Union Public Service Commission is one of the most challenging exams in India. But nothing is complicated when you believe in yourself. Confidence is the key to all your goals. Meet Simi Karan, a 23-year-old girl from Odisha who has fulfilled her dream of becoming an IAS at 23. She graduated with an engineering degree from IIT and cleared her UPSC exams simultaneously. 

Getting into IIT and clearing UPSC are educational milestones every student dreams of achieving at some point in their lives. Clearing either IIT or UPSC is not easy, and only a few can imagine clearing both together. But Simi Karan cleared both and proved herself an excellent example of hard work and dedication. 

From Bhilai to Bombay

Simi Karan was born in the Bhilai district of Odisha. Her father worked in Bhilai Steel pant, and her mother was a teacher. She was a sincere and dedicated student and consistently scored good marks in her school days. She scored 98.4% in her class 12th board exams, enough to make her the state topper.

After class 12th, she was admitted to IIT Bombay to pursue Electrical Engineering. While pursuing her college degree, she decided to give UPSC exam as she wanted to become an IAS officer. 

She decided to pursue IAS after teaching some underprivileged children living in slums. She got this opportunity while studying at IIT Bombay as she had to do an internship. She felt awful seeing the condition of those children. She wanted to do something for them. 

That inspired her to do public service. She wanted to help and serve people as much as possible. She decided to achieve this by passing the UPSC exam and joining the civil services. 

Cleared UPSC Exams Without any Coaching

She started her preparation by watching the interviews of IAS toppers. That helped her to divide the UPSC syllabus into small parts. This enabled her to understand the easy topics and the topics that she needed to concentrate on more. 

She says she never focused on the number of hours of the study but instead focused on the quality of the study. Hence, her study hours fluctuated accordingly, but she studied for 8 to 10 hours daily on average. She started with limited sources and selected books as she didn't want to overwhelm herself with many books. 

She also took some time for recreational activities like jogging, running, or watching stand-up comedy. She is also fond of sports and dancing. With this preparation, she took the exam in 2019, secured 31st rank at the All India Level, and became an IAS officer at 22. Without coaching and self-study as the only aid, she cleared UPSC on her first attempt. 

Lal Bahadhur Shastri National Academy of Administration posted an official tweet stating that Simi Karan is the best performing officer trainee along with LV Reddy Memorial Award and Certificate. Currently, she has been posted as Assistant Secretary in Delhi. 

Simi's Advice to Other UPSC Aspirants

According to her, challenging a goal is important. Once you are ready with your goal, be prepared to face the challenges in your journey, as nothing will be easier. Start by focusing on the strategy and give equal importance to all the subjects. 

In an interview, she said she strongly believes in the quote - "Be brutally honest with yourself." You must consistently evaluate yourself and correct your course as and when required. This way, you can taste the success.