Jaijeet Kaur Hora, attained 1st Rank in his 1st attempt in Civil Services Examination-2016
“Incomparable Strategy, focused hard work and excellent guidance are the secrets of my success.”
-Jaijeet Kaur Hora
“Pratiyogita Darpan” arranged an exclusive interview with Ms. Jaijeet Kaur Hora who has been selected in Civil Services Examination-2016. She deserves high admiration and our heartiest congratulations on her splendid success. This important, thought-provoking and highly inspiring interview is being presented here in its original form.
PD—Heartiest congratulations on your brilliant success in the CS Exam.
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Thank you !
PD—Were you confident of your success ? How did you react to this special news of your success ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I was confident of selection, but first rank came as a surprise. I was happy when I got the news of my achievement. It gave me immense pleasure that my endeavours and hard work paid off.
PD—Before knowing your own result, what was your perception about toppers ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—My perception about toppers was that they were good in strategy, hard working and dedicated towards their goal.
PD—Was only Civil Services your ultimate goal or were you preparing for other career opportunities as well simultaneously ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I was preparing only for civil services.
PD—In how many attempts have you achieved this success ? How do you visualise your preparation/ previous attempts ? What preference in services have you opted for ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I achieved this success in my first attempt.
PD—With newer and more lucrative opportunities available in private sector and the number of posts decreasing/remaining static in Civil Services, how do you express your feelings in this regard ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Private sector provides lucrative opportunities but in Civil Services the nature and scope of work provides greater job satisifaction as one can significantly contribute to the society.
PD—‘Time Management’ is a key factor while making preparations as well as while writing examination papers. What did you do to manage time ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I had allotted time for various portions I had to cover in a day, and prepared time-table accordingly. I ensured to adhere to the time-table.
PD—What were your optionals ? What was the criterion of your subjects selection ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Mains : (1) Public Administration, (2) Social work.
I wanted to study Public Administration to get indepth knowledge of administration of our country. Social work provided in-sights on the condition and problems of society. Both these subjects will help me serve the society as a civil servant.
PD—What were the ingredients of your strategy in preparation for Prelims and Mains ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Prelims : Studied the previous years’ questions asked in UPSC and other state services exams it helped in increasing the scope of knowledge.
Mains : Solved previous years’ questions and prepared notes and revised them multiple times and did a lot of writing practice.
PD—How did you prepare for Essay Paper ? On which topic did you write essay this time and what was the basis of your choosing it ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I had prepared certain essay topics. I attempted essay on women, agriculture and global warming. I had prepared these topics and was confident in attempting these topics.
PD—List some of the Magazines, Newspapers, Books etc. which you consulted for the preparation of ‘General Studies’ papers.
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Pratiyogita Darpan, The Hindu Newspaper.
| Bio-data |
| Name—Jaijeet Kaur Hora
Father’s Name—Mr. Sarabjeet Singh Hora Mother’s Name—Mrs. Amarjeet Kaur Hora Age—32 years Educational Qualifications— B.Tech./MBA |
PD—How did you prepare yourself for Interview ? When did it take place and what were the questions asked during the Interview ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I joined mock interviews of a coaching institute which provided individual guidance for the interview.
In interview, several questions based on current issues, polity and questions related to my academic background were asked.
PD—In your opinion at which level of education should one start preparing for Civil Services and what should be the minimum period of time required to prepare for Civil Services Examinations ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—After graduation preparation for civil services can be started. One year of focused and thorough study is a necessary for CS exams.
PD—What is your opinion regarding the general view that science subjects have better chance to score than the subjects in Humanities ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—In my opinion Humanities subjects are more scoring than science subjects.
PD—What is the importance of medium of expression in the exams like CSE?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Medium does not matter as long as you are able to express your views in any language.
PD—Does the educational, financial and demographic status of the family of an aspirant have any impact on his/her preparations ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Yes, a lot of financial support is required for the preparation and guidance. so, the family also plays a critical role.
PD—In your opinion what role do the Competition Magazines play when you are preparing for an examination like Civil Services ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Current issues and subject based special issues can be covered from Magazines.
PD—What, in your considered opinion, should be the qualities of a standard magazine for competitive examinations ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—They should cover current events in holistic manner and analysis of major ongoing issues should be covered.
PD—Pratiyogita Darpan is the largest read Career and Competition Magazine in India. How do you rate Pratiyogita Darpan and in what way can this magazine be made more useful for C.S.E. aspirants ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Pratiyogita Darpan is one of the venerated magazines, recognized by all. It has the authentic contents of high quality from reputable sources, useful from examination point of view. It is very much close to my expectations.
PD—Please give your comments on the PD Extra Issue Series on ‘General Studies’ and a few Optionals ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—PD Extra Issue series on ‘General Studies’ was very helpful. It was very beneficial in covering GS portion.
Extra issues have good compilation of facts, figures and opinions from examination perspective and save time of aspirants, which is very good. I especially referred to Economy edition of PD as it starts from the basics and goes into depth while sprinkling many questions from other competitive examinations.
PD—Did you see our latest publication : Pratiyogita Darpan—Year Book ? What is your opinion about the contents, size and the timing of launch (Mid-April-Just before Prelims) ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I have referred to it and it is useful. Prelims questions have source in it. It is very useful for CSE preparation. The dedicated sections on current affairs help to quick reading and revision. Current affairs contents and time of publication are correct.
PD—What is the secret of your success ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—Strategy, Hard work, dedication and positive attitude.
PD—Did you join any coaching institute at any stage of the preparation ? If yes, then what is your opinion about the role these institutes play in the preparation for Civil Services Examinations ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I studied thoroughly the study material provided for GS preparation and mock interview was very beneficial from Vajirao & Reddy Institute. Dr. S.S. Chaudhary from the Institute provided individual guidance during the course of preparation.
| Personal Qualities |
| Favourite Person—Mary Kom.
Strong Point—Good writing skills and nice hardworking. Weak Point—Impatient. Hobbies—Watching movies, playing badminton.
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PD—To whom would you like to give the credit for your success ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—My family. PD—After your success in the preliminary examination, do you feel you could have scored better by introducing some changes in your method of preparation ?
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—I was satisfied with my performance in preliminary examination.
PD—Any suggestion/advice which you would like to give to the future aspirants.
Ms. Jaijeet Kaur—There is no substitute for ‘Hardworking along with good strategy’.
PD—Thank you very much and wishing you all the very best for a bright future.