“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”
-Harriet Tubman
This quote fits perfectly for Suruchi Chaudhary, who had a dream and the passion to fulfill that dream, despite of the challenges that came in her life. A mother of two boys, Suruchi was working with Edelweiss Group as a Financial Research Analyst when she started preparing for the civil services examination. She quit her 7-years long job at Edelweiss and with just 2 attempts in hand, she began her preparation.
Meet Suruchi Chaudhary
Suruchi Chaudhary did her graduation from Shri Ram College of Commerce and an MBA in Finance. She also cleared the Chartered Financial Analyst exam. Suruchi had been married for 8 years before she sat for the civil services exam.
Suruchi began with just two attempts in hand due to age limit. She barely had any idea about the exam. In 2015, she could not even clear the prelims exam because of the changes in the CSAT pattern. She doubted her ability to return to studying after a gap of 7 years, to study her optional subject after a decade, and to write with paper and pen after 10 years of being in front of laptops.
Prelims score card- Suruchi Chaudhary
“Most scary was the constant fear of facing the last attempt which had the first Main and the first Interview.”, says suruchi
Suruchi sat for her second and last attempt for the CSE exams in 2016. Not only did she cleared the exam but got an amazing rank of 152 AIR. Her optional subjects were Commerce and Accountancy given her academics and work experience in the same field. The fact that she had no idea about the exam made her success even more special for her.
Mains score card – Suruchi Chaudhary
CSE Preparation
When Suruchi started preparing, she had returned to study after 7 years, and with 2 kids to take care of, her biggest achievement was time management. She believes that from fulfilling a parent’s responsibilities to preparing notes and giving mock tests, all these things could not be possible without a well thought plan.
Success comes to those who dedicate everything to their passion in life. The journey of CSE is long, and can only be sustained if one has lingering desire to succeed.
“I studied even on the day my younger one was born, inside my hospital room!! This is how badly I wanted this to happen.”, says suruchi
Topper articles and Success stories used to keep Suruchi motivated. Her role model was Mary Kom as she could relate to her. She felt that if Mary Kom could return to boxing even after having 2 kids and do well in boxing, then there was no reason that her kids could be a hindrance in her studies. She even had the poster of the movie Mary Kom near her table to keep her motivated.
Suruchi says that she had limited her resources- selected books, newspapers and test series. She even says that revision is the deciding factor in the exam and is very important during the preparation. She focused more on writing that reading for the exam.
“The ride was very rocky, but I enjoyed every bit of it.“, Suruchi says after topping the cse 2016.
Chaudhary opted for IRS(IT) as her first preference and ended up getting the same. Suruchi is a mother of two toddlers and is aware of her role in her children’s upbringing. She took a sentient decision to maintain the balance between her family and work life. Suruchi’s journey is an inspiration to all those mothers and women who want to restart their career. Not only that, she is an epitome of will power and passion. Her journey is an encouragement to the youth to achieve their dreams.
