Most aspirants preparing for CSS, PMS, PCS, and UPSC exams confuse summary writing with precis writing even though the two are different academic skills. Both require understanding a passage, identifying the central ideas, and rewriting them in concise language. However, competitive exams treat them as distinct tasks with different formats, rules, and evaluation criteria. Understanding the difference is essential for scoring high, especially since the Precis component in competitive exams is marked with strict precision.
Let us now first look at the purpose of both skills.
1. Purpose and Nature
A summary is a broad yet shorter restatement of the original passage. Its goal is simply to present the main ideas in a reduced manner without worrying about strict length limits, title requirements, or structural discipline. Summaries can be flexible as it is up to the writer to decide what to condense and how to present it as long as the meaning remains intact.
A precis, however, is an academically structured, rule-bound writing form. It must follow the original passage’s logical flow, maintain objectivity, remove all examples and illustrations, and reduce the text to exactly one-third or one-fourth of the original length, depending on exam requirements. Importantly, competitive-exam precis writing is judged on technical accuracy, conciseness, sentence control, coherence, and discipline. As Sir Syed Kazim Ali frequently explains, a precis is the skill of disciplined compression, not just shortening the content.
Now, we can move on to the structural differences between the two.
2. Difference in Structure and Format
Unlike summaries, which may use multiple paragraphs or a free-flow structure, a competitive-exam precis must be written in a single unified paragraph with a clear, neutral title. Moreover, the title should be short, thematic, and non-creative. A summary does not always require a title, but a precis always does.
Furthermore, a precis also avoids rhetorical devices, literary expressions, and descriptive imagery. Instead, it rewrites the core sense of the passage in objective, academically neutral language. These rules are covered in Precis Writing Format, Rules, & Examples for Competitive Exams, which explains examiner expectations in detail.
Thus, candidates often lose marks when they write a summary-style version of the passage instead of a technically correct precis.
3. Difference in Language, Tone, and Compression Level
Moving on, a summary may shorten the text by any reasonable amount: half, two-thirds, or whatever length best represents the passage. A precis, on the other hand, has a strict compression ratio. This discipline is what makes precis writing challenging. Sir Syed Kazim Ali often emphasizes that a high-scoring precis requires controlled language, refined paraphrasing, and exactness of expression.
In tone, summaries may include mild interpretative phrasing while precis writing does not allow personal opinions, emotional coloring, or subjective expressions. The writer must maintain objectivity throughout. This is why many aspirants follow the writing principles taught by Sir Syed Kazim Ali in his Extensive English Essay and Precis Course as his techniques focus sharply on neutrality and precision.
4. Why the Difference Matters in Competitive Exams
Last but not least, why do competitive exam examiners and evaluators not accept summaries? This is because examiners in CSS, PMS, PCS, and UPSC follow international standards for academic writing. The British Council’s guidelines on concise writing closely match what these examiners expect: clarity, brevity, and coherence.
Hence, when a candidate writes a summary instead of a proper precis, even if the content is correct, he loses marks for violating structure, length limits, objectivity, and format. So, knowing the difference and practicing accordingly helps aspirants consistently score higher and avoid common pitfalls.