Devangi Meena's UPSC journey is a story of resilience and determination. Hailing from Guna district in Madhya Pradesh, she faced three consecutive failures in the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination before securing All India Rank (AIR) 236 in the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2025, earning her a place in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).
Who is Devangi Meena?
Devangi was raised in the National Fertilizers Limited (NFL) township, where her father worked. She completed her schooling at DPS NFL Vijaypur and studied Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics (PCM) in Classes 11 and 12. Instead of pursuing engineering, she chose Geography Honours at Miranda House, University of Delhi and later completed her Master's from the Delhi School of Economics. During her first year of postgraduate studies, she also qualified the UGC NET-JRF.
Three failures before success
Devangi appeared for the UPSC exam for the first time in 2020 but failed to clear the Preliminary Examination. She met the same fate in her next two attempts. For someone who had always been an academic topper, the repeated failures were difficult to accept. In an interview with Indian Masterminds, she said it was the first time she had failed an examination and that people began questioning her abilities based on those results.
After her third unsuccessful attempt in 2023, she took a six-month break from studies to analyse where she was going wrong. She realised that her preparation was strong, but exam-day anxiety was affecting her performance.
How she achieved AIR 236
To overcome this challenge, Devangi joined a daily test series that recreated real examination conditions, helping her become comfortable with the pressure. The strategy paid off as she cleared the prelims in 2024 with 108 marks, around 20 marks above the cut-off and again in 2025 with 102 marks, about 10 marks above the cut-off.
She later cleared the Mains and Interview and was selected for the Indian Civil Accounts Service (ICAS). While undergoing training, she made one final UPSC attempt. By improving her Geography optional score from 223 to 286, she secured AIR 236 in the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2025, fulfilling her dream of becoming an IAS officer.