• Smriti Mishra got All India Rank 04 in 2022 in her 3rd attempt after failing twice in the preliminary examination.
• She had a long journey consisting of Prelims failures, including CSAT in 2021.
• She drew inspiration from her father, who is a CO in Bareilly, and completed her B.Sc from Miranda House, Delhi University, choosing Zoology as her optional subject.
• Her saga is one of tenacity, a well-structured method of preparation, and above all, a love for public service directed towards women’s financial independence and urban governance.

Personal Details

Educational Background

• Smriti Mishra finished her schooling at St. Clair's Higher Secondary School in Agra, securing 96.6% in Class 12, and then pursued B.Sc in Zoology, Botany and Chemistry at Miranda House, Delhi University.
• Her excellent science background was a key factor in her decision to select Zoology as the UPSC optional subject, where she secured a total of 281 marks.

Family Background

• Smriti Mishra belongs to a family deeply involved in public service in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
• Her father, Rajkumar Mishra, is a Circle Officer (CO) in Bareilly, which instilled in her civil service aspirations.
• She also has a sibling who is a lawyer in the Supreme Court.

The UPSC approach of Smriti Mishra was based on keeping up to date with the course through NCERTs and standard books, doing extensive revisions, solving previous years' questions, taking mocks, making self-notes, and writing the answers early practice throughout the stages.

Prelims Strategy

Making use of NCERTs (Class 6-12) and standard materials, History, Polity, Geography, and Environment were the subjects where strong foundations were built with the utmost concept clarity.

Revisions, PYQs, and CSAT (quantitative aptitude, logical reasoning) practice were emphasized after the first round of the exam in 2021, which was my case.

Mains Strategy (GS + Essay + Optional)

Started answer writing early (even before Prelims were cleared), practiced PYQs, structured responses with integration of current affairs, and made concise GS/Zoology notes for revision.

Zoology (optional): Utilized the science background, revised the key concepts, wrote model answers, scored the highest marks so far with 281.

Interview Strategy

Enhanced communication skills, was informed of the current events (for example, crowd control and management during the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, local governance); received a score of 173.