The Civil Services Examination is widely considered as one of the toughest and the most prestigious examinations conducted in India.
To understand the exam, one needs to understand the syllabus. This helps eliminate wasteful efforts like reading unnecessary topics leading to a loss of time, and keeps one strictly aligned to the expectations of the UPSC from day one.
The UPSC prescribes a common syllabus pattern for services such as the Indian Administrative Service, Indian Foreign Service, Indian Police Service, Indian Revenue Service (Customs and Central Excise) to name a few
The UPSC Civil Services Exam is conducted in three phases:
Phase 1: Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination (Objective Type)
Phase 2: Civil Services (Mains) Examination (Descriptive Type)
Phase 3: Personal Interview (Personality Test)
Phase 1: Preliminary Examination:
The Preliminary Examination is composed of two components:
1) General Studies
Paper |
Subjects |
Total Marks |
Durations |
1 |
General Studies (GS) |
200 |
2 hours |
2. |
CSAT |
200 |
2 hours |
2) Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT)
Syllabus of Paper 1: General Studies
1. Current events of national and international importance
2. History of India and Indian National Movement
3. Indian and World Geography – Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World
4. Indian Polity & Governance -Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
5. Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
6. General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.
7. General Science
Syllabus of Paper 2: CSAT
1. Comprehension
2. Interpersonal skills including communication skills
3. Logical reasoning and analytical ability
4. Decision making and problem solving
5. General mental ability
6. Elementary Mathematics up to Class X level
7. General English up to Class X level
8. General Hindi up to Class X level