Overview

 

Marks

I scored a total of 298 marks in my optional papers with the following bifurcation - 

• Economics Paper I - 164 marks 
• Economics Paper II - 134 marks 

Strategy

• While I did refer to the notes and guidance of previous years' toppers, I ultimately made my own notes based on my own understanding and reading of standard texts.

• Multiple rounds of revisions enable one to retain the vast syllabus of the Optional. 

• After 4 rounds of revisions post the prelims, I began writing full-length mock tests. I wrote 8 mock tests for the Optional (Paper I and Paper II combined). 

• PYQs are indispensable for scoring well in the Optional. I did most of the questions from 2000 onwards and some from before that as well. For PYQ answers, I referred to the blog of Dudhal Abhishek Dilip Sir (IAS 2023) and also did my own value addition (more on this in the Answer Writing section).

Timeline 

• It took me about 350 hours to complete one reading + note-making of both Paper I and Paper II combined. Paper II took up about 100-150 hours, and the remaining time was devoted to Paper I. All of this work happened before the prelims.

• Every subsequent round of revision took less time than the previous ones.

• My notes were ready prior to the prelims. I had also revised them 1-2 times before the prelims. But the actual learning of the notes from an answer writing perspective began post the prelims. 

• Between the prelims and the mains, I revised each topic/chapter 8-10 times. 

In the Exam Hall

• Completing the question paper is of utmost importance (as is the case with all compulsory/optional papers). For this, time management and practice is key. 

• In both papers, I started by writing question 1. Subsequently, I wrote the three optional questions and completed question 5 in the end.

• Only 5 out of 8 questions have to be attempted (with some specifications that can be found in exam instructions). While writing mock tests, I also practiced how to quickly decide which questions to answer and which ones to skip. This allowed me to spend minimum time in question selection in the exam hall. 

From PYQs, I realized that Question 8 (of both papers but especially Paper I) is usually the most unpredictable. So in the exam hall, I first read question 8 and as expected, eliminated it from my options. With fewer options remaining, choosing subsequent questions became easier and quicker. Creating such strategies beforehand helps one save time during the exam.