IAS

The Civil Services Exam (CSE) in India is a nationwide competitive examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

Via the Civil Services Examination, the UPSC recruits candidates for various Central and All India Civil Service posts in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Revenue Service (IRS), etc.

The Indian Civil Service Exam (UPSC IAS exam / UPSC Civils) is conducted in three stages:

1. Civil Services Exam (Preliminary)  – Objective Type
2. Civil Services Exam (Main) – Descriptive Type
3. Personality Test / Interview

The entire process of the Indian civil services examination from the notification of the preliminary examination to the declaration of the final results takes place roughly within a year. The candidates who get selected are recruited and trained for various services by the Central Government and then allotted different State Cadres, as per their preference and ranking.

UPSC Civil Service Exam Posts:

The civil services exam posts are categorized into two categories: Group ‘A’ and Group ‘B’.

Group ‘A’ services include three All India Services (the IAS, IPS and the IFS) and 18 other services as indicated in the table below.

UPSC Civil Services Exam Date:

Given below is a general time frame within which the UPSC schedules important events of the exam such as the Indian Civil Service notifications and exam dates.

Civil Services Exam Pattern 2021

Prelims Exam:

Prelims is the first stage of the UPSC CSE process. It is a screening test to select the students for the further selection process. Prelims exam comprises two objective type papers of 200 marks each. Only those who manage to score more than the cut-off declared by the UPSC for that particular year will be summoned for the next level of examination. However, the marks scored in Prelims will not be counted for arriving at the final merit list.

Read more about the pattern and syllabus and preparation strategy for Civil Services Exam (Preliminary).

Mains Exam:

Mains Exam is the second level in the Civil Services Selection Process. Mains exam comprises 9 descriptive type papers: 1 Essay paper, 4 General Studies Papers, 2 Optional Papers (of your choice to be selected from the Civil Services Exam Optional Subjects, 2 language papers (marks scored in language papers will not be included to arrive at the final ranking order – however, candidates need to score at least 25% in each paper in order to qualify).

Interview:

Personality test, commonly known as the interview, is the final round in the Civil Services Exam selection process. It is the gateway to your dream service. Only those candidates who manage to clear the mains exam cut-off are allowed to attend the interview. The purpose of the interview is to assess the suitability of the candidate to the Civil Services. At this stage, the candidates are tested for their mental alertness, the balance of judgment, intellectual and moral integrity, etc out of 275 marks. Marks scored by the candidate in the interview will be added to the marks scored by him/her in the mains exam for arriving at the final merit list.

Civil Services Exam Qualification:

Candidates who wish to appear for the Civil Services Exam must fulfill the conditions of nationality, age, and educational qualification. The candidate must not be less than 21 years of age and more than 32 years of age. The candidate must also have completed graduation in any discipline from a recognized university. However, there are age relaxations, depending upon the category the candidate belongs to.