Coaching schedules are written for the average student. The official syllabus and the last few question papers are written for the exam you are actually sitting. A plan built from those two documents is free and usually better.
It is inside the recruitment notification, normally as an annexure. Find the notification for your exam in the latest government jobs list and save the PDF. Do not rely on a syllabus typed out on a third-party page.
Copy every topic into a sheet, one per row, grouped by section. Add three columns: read once, practised, revised. This is now your progress tracker.
Take the last three to five papers and tally how many questions came from each topic. Sort the sheet by that count. A handful of topics will account for most of the marks; those get your first weeks.
| Look for | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Marks per section | Decides how many hours a section deserves |
| Sectional cut-off | You cannot skip a weak section if each has its own minimum |
| Negative marking | Changes how many doubtful questions to attempt |
| Sectional timing | If sections are timed, practise them with a timer |
Reserve the last two weeks for revision and full mocks. Divide the remaining weeks among sections in proportion to marks, then adjust for your weak areas. Write the plan by week, not by day; days get disrupted.
One full-length mock a week early on, two or three a week in the final month. Spend as long analysing a mock as taking it. For online exams, practise on a computer: see the computer based test guide.
When the official key is released, calculate your score and compare it with previous cut-offs. Keys are listed on the Govtpvt answer keys page, and if the exam ran in several shifts, read how normalisation works before you compare marks.