logo
logo
Sign in

How to Prepare For UPSC Sociology?

avatar
Elite IAS Academy
How to Prepare For UPSC Sociology?

If you are a UPSC aspirant and are studying hard all day and night to crack it, you must know that an optional subject in the UPSC mains plays a vital role. Every optional subject carries 500 marks in the UPSC mains examination. So, students need to choose their optional subject carefully.

Many prefer sociology as their optional subject. You can take the help of sociology online classes from various coaching centers. However, it is essential to plan appropriately to finish your syllabus when you take up a subject. Also, writing answers is an art that needs to be mastered by daily practice. Here are some points that will help you gain the maximum marks in an optional sociology paper if you follow.

  • Examine the syllabus thoroughly

Before you get into the subject matter, know that UPSC is a serious business. No kinds of fraudulent means should be undertaken here. The candidate has to go through each and every topic sincerely. Skipping topics and studying only the important ones won't help. It is better to memorize the course so that you can relate to the topics when you study.

Further, knowing the course thoroughly will help you write answers as well. A quick tip for all UPSC aspirants. When you sit to study sociology, keep the syllabus right in front of you. This way, you can strike out those portions that you've completed and keep a check on those that are still left.

  • Check out the question papers of the previous years

Once you are done with the sociology syllabus, every UPSC aspirant should go through the previous years' question papers. Even if the UPSC aspirants choose sociology as an optional, candidates need to put equal emphasis on this subject too.

Going through the previous years' question papers will help you in two ways – first, you will get to know the optional sociology paper's question pattern, and second, you will understand the type of questions that come. Likewise, you can prepare better for your UPSC mains. After you have grasped the syllabus and completed the course, solving previous years' papers helps immensely.

  • Study from standard books and materials for sociology

You will come across many standard study materials and books while preparing for an optional sociology subject. However, it would be easier for you to start with the NCERT books of grades 11 and 12. In these NCERT books, you will find a list of unsolved questions at the end of each chapter. Once you are done reading the chapters, try to solve these questions.

  • IGNOU books

You will find the entire syllabus of both papers I and II covered in the available IGNOU books. These books are written for better preparation of UPSC candidates. However, entirely depending on these books will not help candidates. You need to do selective study from the IGNOU books. If needed, you can take help from the sociology optional coaching online classes from a reliable coaching center.

  • Technique for writing answers

Before you write answers for an optional sociology paper, it is important to keep a few things in mind:

  1. A candidate should analyze previous papers and check out the frequent topics of the UPSC mains.
  2. Gather a good amount of information from newspapers, magazines, and surveys and incorporate relevant data into your answers.
  3. To enrich your answers, fill in the opinions of various remarkable thinkers wherever necessary.
  4. Always try to stay within the prescribed word limit when writing answers.
  5. After you finish writing, highlight the keywords of your answer to make them noticeable.

Conclusion

Therefore, if you can follow the tips mentioned above, you are sure to get success in the long run. Remember to practice writing answers regularly.

collect
0
avatar
Elite IAS Academy
guide
Zupyak is the world’s largest content marketing community, with over 400 000 members and 3 million articles. Explore and get your content discovered.
Read more