UPSC or Union Public Service Commission has been vested with the Constitutional authority to appoint people to the services of the Union and All India Services. As a premier agency, it conducts the Civil Services Examination. Candidates who qualify the examination are appointed to services such as the IAS, IRS, IPS, and so forth. Since the services carry many perks and benefits, it is a preferred choice of many.

UPSC examination is wide and covers many fields. It incorporates Combined Defense Service, Combined Medical Service, Indian Engineering Service, The Geologists Exam, and many others. Around a thousand vacancies are announced each year the exam is conducted. The examinations are tough to crack and since a lot of aspirants compete for these vacancies, it becomes highly competitive. To help the aspirants clear the examination, here are some tips and information we would like to offer.

Guide To Understanding The UPSC Examination:

What Qualifications Are Need to Appear for the Examination?

Before appearing for the examination, it is necessary to meet certain qualifications. Here is a list of the basic qualifications; elucidated by our team. Every candidate who wishes to appear for the examination has to have the following minimum educational qualification:

  • An educational degree in any subject from a central or state university.
  • An educational degree obtained through distance education courses.
  • An educational degree obtained on the completion of a course from an open university.

Except for educational qualification, the candidate also needs to meet the following age criteria:

  • The candidate must have completed the age of 21 years but should not be older than 32 years, at the time of the appearance in the examination.
  • Provided, if the candidate belongs to the SC/ST community, a relaxation of 5 years is allowed.
  • Provided, if the candidate belongs to the OBC category, a relaxation of 3 years is allowed.

How long does the examination last?

The examination lasts for a year. It is a long process and is divided into three stages: Preliminary; Mains; and Interview. The preliminary examination is objective type while the main examination is written. Getting a better understanding of the process is helpful and thus, we have elaborated on the UPSC exam procedure further.

What should be done to prepare for UPSC?

By collecting information and inputs from various sources, our team has summarized the most crucial aspects of preparation. The following can be done to increase the chances of qualifying the examination:

  • First and foremost, reading the newspaper every day is essential. Having a basic knowledge of current affairs helps the most while appearing for the examination.
  • Revision is necessary. Having to read and learn is important but if the same is not revised at regular intervals, it will be forgotten. Revision can be done every week, fortnight, and at the end of the month.
  • The highest-scoring subjects are History, Polity, Economics, and Geography. Reading them and learning them thoroughly is necessary. Contact our support team for more input.
  • The Examination requires the candidate to pick up an optional subject. Choose a subject in which you have excellence to increase the chances of qualifying. Explore our website for a list of optional subjects.
  • Allocate time to writing. Practice writing answers daily to help improve the flow, speed, and processing ability. Solve previous years’ papers while practicing such. We have advised many aspirants the same and the results have followed.

What needs to be studied for the Examination?

Every stage has a different syllabus. While the interview is to adjudge your personality, prelims and mains have a clear division of syllabus. We aim to briefly state the course so that a candidate can smoothly begin preparation.

The Preliminary Examination has two papers of 200 marks each. They are objective-type. The syllabus of Preliminary or Prelims include:

  • Paper I – Current Affairs of National and International Importance; History of India and Indian National Movement; Physical and Social Geography along with Economical Geography of India and the World; Indian Polity and Governance; Economic and Social Development; Environment and Ecology; Biodiversity; and General Science.
  • Paper-II – Comprehension, Interpersonal and Communication skills; Logical Reasoning and Analytical Ability; Decision Making and Problem Solving; General Mental Ability; Basic Numeracy up to Class X; and Data Interpretation up to Class X.

The Main Examination has 9 papers in total. Paper A and Paper B are qualifying exams. The former consists of English while the latter is of any one of the modern Indian languages. The choice is on the candidate. The rest of the papers are 250 marks each:

  • Essay Paper – It can be written in a language chosen by the candidate.
  • General Studies I – It includes India History, Culture and Geography, and World Geography.
  • General Studies II – It includes Polity and Governance, and International Relations.
  • General Studies III – It includes Economic Development, Science and Technology, Biodiversity, and Security and Disaster Management.
  • General Studies IV – It includes Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude.
  • There are two papers for Optional Subject: Paper I and Paper II, each of 250 marks.