UPSC Civil Services
Preparing for the UPSC Civil Services test is a tough yet profoundly rewarding process. The UPSC IAS curriculum is available on the UPSC official website – https://upsc.gov.in/ – or you may scroll down to get the UPSC syllabus
The UPSC syllabus is the same for Indian Administrative Service, Indian Foreign Service, Indian Police Service, and Indian Revenue Service.
The Civil services exam is conducted in three phases:
Phase 1: Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination (Objective Type)
Phase 2: Civil Services (Mains) Examination (Descriptive Type)
Phase 3: Personal Interview (Personality Test)
“Phase 1: UPSC Prelims Exam
The UPSC Civil Services Prelims Examination is composed of two components:
1) General Studies
Paper Subjects Total Marks Duration
I General Studies (GS) 200 2 hours (9:30 AM to 11:30 AM)
II CSAT 200 2 hours (2:30 PM to 4:30 PM)”
In general, the UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination consists of two objective-type examinations, each worth 200 marks (for a total of 400 points) and last two hours. To be eligible for the Civil Services Mains, a candidate must take both papers.
Furthermore, the UPSC General Studies (GS) test has 100 questions, whereas the CSAT examination has 200 questions.
To demonstrate this, each successfully answered GS question would be worth two points. As a result, for each incorrectly marked question, 0.66 marks are removed from the total.
Similarly, because there are 80 questions for 200 marks in the CSAT paper, each well answered CSAT question is worth 2.5 points, whereas each incorrectly marked question is worth 0.833 points.
No marks will be deducted for questions that are not tried.
The first paper of the preliminary examination is the General Studies test. This examination is designed to assess a candidate’s broad knowledge of Indian Polity, Geography, History, Indian Economic, Science and Technology, Environment and Ecology, International Relations, and UPSC current affairs.
Negative marks are often not assigned to questions based on ‘Decision Making.’
The preliminary test is only intended to screen candidates for the later rounds of the test.
The scores gained in the preliminary exams will not be added together for determining the final rank list.
Events:1. UPSC Admit Card – Prelims Admit Card to be released around 19th September.
2. UPSC Prelims 2021 Postponed – Check details on the linked page.
3. UPSC Interview Postponed – IAS 2020 Interview deferred
4. UPSC Mains Result 2020 – Released on March 23, 2021
5. UPSC Apply Online Portal – Registration between 4th March, and 24th March 2021
6. UPSC Notification 2021 – Released on 4th March 2021 released on 4th March 2021
Prelims Syllabus UPSC
Syllabus for GS Paper (Prelims Paper I)
o History of India and Indian National Movement.
o Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
o Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
o Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.
o General issues on Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity, and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialisation.
o General Science
Syllabus for CSAT Paper (Prelims Paper-II
● Comprehension● Interpersonal skills, including communication skills
● Logical reasoning and analytical ability
● Decision-making and problem-solving.
● General mental ability
● Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency, etc. – Class X level)
The Mains test is the second step of the Civil Services Exam. Only after passing the prelims test will applicants be permitted to sit for the IAS Mains. The Mains exam assesses the candidate’s academic skills in detail and his or her ability to articulate his or her understanding by the question’s requirements in a timely way.
The two qualifying papers are as follows:
Any Paper in Indian Language
Only the papers on Essay, General Studies, and Optional Subjects of candidates who achieve a minimum qualifying standard of 25% in both language papers will be considered for review.
If a candidate fails to qualify in these language papers, the marks earned by that applicant will not be accepted or credited.
The types of questions:
1. Essay – 100 marks
2. Reading comprehension – 60 marks
3. Precis Writing – 60 marks
4. Translation:
1. English to compulsory language (e.g. Hindi) – 20 marks
2. Compulsory language to English – 20 marks
5. Grammar and basic language usage – 40 marks
The next seven papers may be prepared in any of the languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution or in English.
UPSC Mains Syllabus
Paper SubjectMarks
Paper – I Essay (can be written in the medium of the candidate’s choice) 250
Paper – II General Studies – I (Indian Heritage & Culture, 250
History & Geography of the World & Society)
Paper – III General Studies – II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, 250
Social Justice & International Relations)
Paper – IV General Studies – III (Technology, Economic Development, 250
Biodiversity, Security & Disaster Management)
Paper – V General Studies – IV (Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude) 250
Paper – VI Optional Subject – Paper I 250
Paper – VII Optional Subject – Paper II 250
Phase 3: IAS Interview/UPSC Personality Test (275 Marks)
● Candidates who qualify the UPSC Mains Exam will be called for the ‘Personality Test/Interview’. These candidates will be interviewed by a Board appointed by the UPSC.
● The objective of the interview is to assess the personal suitability of the candidate for a career in the civil services by a board of competent and unbiased observers.
● The interview is more of a purposive conversation intended to explore the mental qualities and analytical ability of the candidate.
● The Interview test will be of 275 marks and the total marks for written examination is 1750. This sums up to a Grand Total of 2025 Marks, based on which the final merit list will be prepared.