Some stories don’t just inspire — they rewrite what’s possible. Monika Srivastava from Aurangabad, Bihar, has cracked the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2025 with an All India Rank of 16, becoming one of the most talked-about names in India’s IAS result season. And this isn’t even her first rodeo — she had already cracked both IIT and BPSC before this crowning achievement.
Table of Contents
Monika Srivastava — UPSC Success Story at a Glance
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Name | Monika Srivastava |
| Hometown | Aurangabad, Bihar |
| UPSC CSE 2025 Rank | AIR 16 |
| Educational Background | B.Tech (Computer Science & Engineering), IIT Guwahati (2016) |
| Previous Achievement | BPSC 66th — Rank 6 (Women Topper) |
| Job Before UPSC | Senior Software Engineer, PayPal, Chennai |
| UPSC CSE 2023 Result | AIR 455 (first attempt) |
| Inspiration to Join Civil Services | COVID-19 pandemic — wanted to serve frontline like her doctor siblings |
| UPSC Preparation Strategy | Self-study, daily answer writing, fixed sources, data-heavy answers |
The Journey That Didn’t Start Easily
Monika was born in Balia, Uttar Pradesh but raised in Aurangabad, Bihar — her father an engineer in Bihar’s rural works department, her mother a school principal. She excelled in mathematics from childhood, eventually cracking JEE to join IIT Guwahati, where she graduated in Computer Science and Engineering in 2016 before joining PayPal in Chennai as a senior software engineer. IMDb
The COVID-19 pandemic became her turning point. Watching her siblings serve as frontline doctors while she sat in a comfortable tech job made her feel she wasn’t contributing enough. “I wanted to be part of the mainstream frontline workers,” she reflected — and that moment of clarity set everything in motion.
BPSC First, Then UPSC — A Two-Stage Conquest
While managing a full-time job, Monika filled the BPSC 66th form in 2020 and cracked it with Rank 6 — becoming the sole woman in the BPSC top 10 and the overall women’s topper. The 50
She then worked as a Tax Officer while simultaneously preparing for UPSC — clearing it in 2023 with AIR 455 on her first attempt. The Sunday Guardian Now, in 2025, she has catapulted to AIR 16 — proof that persistence compounds.
Her top advice to aspirants: fix your sources, make your own notes, use data points in every answer, and maintain a positive attitude no matter how delayed or discouraging the process gets.
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FAQs
Q: What rank did Monika Srivastava get in UPSC CSE 2025, and where is she from?
Monika Srivastava secured AIR 16 in the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2025 — she is from Aurangabad, Bihar, and is an IIT Guwahati Computer Science graduate who previously cracked BPSC with Rank 6.
Q: What was Monika Srivastava’s strategy for cracking UPSC after IIT and BPSC?
Monika focused on fixed study sources, self-made notes, regular answer writing with data points, and prepared alongside her full-time government job — crediting strong family support as a key pillar of her success.
