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UPSC Civil services examination or IAS examination pattern and Syllabus
If you are reading this article, it means you are serious about the UPSC Civil services exam (or famously known as IAS exam) preparation or you wanted to know, how can one prepare themselves for this examination. Either way, you are at the Right Place.
First things First!
The aspirant should be aware of the UPSC Civils Exam Pattern and Syllabus.
(If it is possible, you can get a free counselling session from Neeharika Reddy IAS academy or if you are already aware you can start by analyzing the syllabus.)
To brief up to the freshers, UPSC has 3 stages:
- Preliminary Examination
- Main Examination
- Personality Test (Interview)
Stage 1: Prelims
UPSC Prelims paper pattern: Two papers, Total 400 marks
Consists of two papers which have objective type questions and each paper has negative marks for a wrong answer. one third mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.
Paper-1 General Studies (G.S)
Consists of 100 questions, each question carrying 2 marks rounding off to total 200 marks. This paper consists of questions related to subjects like geography, polity, economy, history, science and technology, current affairs etc.
Paper-2 CSAT
Consists of 80 questions each question carrying 2.5 marks rounding off to total 200 marks. This paper consists of quantitative aptitude, comprehensive passages, logical reasoning, general mental ability etc.
The qualification marks vary every year based on competition, difficulty level of the paper and number of posts available, etc. However, the paper 2 cut off marks is fixed. One should get 33% in order to qualify paper 2.
Even if a candidate gets more marks in paper 1 and fail to qualify in paper II, then the candidate will not be qualified in prelims. It is a must to score 33% in paper II and also need to get the cut off in paper I.
Prelims marks are just for qualification to next stage and will not be considered in allocating final rank
Please note: Qualification marks vary for each category based on the reservation given to them. Aspirants can refer to the detailed notification of UPSC for detailed understanding or can approach Neeharika Reddy IAS academy for further details.
Stage 2: Mains
Mains Total Marks: 1750
Mains consists of 9 papers
UPSC Mains papers list
| Paper | Subject | Duration | Total Marks | Qualifying type |
| Paper A | Compulsory Indian language | 3 hours | 300 | Qualifying |
| Paper B | English | 3 hours | 300 | Qualifying |
| Paper 1 | Essay | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
| Paper 2 | General studies 1 | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
| Paper 3 | General studies 2 | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
| Paper 4 | General studies 3 | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
| Paper 5 | General studies 4 | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
| Paper 6 | Optional paper 1 | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
| Paper 7 | Optional paper 2 | 3 hours | 250 | Score considered |
UPSC Mains Paper pattern
Paper A: The Compulsory Indian Language Paper
One of the Indian Language to be selected by the candidate from the Languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution. For further details u can contact Neeharika Reddy IAS Academy or refer to the recent notification of UPSC.
Paper B: English
The papers on Indian languages and English (Paper A and paper B) are qualifying in nature. The marks obtained in these papers will not be counted for ranking.
How many marks a candidate should score in order to qualify these language papers?
A candidate should score at least 25% of the total marks i.e., 75 marks out of 300 to qualify the language paper.
NOTE: Candidates hailing from the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim are excepted from this paper.
Paper I: Essay 250 Marks
In the UPSC Mains Essay paper, there are two sections. Each section consists of four questions. The aspirants have to choose one topic from each section and in total have to answer 2 essay questions mandatorily. Each essay question has to be answered with a word limit ranging from 1000-1200 words. For one essay question 125 marks will be awarded. Essay questions can be asked from any general subject or current issues.
Paper 2: General studies I
Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society
Paper 3: General Studies II
Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations
Paper 4: General Studies -III
Science & Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Internal Security and Disaster Management
Paper 5: General Studies IV
Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude
Paper 6 and 7: Optional subject
Every optional subject has two papers
Following is the list of optional subjects. A candidate needs to choose any one among these (Optional papers can also be literature subjects):
- Agriculture
- Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science
- Anthropology
- Botany
- Chemistry
- Civil Engineering
- Commerce and Accountancy
- Economics
- Electrical Engineering
- Geography
- Geology
- History
- Law
- Management
- Mathematics
- Mechanical Engineering
- Medical Science
- Philosophy
- Physics
- Political Science and International Relations
- Psychology
- Public Administration
- Sociology
- Statistics
- Zoology
Literature subjects:
- Assamese
- Bengali
- Bodo
- Dogri
- Gujarati
- Hindi
- Kannada
- Kashmiri
- Konkani
- Maithili
- Malayalam
- Manipuri
- Marathi
- Nepali
- Odia
- Punjabi
- Sanskrit
- Santhali
- Sindhi
- Tamil
- Telugu
- Urdu
- English
For better understanding of the marks and qualification of candidates the below list can be examined.
In the Civil Services Examination 2019, the minimum qualifying standards/marks secured by the last recommended candidate in various categories at various stages are as under: –
| Exam | General | EWS | OBC | SC | ST | PwBD-1 | PwBD-2 | PwBD-3 | PwBD-5 |
| CS(Prelim)** | 98.00 | 90.00 | 95.34 | 82.00 | 77.34 | 53.34 | 44.66 | 40.66 | 61.34 |
| CS(Main)# | 751 | 696 | 718 | 706 | 699 | 663 | 698 | 374 | 561 |
| CS(Final) | 961 | 909 | 925 | 898 | 893 | 861 | 890 | 653 | 708 |
Stage 3: Interview
Interview round carries 275 Marks. Here the candidate will be interviewed by a Board who have the DAF or Detailed Application Form which is submitted by the candidate during the Mains exam time. The main objective of the interview is to evaluate candidate whether they are suitable for the post and test their mental calibre.
Mock interviews are conducted at Neeharika Reddy IAS academy with expert board members. Candidates can experience and learn from these interviews.
Known for her outstanding case studies guidance in Ethics & Integrity, she has mentored more than 300 students in Sociology and Ethics & Integrity. Graduated with Bachelors in Engineering, and masters in Sociology and Business administration. She has 8 years of experience in mentoring Civil services aspirants
After 12th,how should I start UPSC preparation nd wt degree should I choose?
After completing your 12th, if you’re interested in preparing for the UPSC exam, you can choose any degree that you’re interested in. It doesn’t matter what degree you choose as long as you’re passionate about it and are willing to put in the effort to excel in it. Remember that your degree can also be a plan B in case you face any obstacles in your UPSC preparation.
To start your UPSC preparation, it’s important to cultivate a habit of reading newspapers and staying updated with current affairs. You should also complete the NCERT textbooks as they provide a strong foundation in various subjects that are important for the UPSC exam. Additionally, you can also start studying the syllabus and preparing notes on the various topics that are covered in the exam.