Karnataka’s Nandini KR’s journey from being a student at government schools to becoming a UPSC topper is truly inspirational. Both her parents are teachers who always maintained a nurturing environment at home during her childhood. Nandini is a resident of Kembodi village in Kolar district of Karnataka.

She cleared her school’s final board exams from Mudbidri, Chikmagalur, with an impressive score of 94.83 percent marks. Then, she pursued a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bangalore. 

From engineering to IAS

After completing her engineering degree, Nandini decided to pursue UPSC. She began with her preparations and appeared for the exams for the first time in the year 2013. Back then she could not even clear the preliminary examination, however, she was not discouraged.

While she was preparing to sit for the exams the second time, she was appointed as an Assistant Engineer in the PWD Department in Karnataka. She gave her second attempt in 2014 with Kannada literature as her optional subject. She got the 642nd rank and was offered an IRS position in Customs and Excise cadre. 

Journey to IAS

Nandini joined her service as IRS in December 2015 and relocated to Delhi to continue preparing for IAS exams. Unfortunately, in her third attempt, she made it to the interview rounds but could not clear them due to being diagnosed with dengue at the same time. The situation rather became disappointing for her, but the spark for achieving her dream did not let her rest. 

Becoming a topper

Nandini prepared a timetable that allowed her to study for maximum hours with complete concentration while also carrying out her other duties. In the year 2016, she appeared for the UPSC exams the fourth time, and came out victorious. She not only cleared the exams but surpassed everyone’s expectations by securing the first rank and becoming an All-India topper. 

Achieving success

According to some reports, Nandini was teased by her friends a week before the UPSC results for being so studious. They pulled her leg by calling her a topper. What her friends did not know was that these light-hearted jokes would in fact, become a reality. Nandini herself found it difficult to imagine that she had finally achieved her dream and had exceeded her own expectations.