The Civil Services Preliminary exam comprises of two compulsory papers of 200 marks each (General Studies Paper I and General Studies Paper II) conducted by UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) New Delhi once a year. The questions will be of multiple choices and of objective type. The marks in prelims will not be counted for final ranking, but just for qualification for the main examination.
The Commission will draw a list of candidates to be qualified for Civil Service (Main) Examination based on the criterion of minimum qualifying marks of 33% in General Studies Paper II of Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination and total qualifying marks of General Studies Paper-I of Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination as may be determined by the Commission.
UPSC SYLLABUS FOR PAPER I – 200 MARKS. DURATION 2 HOURS (COUNTED FOR MERIT RANK IN THE PRELIMINARY)
Syllabus cannot be covered in limited time. For Prelim Part I one have to give focus on revision. One has to learn and excel until you succeed. Now cracking Indian Civil Service is very tough. Now a day handwritten notes are obsolete. Watch videos for quick learning in digital platform strictly for learning and revising. Practice previous year questions more and more. Watch PIB (Press Information Bureau) news and All India Radio news, cover Hindu or Indian Express newspapers, read Yojana, Kurukhetra magazines and India year books, read standard books of Current Affairs. Listen to Rajya Sabha updates and cover different NCERT books from 6th to 12th for General Studies like Indian Arts and Culture, Geography, Indian Policy, Economics, Environment, General Science etc.
For Prelim Part II i.e. CSAT (Civil Service Aptitude Test) one have to cover:
- Comprehension
- Inter personal skills including communication skill.
- Logical reasoning and analytical ability
- Decision making and problem solving
- General mental ability
- Basic numeracy (Numbers and their relation, orders of magnitude etc.) of class X level.
- Data Interpretation (Charts, Graphs, tables, Data Sufficiency etc.
(Practice through various mock test online or offline)
Now go to details of following, understand your own strength or potential or level, decide, start without hurry, focus more on learning than remembering getting things by heart, win your confidence, revise, practice, plan daily, weekly, monthly, avoid doing un-necessary social events that may waste your precious time and only attend if it is emergency and succeed.
- Current events of national and international importance.
- History of India and Indian National Movement.
- Indian and World Geography – Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
- Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
- Economic and Social Development Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.
- General issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.
- General Science.
UPSC SYLLABUS FOR PAPER II- (200 MARKS) DURATION: TWO HOURS (NOT COUNTED FOR THE MERIT RANK IN PRELIMS BUT A QUALIFYING PAPER; JUST NEEDS 33% MARKS)
- 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).
UPSC Syllabus – Civil Services Mains Exam
A candidate’s rank in UPSC Exam depends only on the mark scored in Main and Interview. The main exam has 1750 marks while interview has 275 marks.
The written examination (main) will consist of the following nine papers, but only seven papers will be counted for final merit ranking. For the rest two papers, the candidate should secure minimum marks prescribed by Union Public Service Commission each year.
QUALIFYING PAPERS – NOT COUNTED FOR FINAL RANKING:
- Paper ‐ A – Indian Language – Syllabus. 300 Marks. (One of the Indian Languages to be selected by the candidate from the Languages included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. This paper will not be compulsory for candidates hailing from the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim)
- Paper‐ B – English Language – Syllabus. 300 Marks.
PAPERS TO BE COUNTED FOR MERIT RANKING:
- Paper‐I Essay – Syllabus. 250 Marks.
- Paper‐II General Studies – I – Syllabus. 250 Marks. (Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society).
- Paper‐III General Studies –II – Syllabus. 250 Marks. (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations).
- Paper‐IV General Studies –III – Syllabus. 250 Marks. (Technology, Economic Development, Bio‐diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management).
- Paper‐V General Studies –IV – Syllabus. 250 Marks. (Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude).
- Paper‐VI Optional Subject – Paper 1 – 250 Marks.
- Paper‐VII Optional Subject – Paper 2 – 250 Marks.
OPTIONAL SUBJECTS:
HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, ECONOMICS, SOCIOLOGY, PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, PHILOSOPHY, PSYCHOLOGY, POLITICAL SCIENCE, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND VETERINARY SCIENCE, ANTHROPOLOGY, BOTANY, CHEMISTRY, CIVIL ENGINEERING, COMMERCE, ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING, GEOLOGY, LAW, MATHEMATICS, MANAGEMENT, MECHANICAL ENGINEERING, MEDICAL SCIENCE, PHYSICS, STATISTICS, ZOOLOGY AND LITERATURE OF ANY ONE OF THE FOLLOWING LANGUAGE:
ASSAMESE, BENGAL, BODO, DONGRI, GUJRATI, HINDI, KANNADA, KASHMIRI, KONKANI, MAITHILI, MALAYALAM, MANIPURI, MARATHI, NEPAL, ODIA, PUNJABI, SANSKRIT, SANTHALI, SINDHI, TAMIL, TELUGU, URDU AND ENGLISH
The candidate will be interviewed by a Board formed by UPSC (consisting of competent and unbiased observers) who will have before them a record of his/her career. He/she will be asked questions on matters of general interest. The object of the interview is to assess the personal suitability of the candidate for a career in public service. The test is intended to judge the mental caliber of a candidate. In broad terms, this is really an assessment of not only his/her intellectual qualities but also social traits and his/her interest in current affairs. Some of the qualities to be judged are mental alertness, critical powers of assimilation, clear and logical exposition, a balance of judgment, variety and depth of interest, ability for social cohesion and leadership, intellectual and moral integrity.
The technique of the interview is not that of a strict cross-examination but of a natural, though directed and purpose conversation, which is intended to reveal the mental qualities of the candidate.
The interview test is not intended to be a test either of the specialized or general knowledge of the candidates which has been already tested through their written papers. Candidates are expected to have taken an intelligent interest not only in their special subjects of academic study but also in the events which are happening around them both within and outside their own state or country as well as in modern currents of thought and in new discoveries which should rouse the curiosity of well-educated youth.
Sub Total (Written test): 1750 Marks
Personality Test: 275 Marks
Grand Total: 2025 Marks.
