Kottayam, Kerala: Alfred Thomas, the UPSC Civil Services Exam topper from Kerala who secured an impressive all-India rank of 33, has shared his unique approach to navigating what many aspirants describe as an overwhelming ocean of information – what he calls the “T-shape visualisation” method.
Born and raised in Delhi, Alfred shifted to his native Pala in Kottayam two years ago to focus on his preparation. Speaking to Timeline after the results were announced on Tuesday, the 26-year-old explained how a simple mental framework helped him balance the vastness of the syllabus with the need for focused preparation.
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“I like to visualise it like a ‘T’ shape,” Alfred said. “There are certain areas where you need only peripheral knowledge, like in prelims. So, you don’t need to dive too deep into that.”
The horizontal bar of the “T”, he explained, represents broad awareness across a wide range of topics – the kind of surface-level understanding needed to crack multiple-choice questions in the preliminary round. But for mains and interviews, depth is key.
“There are core areas where you need to go deep,” he added. “Those you can identify by carefully analysing the syllabus and past year questions (PYQs).”
Alfred pointed out that while the official syllabus might seem vague – for example, listing “modern Indian history from the 18th century onwards till now” in just a single line – the real insight comes from studying the pattern of questions that have actually been asked.
“If you go just by the syllabus, it feels endless. But PYQs give you a clear idea of what’s important and what’s not,” he explained.
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Still, Alfred acknowledged that unpredictability is part of the UPSC journey. “No matter how well-prepared you are, there’ll be questions that come out of nowhere. There’ll be questions that no one expects, or knows how to approach,” he said. “You always get these in prelims and sometimes in mains too. You can’t prepare for everything.”
His advice to aspirants? Stay calm, stay curious, and don’t try to read everything. Focus instead on building a strategy that balances breadth and depth, like the shape of a ‘T’.
