow from the question, not that which seems “most likely”, and pay close attention to key words like “some”, “all” ect.

Decision-making and problem solving
In the complex administrative environment, civil servants often take decision in situations of ethical and moral dilemma. He has to perform a tight rope walk with limited resources based on priority and welfare of people in mind. A continuous flux of maintaining his/her personal integrity along with working optimally. Problem statement  is followed by options which have different weightage.  It may and may not have negative marking.