The Round Table IAS
Courses / PSIR Optional 2027 — Target 280, Certified

PSIR Optional 2027 — Target 280, Certified

Go beyond conventional PSIR preparation with deeper analysis, sharper arguments and personalised mentorship designed to take your optional to the highest level.Go beyond conventional PSIR preparation with deeper analysis, sharper arguments and personalised mentorship designed to take your optional to the highest level.

All levelsEnglish (with bilingual Hindi explanations) · 79 live sessions · 1,247 enrolled · Updated September 2026

What you'll learn

✓Command both PSIR papers with conceptual depth, not rote memorisation
✓Convert dense theory into structured 280+ level Mains answers
✓Master Western political thought (Plato to Gramsci) and Indian political thought (Manu to Ambedkar)
✓Decode comparative politics, approaches and political analysis frameworks
✓Map India's foreign policy and contemporary IR debates to current affairs
✓Leverage the PSIR–GS Paper 2 overlap (polity, governance, IR) for double-scoring
✓Build a personalised, question-type-specific answer-writing template

Course content

5 sections · 80 items · 157h 31m total
Introduction to PSIR
Recording · 2h 0m · loom
PreviewCompleted
Introduction to Western Political Thought I
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Introduction to Western Political Thought ||
Recording · 1h 58m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Introduction to Western Political Thought |||
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Introduction to Western Political Thought IV
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Plato I
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Plato II
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Plato III
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Plato's Theory of Justice
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Plato & Aristotle - PYQ Discussion Lecture.
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
PreviewCompleted
Plato's Theory of Education & Communism.
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
Completed
Was Plato the First Fascist
Recording · 2h 0m · loom
Completed
Political Theory: Meaning and Approaches
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
Completed
Introduction to Theories of State - Liberal
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
Completed
Introduction to Aristotle
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
Completed
Aristotle the father of political science
Recording · 1h 58m · zoom
Completed
Aristotle in Criticism of Plato - Part 1
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
Completed
Aristotle in Criticism of Plato - Part 2
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
Completed
Aristotle and Introduction to Machiavelli
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
Completed
Aristotle in 21st century | Citizenship and Slavery
Recording · 2h 0m · zoom
Completed
Machiavelli 101
Recording · 1h 59m · zoom
Completed
Machiavelli 102
Recording available soon
Completed
Rights: Meaning and theories; different kinds of rights; Concept of Human Rights
11 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Democracy: Classical and Contemporary theories; different models of democracy - representative, participatory and deliberative
14 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 2h 0m · zoom
Link shared before session
Concept of Power: Hegemony, ideology and legitimacy
16 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Introduction to Political Ideology - Liberalism
18 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Socialism
21 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 2h 0m · zoom
Link shared before session
Marxism
23 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 2h 0m · zoom
Link shared before session
Fascism
25 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 58m · zoom
Link shared before session
End of Ideology Debate
2 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Gandhism
28 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 2h 0m · zoom
Link shared before session
Feminism
30 Sept 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 57m · zoom
Link shared before session
Multiculturalism - Bhikhu Parekh
5 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Introduction to Indian Political Thought - Dharamshastra
7 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Arthashastra
9 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Buddhist Traditions
12 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan
14 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
Sri Aurobindo
16 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 2h 0m · zoom
Link shared before session
M K Gandhi
19 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
B R Ambedkar
21 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 59m · zoom
Link shared before session
M. N. Roy
23 Oct 2026, 7:00 pm · 1h 58m · zoom
Link shared before session

🔒 Enroll to unlock everything. Sign in and audit the course to watch the free previews.

Requirements

  • Open to any graduation background — no prior PSIR study required
  • A serious commitment to daily answer writing (45–60 min/day)
  • Laptop or tablet with stable internet for live sessions
  • Willingness to be challenged in Socratic debate

Description

An end-to-end Political Science & International Relations (PSIR) optional program built on The Roundtable Method — discussion-driven, Socratic mentorship instead of passive lectures. 400+ hours of live + recorded sessions cover Paper I (Political Theory & Indian Government and Politics) and Paper II (Comparative Politics & International Relations), mapped line-by-line to the UPSC syllabus and 15 years of PYQs. Includes 1:1 mentorship by Rohan Dange Sir, a 4+4 test series with rubric-based evaluation, a 72-hour answer-copy evaluation guarantee, audiocasts of core reference books, and five think-tank certifications. Batch capped at 45.

Who this course is for

  • UPSC CSE aspirants choosing PSIR as their Mains optional
  • First-attempt aspirants who want a structured, mentor-led optional
  • Repeaters who scored below 240 in PSIR and need to fix answer quality
  • Working professionals preparing alongside a job
  • Graduates from non-political-science backgrounds

Instructor

Rohan Dange
Rohan Dange
Founder & Chief Mentor, The Round Table IAS · Distinguished Fellow, Forum for Global Studies · 15+ yrs UPSC mentorship · PSIR, IR & Essay specialist

Rohan Dange is the Founder and Chief Mentor of The Round Table IAS. Over 15+ years he has mentored aspirants into the IAS, IPS and IFS through a distinctively Socratic method — posing syllabus and current-affairs questions so aspirants build, challenge and refine arguments live.

₹38,000₹45,00016% off
Enroll now