Noida resident Wardah Khan, who quit her corporate job to prepare for civil services, secured the 18th rank in the UPSC exam 2023 in the prestigious test, results of which were announced on Tuesday by the UPSC.

The 24-year-old UPSC qualifier says she has opted for the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) as her first preference and wishes to make the country proud at global platforms.

"Like every other aspirant, when we start our journey we dream of finding our name on the result list. But getting into the top 20 was unimaginable, I had not imagined to be able to be in the top 20. It's a dreamy feeling right now. Everybody in my family is very happy and beaming with pride," Ms Khan told.

"I have opted for Indian Foreign Service (IFS) as my first preference, so I would like to further the image of India across global platforms and multilateral institutions and help our Indian diaspora abroad," she added.

A resident of Vivek Vihar in Noida's Sector 82, Ms Khan pursued her Bachelors in Commerce (Honours) from the Khalsa College of Delhi University. The only child of her parents, she lives with her mother. Her father passed away nine years ago.

On how she got inclined towards UPSC, Ms Khan said that during her college days, she always had an interest in geopolitics, in subjects such as history and polity.

She used to participate in debates and MUNs (mock United Nations) during her college days but even then the idea of taking up civil services as a career path had not come to her.

It was during her job tenure that Ms Khan realised she wanted to become a civil servant.

"I worked for a corporate firm for eight months. That didn't sort of satisfy me. I wanted to give back to the society and wanted to work for my country and transform the lives of the people," she said.

"I realised the kind of syllabus and opportunities that this career (civil services) offers aligns with my interest and hence I decided to pursue it and quit my job in eight months," she added.

I prepared at home but also took online coaching from a private institution for one complete year, she said.

On tips for UPSC aspirants, the AIR 18-holder said there are a few postulates that every candidate should keep in mind.

"First and foremost, you have to be very thorough with the basics like NCERT and Polity by Laxmikant. These are the basic books that you have to be thorough with," she said.

"You also must have made proper syllabus heads of your mains and your optional should also be prepared with notes before the cycle communities. These are some of the things that must be kept in mind," Khan added.

A total of 1,016 candidates -- 664 men and 352 women -- have qualified in the examination and have been recommended by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for appointment to various services.

Aditya Srivastava, a trainee Indian Police Service officer, has topped the civil services examination 2023, results of which were announced on Tuesday by the Union Public Service Commission.

Animesh Pradhan, Donuru Ananya Reddy, P K Sidharth Ramkumar and Ruhani have secured second, third, fourth and fifth rank, respectively.