DAF is the Detailed Application Form that candidates must fill and upload online on the UPSC official website in order to apply for the mains exam. For admission to the Civil Services Mains Examination, 2020 which is going to be held in September 2020 , all candidates who would have shortlisted for the mains exam must to fill up the DAF (CSM) online and submit the same Online for admission to the UPSC Mains Examination.
Few pointers for filling the DAF/ Detailed Application Form:

• Don’t spend ages researching and filling the DAF


• Don’t fill anything you are not ready to prepare later.


• Don’t show off achievements or write false hobbies/interests. One of the biggest blunder you can commit to filling the DAF.


• Write your achievements and interests concisely instead of filling paragraphs. Interests etc. should be legible in a single glance. Board doesn’t spend too much time looking into each and every aspect of your DAF. The first impression is very critical.


• Limit the hobbies to a maximum of 3 - more than this will dilute the points and also create a headache for you later as you will have to prepare all of them.


• In case of multiple achievements only write those which are most attractive (and can beat other smaller ones). Example: University topper need not write about being CBSE 10th topper


• Govt scholarships/fellowships should be written like NTSE, KVPY, etc


• Clearly mention your degree like the Minor and Honours component. You wouldn’t want the board to misinterpret your graduation domain and ask you irrelevant questions!


• Do not force information where it’s not applicable. It’s perfectly fine to leave some columns. For eg., if you are not into sports, do not write it.


• Write specific interests and hobbies instead of general ones. For eg., if you are into dancing, mention specific dance form instead of merely writing “Dancing” as your hobby. You will end up providing a very big spectrum to the board to ask questions from.


• Writing internship experience under the “jobs” section - completely up to you. But if you write it, you should be ready to justify it. As mentioned earlier, do not force information in the DAF.


• There is a thin line between less info and excessive info in the DAF. If you try to show off and have an information overload, believe me, you will have a lot of trouble preparing for the interview. Each and every word in your DAF is a loose thread that can form a potential question.