Essay your success

Updated on: Monday, August 16, 2010

ESSAY (Compulsory): 2009; Time Allowed: Three Hours; Max. Marks: 200
Write an Essay on any one of the following topics:
* Are our traditional handicrafts doomed to a slow death?
* Are we a ‘Soft’ state?
* “The focus of health care is increasingly getting skewed towards the ‘haves’ of our society”.
* “Good Fences make good neighbours”
* ‘Globlisation’ vs. ‘Nationalism’

The examiner will pay special attention to the candidate’s grasp of his material, its relevance to the subject chosen…

This is not a mock drill. Some thousands of civil service aspirants wrote essays on these subjects during the Main examination last year. One of the many papers that comprise the Main examination, the essay paper of 200 marks is crucial in determining your success. In fact, it demands more attention and preparedness than any other compulsory paper for this is one area which does not have any prescribed syllabus. Unfortunately, your knowledge of a specialised discipline will have little role to play in this part.

So how do you prepare for a crucial paper which has no definite parameters? To begin with, you must realise that an essay is an expression of your ideas, thoughts, inferences and communication style. It is a reflection of who you are, your attitude and aptitude, your skills for judgement — that are all being tested before you assume charge as a bureaucrat. Important aspects while writing your essay comprise the format (framework, structure), information (content, substance), language (expression, presentation), and logic (analysis and information).

We are all familiar with the conventional format of essay writing — introduction, main text and conclusion. An examiner will be reading hundreds of essays and you have to make your essay stand out. So grab the attention in your opening paragraph. The introduction should be concise and interesting enough to lead the examiner to the following part with growing curiosity. You may even ask a question which prompts the reader to introspect and think on lines which may not have crossed his mind before. Remember that the first paragraph is only the introduction to what will follow — don’t open all your trump cards right here. The trick is to generate inquisitiveness and let the body text do the magic.

The main text of your essay is a systematic presentation of information in a logical manner supported by related facts, figures, views and concepts. Any out-of-text information will lead to an incoherent write-up. To avoid this error, do a little bit of brainstorming before your start writing. Come up with a logical flow of ideas and also a systematic presentation which will make it a smooth exercise to both write and read. Remember that your main text should support your stance in the introduction. The body composition should develop and explain your ideas!

As you come to the end, draw a decisive conclusion. The last paragraph is the summary of your assessment — more like an essence of the essay. It should be based on your analysis and inference. Your end note can be thought-provoking or pragmatic. Remember not to leave the discussion open.

All three aspects of information, language and logic should be crisp, unambiguous and viable. The information that you furnish should not just be topical but self-explanatory and comprehensive as well. If there are contradictory views that you want to quote, then present them in a fashion that is unbiased. Ensure that there are no spelling errors or grammatical mistakes. A clean, flawless essay will have an advantage point. Leave enough time to revise your composition.

Examiners will test your orientation towards rational judgement through this essay paper. Avoid terms like “I think” or ‘it seems to me” that do not sound convincing. You may not be a good writer but this is a skill you can master with practice and more practice. In the end confidence and preparedness are all you need to write your essay to success!

Essay your success

More Education news