CSS is the game of determination, hard work and luck. Asma - TopicsExpress

CSS is the game of determination, hard work and luck. Asma Ghazanfar Butt (CSP) Kindly tell us about your education and achievements. I have done matriculation from F. G. School, Abid Majeed Road, Rawalpindi, F.Sc. (pre-engg) from F. G. Post Graduate College, Kashmir road, Rawalpindi. After that I joined COMSATS Institute of information technology, Islamabad campus, and did my BS and MS in Mathematics. I was an active member of the students union throughout my academic career. I was the Vice President of the Literary Society of COMSATS, and the Editor of the campus magazine ‘SYNERGY’. Being Third Position in CSS, how should the candidates prepare for this exam? First of all, candidates should try to make a wise subject selection. After selecting the subjects, it is better to go through the course outlines and the past papers. Every subject should be equally important for the candidates. Regular reading of newspapers can be very helpful. Candidates should be focussed and determined to achieve their goals. What are the steps for CSS preparation? I think the basic steps are good subject selection, regular study schedules, consistent hard work, preparation by consulting quality books, making of personal notes in the form of sequence of headings, regular reading and writing practice and solving the past papers. What sort of guidance should be sought? It is preferable to seek guidance from senior qualifiers and professional experts to clear all the doubts regarding the exam. In addition to that, guidance can be sought from the official website of FPSC. Discuss books or notes; what should be prepared and how in detail? I think both the books and quality notes are equally important and helpful but the candidates should keep in mind that cramming the ready-made material can be very harmful. It is better to make our own short notes after absorbing the knowledge through various resources. This practice enables the candidate to give his personal touch to the answer and to reflect the genuine creativity of his mind. Highlight the steps as a key to success. I just want to add one thing here that CSS is the game of determination, hard work and luck. Only those can win who are determined to win and those have to fall who have fears of fall. What is the strategy to make oneself differentiate from the rest of the students and get the top position? The strategy should be as follows: • Reading quality material and avoiding the copy-paste of the crammed material • Extensive use of headings, quotes, figures, diagrams, statistical facts and figures and maps • Making compact and comprehensive outlines for every question • Proper time management during the exam What are the steps for the preparation especially English essay and composition? I think it is very important to develop a good reading and writing habit in order to excel in these papers. Candidates should consult some good grammar book to prepare the grammar paper. In addition to that, solving past papers can also be very helpful for these papers. What combination should the students opt for the optional subjects? The optional subjects should be chosen with great care. The candidates should try to select those subjects which are considered to be scoring by the experts but the candidates have to make the subject scoring for themselves, so choice should be in accordance with the personal interests and aptitude. What are the ways to get higher marks in the written as well as interview and write down your written and interview score in detail? Ans: My score in the exam is as follows: Essay 53 Grammar 69 Everyday Science 71 Current affairs 58 Pak affairs 43 Islamiat 65 Sociology 77 Journalism 59 Geography 149 Urdu 134 Total 778 Viva 208 Grand Total 986 Please tell us in detail how a candidate should attempt the papers both compulsory and optional papers. How to attempt the paper either adding more headings or just writing paragraphs? I think that adding headings for each paragraph is preferable in this exam. It is important to keep the answers to-the-point. Besides the headings, candidates may also use maps and figures to illustrate the answers. If some candidates provide any statistical data, it is desirable to mention the source of that information. Formulating compact outlines for the answers is also helpful in deciding the basic framework of the answer. How should the candidates start the paper especially the start and the end of the paper? The paper should be started with a careful reading of the question paper and a wise selection of the questions to be attempted. After that outlines should be worked out if the candidate wants to formulate these but it should not take more than 10 minutes. It is better to start with the question which one can solve the best. Time management is very important during the exam and candidates should pay attention to it. How many months and daily hours are required for CSS preparation? The months and hours of preparation may vary from person to person. According to my estimate, 8 to 9 months of dedicated study is enough time for the preparation. Focussed study of minimum 2 to 3 hours daily during these months can be a good scheme. Any message I just want to wish best of luck to all the aspirants of CSS in the coming year and I want to thank the editorial board of the World Times magazine for giving me a chance to express myself.