Civil Services Exam

The Civil Services Examination is a nationwide competitive examination in India conducted by the Union Public Service Commission(UPSC) for recruitment to the various Civil Services of the Government of India, including Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Revenue Service (IRS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and among others.

The entrance for Civil Services comprises of three successive stages:

1) Preliminary Examination (Written)
2) Main Examination (Written) 
3) Interview

Eligibility-

Age - Minimum 21 years and maximum 30 years as on 1st of August of the year of examination.

Category	Age Relaxation (years)
SC / ST	5
OBC	3
Defense Services personnel	3
Domiciled in J&K during the period 01/01/1980 - 31/12/1989	5

Number of Attempts - 

Category	Attempts
SC / ST	No Limit
OBC under non creamy layer	7
General	4
OBC under creamy layer	4

Prelimnary Examination Pattern 2013 -

Paper I : General Studies (GS) - 200 marks - 2 hours

(100 questions- each question carries 2 marks, 1/3rd marks of marks alloted for every question will be deducted for each wrong answer )

Paper I tests the candidate's knowledge on current events, history of India and Indian national movement, Indian and World Geography, Indian Polity and governance, Economic and social development, environmental ecology, biodiversity, climate change and general science.

Subject Area	Marks Distribution
Environment - General issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change - that do not require subject specialization AND Geography - Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World	56
Economics - Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.	42
General Science	38
Indian Politics - Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.	34

Indian History - History of India and Indian National Movement	30
Total	100

Paper II : Civil Service Aptitude Test (CSAT) - 200 marks - 2 hours 

(80 questions- each question carries 2.5 marks, 1/3rd marks of marks allotted for every question will be deducted for each wrong answer)

Paper II tests the candidates' skills in comprehension, interpersonal skills, communication, logical reasoning, analytical ability, decision making, problem solving, basic numeracy, data interpretation, English language comprehension skills and mental ability.

Subject Area	Marks Distribution
Comprehension	60
English Language Comprehension	20
Logical Reasoning & Analytical Ability	57.5
General Mental Ability & Basic Numeracy	47.5
Decision Making & Interpersonal Skills	15
Total	200

Main Examination Pattern 2013-

Paper1 – Essay Can be written in the medium or language of the candidate's choice	250 Marks
Paper II - Language Candidate can take any Modern Indian language but this paper is of qualifying nature	300 Marks
Paper III - English This paper is of qualifying nature	300 Marks
Paper IV - General Studies-I Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society	250 Marks
Paper V - General Studies -II Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations	250 Marks
Paper VI - General Studies -III Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management	250 Marks
Paper VII - General Studies -IV Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude	250 Marks
Paper VIII  -Optional Subject  Paper 1	250 Marks
Paper IX - Optional Subject Paper II	250 Marks
Sub Total (Written test)	2350 Marks Marks of English and Language will not be counted so total marks for Written exam will be 2350 MINUS 600 = 1750 Marks
Interview/Personality Test	275 marks
Grand Total	2025 Marks

List of optional subjects for Main Examination:

Group-1

(i) Agriculture
(ii) Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science
(iii) Anthropology
(iv) Botany
(v) Chemistry
(vi) Civil Engineering
(vii) Commerce and Accountancy
(viii) Economics
(ix) Electrical Engineering
(x) Geography
(xi) Geology
(xii) History
(xiii) Law
(xiv) Management
(xv) Mathematics
(xvi) Mechanical Engineering
(xvii) Medical Science
(xviii) Philosophy
(xix) Physics
(xx) Political Science and International Relations
(xxi) Psychology
(xxii) Public Administration
(xxiii) Sociology
(xxiv) Statistics
(xxv) Zoology

Group-2

Literature of any one of the following languages:

Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili,Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu,Urdu, English.

Interview test :

The candidate will be interviewed by a Board who will have before them a record of his/her career. He/she will be asked questions on matters of general interest. The object of the interview is to assess the personal suitability of the candidate for a career in public service by a Board of competent and unbiased observers. The test is intended to judge the mental calibre of a candidate. In broad terms this is really an assessment of not only his/her intellectual qualities but also social traits and his/her interest in current affairs. Some of the qualities to be judged are mental alertness, critical powers of assimilation, clear and logical exposition, balance of judgement, variety and depth of interest, ability for social cohesion and leadership, 

intellectual and moral integrity. 

Important dates for Civil Services Exam - 2014

Prelimnary

Event	Date
Date of notification	17/05/2014(SATURDAY)
Last date for receipt of application	16/06/2014 (MONDAY)
Date of commencement of exam	24.08.2014 (SUNDAY)

Mains

Date of commencement of exam : 14/12/2014 (SUNDAY)

Duration of exam - 5 DAYS

Important Links :

Official Website

Official Notification 

Official Notification of dates - 2014

To know about Common Admission Test(CAT) click here