UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE)

To apply for the UPSC Civil Services Examination, a candidate must have completed GRADUATION from any recognized university in India, OR any foreign university that is recognized by the Government of India. Open university degrees are valid if recognized.

The degree can be in any discipline (Arts, Science, Commerce, Engineering, Medical, etc.). Final-year students can also apply, but they must have their degree before the Mains exam.

The MINIMUM AGE required is 21 years. The UPPER AGE LIMIT for the General Category is 32 years with a maximum of 6 attempts. OBC candidates get 3 years of age relaxation (up to 35 years) and can attempt the exam 9 times.

SC/ST candidates get 5 years of relaxation (up to 37 years) and can attempt the exam unlimited times until they reach the maximum age limit. Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) get up to 10 years of age relaxation, and their number of attempts depends on their category.

The Civil Services Examination (CSE) is conducted in 3 stages: Prelims, Mains, and Interview.

Stage 1: Preliminary Examination is the first step and is used to shortlist candidates for the Mains exam. It consists of 2 objective type papers (MCQ) – General Studies (Paper I for 200 marks) and CSAT (Paper II for 200 marks).

CSAT is qualifying in nature, and candidates must score at least 33% to pass it. Its marks are not counted in making the merit list, you just need to pass the exam. In case you fail in it, your General Studies paper shall not be considered and checked.

There is a negative marking of one-third for every wrong answer. The marks of Prelims are not included in the final merit (Rank); they are only for screening. In Prelims, UPSC usually shortlists about 12 to 14 times the number of vacancies announced for the Mains stage. About 1 in 100 (≈ 1%) of candidates who take Prelims typically qualify for Mains.

Stage 2: Mains Examination is the main written exam and is very important for final selection. It includes 9 descriptive papers: one Essay paper (250 marks), four General Studies papers (GS I, II, III, and IV – 250 marks each), and two Optional subject papers (250 marks each). You need to choose only one Optional Subject from a list of around 48 Subjects given by UPSC.

There are also two qualifying language papers (one any Indian Language and one English – 300 marks each), but their marks are not added to the final ranking. The Indian language to choose from includes Hindi, Punjabi, Tamil etc. (total 22 languages - you need to choose yours). The total marks counted for merit from Mains are 1750.

Stage 3: Interview (Personality Test) is the final stage and carries 275 marks. It is conducted to assess a candidate’s personality, confidence, communication skills, decision-making ability, and overall suitability for civil services. The final merit list is prepared by adding Mains marks (1750) and Interview marks (275), making a total of 2025 marks.