UPSC Civil Services Examination (cse) Exam 2025 - Notification, Eligibility, Important Dates, Syllabus and more

Do you have a strong desire to serve your nation by becoming a civil servant like IAS, IPS, IFS etc. ?

When it comes to serving the nation by becoming a civil servant, acing UPSC CSE becomes a challenge. Every year lakhs of students appear in this exam but only a few lucky candidates get selected. Let's delve into this comprehensive guide to ace this exam and becoming a civil servant.

UPSC CSE (Union Public Service Commission Civil Services Exam) is conducted every year for various posts including All India Services and Central Services.

• This is considered one of the toughest exams not only in India but in the whole world.
• This is conducted for services in different fields including IAS, IPS, IRS, IFS, Railways, and many more.
• This exam is conducted for posts of Group A category jobs.
• This exam is conducted in three stages: Preliminary, Mains, and Personality Test.

Application fee

100 INR (SC/ST women from all categories are exempted from paying the fee).

Notification will be released on official website.

How to apply?

• Fill the UPSC CSE application form online on the official website.
• Pay the application fee online through various modes like debit/credit card, net banking, or offline through SBI Challan.
• Review the application form for any errors and submit it.
• Keep a printout of the application form for future reference.

• Candidate must be a citizen of India or subject of Nepal.
• Age Limit:
  • Minimum age - 21 years
  • Maximum age - 32 Years
    • OBC - 35 Years
    • SC/ST - 37 Years
    • Ex-Serviceman - 37 Years
• Educational Qualification: Candidate must be a graduate in any stream.
• No. of attempts for General in UPSC CSE 2025: 6 attempts for unreserved.
• No. of attempts for OBC in UPSC CSE 2025 - Based on category, the no. of allowed attempts vary: OBC- 9 attempts, SC/ST- Unlimited attempts till upper age limit.

Following is the syllabus for UPSC CSE exam:

• The UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) syllabus is divided into three stages: Preliminary Examination (Prelims), Main Examination (Mains), and Personality Test (Interview). Here's a brief overview of the syllabus for each stage:
• Preliminary Examination (Prelims):
  • Paper I: General Studies
  • Paper II: Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT)
• Main Examination (Mains): The Main Examination consists of nine papers, out of which seven are counted for merit ranking.
• Personality Test (Interview): The Personality Test or Interview carries 275 marks and is intended to assess the candidate's personality suitability for the Civil Services.

Exam Pattern

As we mentioned earlier, this exam is conducted in 3 stages:

• Preliminary Exam: It consists of two papers, GS-1 AND CSAT
  • GS -1[General Studies-1] (also called Paper 1) : It is conducted for 200 marks.
  • CSAT[Civil Services Aptitude Test](also called Paper 2) : It is also conducted for 200 marks but is only qualifying,that means, candidate need to score 33% marks only to pass in it.
  • Remember,¼ marks is deducted for each wrong answer. Remember, your final score of prelims will be made on the basis of GS 1 but if you failed to qualify Paper-2, you'll be disqualified from the exam even after crossing the cut-off in the Paper-1.
  • The exam shall be of 2 hours for each paper.
• Mains exam:
  • The UPSC Civil Services Mains Examination consists of nine papers, out of which seven are counted for merit ranking.
  • Answers should be written as descriptive form and marking apttern is subjective.
  • It is conducted for 1750 marks
• Personality Test:
  • It is the personal interview of the candidate who aced the previous two stages of the exam
  • It is conducted for 275 marks

The total marks to prepare the final merit of the candidate is calculated through total score of mains and personality test.

• Understand the syllabus thoroughly
• Practice previous year question papers to get introduced to exam pattern
• Revise regularly
• Stay updated with current affairs from newspaper, online sources, and magazines.
• Practice answer writing to improving your writing speed
• Practice mock tests regularly for checking your level.

UPSC preparation involves carefully organizing study schedules that cover the entire syllabus, practicing answering questions frequently, reviewing material, keeping up with current events, and overcoming obstacles with a persistent focus on passing the test.