Meet woman who left high-paying job in Switzerland for UPSC exam, secured AIR...; married to IAS, she is now...

Millions of aspirants appear in India’s most challenging and prestigious exam, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam, every year. Only a few candidates are chosen for esteemed positions such as IAS (Indian Administrative Service), IPS (Indian Police Service), and IRS (Indian Revenue Service), among others. Many aspirants, driven by a sense of patriotism, leave high-paying jobs abroad to pursue their desire to serve their country. In this article, we are talking about Ambika Raina, who left her lucrative career in Switzerland to pursue a role in public service. 

Ambika Raina’s early life

Born in Jammu and Kashmir to a Major General in the Army, Ambika’s early life was full of relocations due to his father’s different postings. Despite changing environments, Ambika had strong academic pursuits. She completed her graduation in Architecture from CEPT University in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. She also got an internship in a Zurich-based company in Switzerland, which later turned into great job offers. But aspirations lay somewhere else, she turned down the high-paying job and returned to India and started preparing for the UPSC exam. 

Ambika Raina’s UPSC preparation journey

With hard work and dedication, Ambika began preparing for UPSC; however, she failed in the exam twice. Despite initial failures, she persevered and refined her strategy. She analysed her mistakes, gave mock tests and solved previous years’ question papers. She analysed hundreds of topper interviews and built a strong foundation through syllabus analysis. She reportedly relied on Laxmikant for Political Science, Spectrum for Modern History, NCERT for Geography, Shankar IAS for Environment, Nitin Singhania for Art and Culture, and Vision's monthly compilations for Current Affairs . Finally, she cleared UPSC in her third attempt, securing a place in IAAS (Indian Audit and Accounts Service) with an AIR of 164 in JEE Main 2022. 

Ambika Raina’s personal life

Ambika’s UPSC journey serves as a powerful inspiration for civil service aspirants. Her UPSC success story highlights the significance of persistence and strategic preparation. On the personal front, Ambika is married to IAS Amritesh Shukla. Though the specifics of their love story are not known, they both are officers in the Indian Audit and Accounts Service.