WHY GEOGRAPHY IS THE BEST OPTIONAL TO CHOOSE ?

• Geography is a beautiful blend of Natural and Social sciences. Hence it is preferred by many aspirants hailing from Science, Arts, Medical, Management and Engineering backgrounds.
• It’s a scientific subject which is totally based on principles, theories and models. It is highly conceptual in nature that requires crystal clear understanding. There is almost nothing or very little to mug-up.
• There is no dearth of quality study material available for geography optional. This not only shows the quantum of research in geography but also testifies the claim that it is a popular subject among aspirants.
• Geography optional has a tremendous overlap with General Studies both in prelims and in the mains examination.
• Aspirants can also utilize their geographical knowledge when they write their essay paper especially with respect to geo-political, socio-economic and environmental topics.
• Even in the UPSC Interview (personality test), Geography will be useful as the board can ask questions on the local geography of a candidate’s home town/district/state like soil, vegetation, minerals, agriculture, demography, settlements, industries, trade, transport, planning etc.
• The questions asked in the UPSC Civil Services Exam are no longer static but they require an inter-disciplinary approach. Geography optional has a lot of overlap with subjects like sociology, economics, environment, philosophy, ecology and conservation. Hence it becomes an attractive proposition for the aspirants.
• Unlike other subjects geography resolves the dilemma and confusion regarding presentation. In fact, it is the only subject that helps in augmenting the answers with maps, flow-charts, block-diagrams, schedules and other forms of illustrations.
• It is a highly rewarding and scoring subject. Many aspirants have done exceedingly well in the CSE with geography as their optional. The most outstanding and shining example is IRA SINGHAL who topped the Civil Services Examination-2014 with geography as her optional. Other prominent examples are Saumya Pandey (4th RANK, CSE-16), Shweta Chauhan (8th RANK, CSE-16), Gaurav Kapoor, Senthil Kumar, Kranti Singh, Mohita Sharma, Sandeep Chaudhary etc.
• MANY ASPIRANTS WITH GEOGRAPHY OPTIONAL HAVE CLEARED THE CIVIL SERVICES EXAMINATION IN THEIR VERY FIRST ATTEMPT.

IN THE LAST DECADE OR SO NEARLY EVERY YEAR 4-5 CANDIDATES WITH GEOGRAPHY OPTIONAL HAVE INVARIABLY FEATURED IN THE TOP 20 RANK HOLDERS IN CSE.