The interview is that part of your preparation wherein if you prepare well, you will get good marks. 

Remove negative thoughts, take care of your body and mind, that’s the most important. 

1.Prepare for general questions:

 Some general questions are always asked like

• Why civil services?
• Why civil services after Engineering/ Medicine?
• Why this service/ cadre preference?
• Will you try again if you get IPS?
• Will you be ready to work in Meghalaya?  And so on.

The best way to prepare is to prepare an answer, modulate it, rehearse it in front of your interview trainer.

 Please do this. Many times, expected questions like this come and people do stumble here too.

2.Study the Basics of current affairs:

Suppose, the paper has news about women in the army. 

• If you have analyzed that you should have known that women are not in combat roles in the army. 
• The judgment speaks about command posts in non-combat roles in the army. 

3.Know the basics of your graduation:

There are some bright students with a poor college academic record. Still,

• If you are an ECE Engineer, you should know why a mobile phone is called a cell phone.
• If you are a doctor, you should know the Hippocratic oath. 
• If you are a civil engineer, you should know who is Le Corbusier/ Laurie baker/ use of fly ash, etc.
• You should study the interface of your academics with daily life and look for questions here. 

4.Address the question:

• Always try to address what is being asked. 
• For example, a question to a candidate from TN: Can you explain the cinema – politics link in TN. For this, a candidate answers- The current CM does not have a cinema background. Also, Rajaji did not have a cinema background.

Feedback: This is a poor way of answering. Ideally, she should have told TN has a strong cinema politics link. This is because the subject of Tamil cinema from the 80s has a strong link to popular politics and mass hero-based movies creating a personality cult for the heroes paving the way for cinemas. Combined with that the social effect of cinema theatres equitized the society by making them sit together in the theatre.

5.Study root cause:

• Question to a candidate from Kerala: About the root cause of the Mullai Periyar issue. 
• The answer should be The issue lies in the step-motherly treatment by the British favoring the British Raj (Madras province ) over a princely state (Travancore)  by signing an agreement in favor of Madras province.
• Similarly, study the basic cause for all Ukraine-Russia war, US role, etc.

6.Never say unverified things in the interview: 

• When a candidate was asked what he thinks about The Movement of Nepal towards China compared to India. He rightly told yes, but he added that India instigated revolts in Nepal and India played spoilsport in Nepal’s constitution-making process. 

Feedback -The perception among the common Nepali public on the alleged involvement of India in Nepal’s internal process has led them to a negative mindset towards India.

7.Questions to know your stand:

• There are some questions which you should not escape answering. 
• For example, if you are asked what is your opinion on women entering Sabarimala?
• You should take a stand now and answer it properly. Simply saying I will follow what govt says/ what the judiciary stands or just refusing to answer will irritate the interviewer. 
• You should take a stand for sure when asked. The question comes as to what stand to take. 
• Normally, take a stand which is of the government/ judiciary. Still, know and acknowledge there are opposite views. Having said that, if you have a strong conviction, you can take a stand against that of the government/ judiciary.

8.Work on your biodata:

• See Interview transcripts and work on the basics of your biodata. 
• There are a set of questions on every topic available that you should work upon. 

9. I don’t know:

• You can maximize your interview marks if you tell the “I don’t know” effectively. 
• Use this only for factual questions. 
• Tell them politely. 
• Subtly smile after that. 
• For apparently easy questions, tell that I should have known it, but I am unable to recall. 
• Never tell, I studied college long back so I cannot recall. 

10. The answer should flow from you: 

• For example, a candidate once told he put IAAS above IRS because his friends told. 
• It does not make sense to choose something because your friends have told you. 
• Rather it should have been that YOU have chosen IAAS above IRS because YOU have felt so and so. 
• The answer should flow from you. 

Finally, Belief: 

• The most important thing. 
• Believe that you will clear. Believe it to the core. 
• Once the belief will get imbibed within you, it will flow and be felt in your answers. Make the interviewers feel it.