UPPSC PCS 2018: Lucknow sisters, one an SDM and one a civil judge, on how they prepared
The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission's Combined State/Upper Subordinate Services Examination, popularly called UPPSC PCS, is one of the most sought-after state exams in north India. Its 2018 cycle ended with the final result on Friday, September 11, 2020.
What the video shows
This VoxyTalksy video was published on September 12, 2020, the day after the PCS 2018 final result. Reporter Ayush Tiwari meets Akanksha Singh of Lucknow, who was selected for the post of SDM (Deputy Collector), though she had not yet been given a posting. Akanksha says she comes from an ordinary family, that poverty or any other problem should not stand in the way of a goal, and that regular study and family support carried her through moments of doubt. At the end of the video her younger sister Ankita appears; she had earlier qualified the UP judicial services (PCS-J) exam and was then posted as a civil judge in Azamgarh. The sisters say they prepared together and motivated each other, even though their results came at different times.
The PCS 2018 result in numbers
- Final result declared: September 11, 2020.
- Candidates selected: 976, against 988 advertised posts. Twelve Information Officer / District Information Officer posts went unfilled for want of suitable candidates.
- Top three: Anuj Nehra of Panipat (Haryana), Sangeeta Raghav of Gurugram and Jyoti Sharma of Mathura. All three are women, which was widely reported at the time.
- According to published post-wise details, the 2018 cycle included 119 Deputy Collector posts. In Uttar Pradesh, Deputy Collectors serve as SDMs.
How the UPPSC PCS exam works
- Preliminary exam: objective papers on General Studies and an aptitude test (CSAT). The CSAT paper is qualifying, and the merit list for the next stage is drawn from the General Studies paper.
- Main exam: descriptive papers, including General Hindi, Essay and General Studies papers, along with an optional subject as notified for that cycle.
- Interview: the final stage, after which the merit list and post allocation are issued.
- The judicial service exam (PCS-J) that Ankita cleared is a separate exam for civil judge (junior division) posts and requires a law degree.
Practical takeaways for aspirants
- Read the official notification on uppsc.up.nic.in for each cycle; syllabus, age limits and the list of posts can change.
- Previous years' question papers are the best guide to the level of the exam.
- UP-specific general knowledge, from state schemes to geography and history, carries weight in this exam.
- As both sisters say in the video, consistency matters more than marathon study sessions, and a support system at home makes the long process easier.
The full process for one PCS cycle often takes about two years from notification to final result, so aspirants usually prepare for the next cycle while waiting for the current one.
