2017: I dropped out of college to pursue the UPSC exam and live the dream of reaching LBSNAA. I was excited about the new journey. I left my technical and creative skills behind to live the dream.
In the mains exam centre, the fact that others have written mains 4-5 times impressed me. It did not raise any red flag, I was inspired instead. I saw no signs of decay. #UPSC#UPSCresult#UPSCResults
2018: I started again. I thought I had failed prelims and I started losing hope. But I cleared, misery was delayed. In the mains exam hall, I again heard stories of people giving 4th or 5th attempts. It drained me a bit.
2019: I didn't clear mains and started for prelims, yet again. The next 6 months changed my perspective. The feeling of having a greater purpose in life started kicking in. I was curious to know what I am capable of, beyond UPSC
I failed Prelims 2019 and went to Mussorie to take a break. I decided to move on. I decided to pick data science as my career. It took a lot of effort. Everyone talked of someone who gave all the 6 attempts and then quit, but no talks of someone who left before 6 attempts.
Today, you have strong community support from @ShoresUPSC. The community provides you with everything you can explore beyond UPSC. I wish I had this support, but you have. If you are thinking of life after UPSC, join them!
And amidst all this, remember that UPSC is a qualifying examination for administrative posts. It is a piece of life and not your life. Fail and fail with pride. You are worth more than the exam.
My story of transitioning from UPSC to Data Science.
My last thread on my UPSC journey was loved by a lot of amazing people on Twitter. Continuing that, here is the story of how I made a career in Data Science 👇
After leaving UPSC preparations, I started building on my data skills. I had done an internship with Exxon Mobil in 2016 which gave me a bit of support. I started learning Python, Statistics, and Linear algebra.
I worked with UPSC Institutes for a while, earned enough money to buy a laptop, and invest in upskilling.
It seemed very tough initially. I was dealing with data for the first time, coding in python for the first time, and Maths gave me nightmares.