[Strategy] Art of Note Making for Public Administration Mains in UPSC Civil Service Exam

Only for candidates with Public Administration optional subject, questions from Atul Roy.

Size of Notes
My notes will run into around 600 pages each for each optional. Have i over done it? What according 2 you shud b optimal no of pages for notes?

• Notes should be revision friendly and hence they should be as small and compact as possible.
• But since you’ve prepared it by yourself, it is well and good, no matter what size it is.
• I suggest prepare a 25-30 ultra-condensed note that summarizes the crux of everything you’ve in that 600 page note.
• Example for an Administrative Thinker: His Tag line or USP, His Critiques.

Henry Fayol

Tagline: Adm. science same in pub+pvt, gangplank, training, one head one plan…
Activities =6
Elements = 5 [POCCC]
Principles = 14 [Brief on each principle]
VS. Taylor‘s Scientific Management: similar and dissimilar.
Criticism: Good for small scale only, No experiments, Value loaded, U/C=coordination problem.

• Now this may even run into 50-60 pages, no problem. It should be ultra-condensed.
• Keep revising it frequently, until you know the structure of every topic of Public Administration, like the back of your hand.
• For the mains exam, everyone reads the important books and understands every topic. But during the actual exam, Most people have hard time recollecting their thoughts and structuring them in a proper answer-format within the given timelimit.
• That’s why Notes making+ Revision + Answer writing practice is so important.

In PA i hv read laxmi, New Horizons Of Public Administration by Mohit Bhattacharya,
Administrative Thinkers by Prasad and Prasad, Henry, Robbins, F&F, nd material of bhawani singh nd sunil gupta(inspiration) nd made notes from these sources(those 600 pages i mentioned). While revising i dnt need 2 visit these again. What do u say?

• Download BA and MA booklets of Public Administration from www.egyankosh.ac.in (ofcourse free) else if you can afford to buy them in paper format, do it.
• UPSC’s Public Administration syllabus is directly lifted from IGNOU’s BA/MA (Public Administration) Syllabus. Even Questions follow similar patterns and themes presented in those booklets.
• In those booklets, Study the language, Study the flow and method of presenting a thought.
• But again that doesn’t make Prasad, Henry or Robbins any less important.
• Mohit Bhattacharya’s book is THE Bible of Public Administration, should be kept at your bedside along with that ultra-condensed note and must read frequently to unlock the vision and see Public Administration from a macro view in the sky.
• Don’t rely much on these Sunil Gupta, Mohanty or Vajiram‘s readymade
  notes of Public Administration. If you can find some good information not given in other books, well and good. They don’t fetch good marks in mains. Half of the junta writes mugged up answers from those notes,  they don’t make you stand outside the crowd.

My study plan for 2012:
Jan- Mar: finish both optionals nd make notes

If you’re planning for CSAT 2012, Leave the optionals, concentrate on prelims. Else if you’re preparing for 2013 then good keep going.

Putting emphasis on essay. Noted down gud qoutes, words, sentences 4m newspapers etc.

Excellent

Newspaper Cuttings

For current aff i m relying on paper cuttings. I hv underlined imp parts while reading so dnt think it wud b a big prblm revising those. Plus mags, gkt are there so won’t b a prblm i think.

• Never cut Editorials or newspaper articles unless you’ve the guts to do the follow up action before going to bed.
• (i.e. note down the 2-3-5 most important arguments presented in the Editorial)
• Otherwise that ‘Newspaper cutting-file’ will just keep increasing in weight and later you won’t have time to even touch it.
• If you do something, finish it all the way, don’t leave business half-unfinished.

What acc 2 u is differentiating factor in pa. I will attempt all the ques easily. But ur views on value additions in answers? I will use my gs knowledge in pa as much as possible nd diagrams graphs etc.

• Anyone who has prepared even half seriously, can attempt the Public Administration paper. So, What separates a topper from the junta: His language, structure and presentation.
• That’s why I recommend study of those IGNOU booklets to get the vocabulary, language and finesse in expressing yourself + Practice answer writing of all Excercise-questions given in those booklets at the end of every topic.
• Try to integrate current-affairs related to governance, which you can cite as examples in your paper-I answers.

Previously
How to make notes? and why is it important to make notes? 
update: 20 February 2012
Follow up question by another reader

I saw one of your posts in that you were saying if you are peparing for 2013 civil service prelim then also make notes of both the optional of main ….
what is this ?

It is called a Custom-made advice.

Mr.Roy has already given two attempts in civil service and prepared 600 pages notes out of his optionals at the moment. Hence My advice to him: Create an ultra condensed 25 pages note out of that 600 pages note and be done with the books and the subjects.

For 2013, UPSC (again) may or may not remove the optionals. **

• So, for a veteran like Roy, better finish what he has started (notes making), because right now he is in the flow and has the experience. It wouldn’t take more than a fortnight for him to finish the said activity in his current state.  
• If he has tries to do it in 2013, he’ll have to go through entire reference booklist all over again. Better for him to walk an extra mile right now, than walk the whole journey all over again next year, incase if UPSC doesn’t remove the optionals.
• There is no clear indication or firm commitment made by UPSC about when they’ll remove the optionals. It all runs on whims and fancies of the UPSC Chairman.

** If one looks at the past experience about rumor-market:

• Since 2007, every year, there were heavy rumors of UPSC removing optional subjects.
• Finally in 2011 UPSC removed optionals from preliminary exam.
• From September 2011 to almost December 2011, again heavy rumor of UPSC removing optional subjects from mains as well (thanks to The Hindu Article), but UPSC has still kept optionals in mains exam for 2012.  
• It is hard to predict what may happen for 2013, I’m not an astrologer, that’s why for a newcomer I donot advice investing
  money in coaching for optional subjects at the moment, At the same time,
  for a veteran player better just finish whatever he is upto in his
  optional subjects.

Whether you should prepare for optionals in 2013′s Exam or not??

• ask UPSC Chairman, I don’t know the answer whether you should prepare
  optionals for 2013 or not. It all depends on his whims and fancies,
  there is no official confirmation or rejection by UPSC yet, about the
  rumors related to optional subjects in 2013.