UPSC ( Union Public Service Commission) is India’s central agency which conducts exams like Civil Services Exam (CSE) to recruit candidates into top government services. It conducts the examinations for appointments to the All India Servies ( IAS/IPS/IFS etc), Central Services and Public Services of the centrally administered territories.

UPSC exam is considered the toughest exam in the country as nearly 10 lakh students apply every year against nearly 800 seats.

1. Civil Services Examination (CSE)
2. Engineering Services Examination (ESE).
3. Indian Forestry Services Examination (IFoS).
4. Central Armed Police Forces Examination (CAPF).
5. Indian Economic Service and Indian Statistical Service (IES/ISS).
6. Combined Geo-Scientist and Geologist Examination.
7. Combined Medical Services (CMS).
8. Special Class Railway Apprentices Exam (SCRA).
9. Limited Departmental Competitive Examination for selection of Assistant Commandant. (Executive) in CISF.

1. National Defence Academy & Naval Academy Examination – NDA & NA (I).
2. National Defence Academy & Naval Academy Examination – NDA & NA (II).
3. Combined Defense Services Exam – CDS (I).
4. Combined Defense Services Exam – CDS (II).

The official notification will carry UPSC Age Limit 2023 details.

Age Relaxation & Number of Attempts

Broadly, UPSC conducts the Civil Service Examination in three phases namely:

• Preliminary Examination (Prelims)
• Main Examination (Mains)
• Personality Test (Interview)

Candidates who qualify for all the rounds are recommended for joining the civil services in India. Each round is an elimination round, so you need to qualify each one in order to appear for the next one. Now, let us discuss the UPSC Exam Pattern along with the marking scheme for each of the papers in different rounds.

UPSC CSE Prelims consists of two papers namely General Studies I and CSAT (General Studies Paper-II). While CSAT is qualifying in nature, the marks obtained in the General Studies paper determine your selection for UPSC Mains. It means your score in the General Studies Paper will be considered for the Prelims cut-off.

Yes, there is negative marking for the wrong answers. 1/3rd of the marks allotted for the question would be deducted as a penalty for marking the wrong answer. However, if you do not attempt the question, there will be no deductions. Hence, you should take only calculated risks when it comes to marking doubtful questions.

In reference to the UPSC Exam Pattern, the following points should be kept in mind while appearing for IAS Exam:

• It is mandatory for all the candidates to appear for both the exams viz General Studies and CSAT to qualify for the Mains.
• The score obtained in the Prelims will not be added to the final score. UPSC CSE Prelims 2022 will be just for screening purposes.
• The question paper of Prelims will be bilingual. It will have questions written both in Hindi and English Language.
• There is a negative marking of 1/3rd for every incorrect answer in both papers.