Shankar IAS Academy

About Civil Service

Civil service exam

Overview

Civil Service Examination

Civil service, which is the backbone of Indian governance constitutes all ministries and their departments. The Civil service and Forest service exams are conducted by the UPSC. The prestige, power, charm and responsibility that come along with the top jobs such as the IAS, IFS, IPS, etc., are a definite reason for anyone to choose Civil service and Forest service a career option.

Eligibility

*    Must have attained the age of 21 on 1st August of year of examination.

*    Must not have attained 32 years(35|37 years) on 1st August of year of examination.

Education

*    Any Degree (Recognized by UGC/AICTE)

Age Criteria

General

Minimum Age

21

Maximum Age

32

No of attempts

6

OBC

Minimum Age

21

Maximum Age

35

No of attempts

9

SC & ST

Minimum Age

21

Maximum Age

37

No of attempts

No limits

Exam Schedules

Notification

February / March


Preliminary Examination

May / June


Preliminary Exam Results

July / August


Mains Examinations

September / October


Mains Exam Results

February 1st week / 2nd week


Interview

March - April


Final Results

May


Forest Service Examination

Eligibility

*    Must have attained the age of 21 before 1st on of year of examination.

*    Must not have attained 32 years(35|37 years) on 1st August of year of examination.

Education

*   Bachelor’s Degree with atleast one of the subjects namely Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science, Physics, Chemistry, Botany, Zoology, Geology, Mathematics and Statistics (or)Bachelor Degree in Agriculture, Forestry (or) Engineering (Recognized by UGC/AICTE)

Age Criteria

General

Minimum Age

21

Maximum Age

32

No of attempts

6

OBC

Minimum Age

21

Maximum Age

35

No of attempts

9

SC & ST

Minimum Age

21

Maximum Age

37

No of attempts

No limits

Exam Schedules

Notification

February / March


Preliminary Examination

May / June


Preliminary Exam Results

July / August


Mains Examinations

November / December


Mains Exam Results

January 1st Week / 2nd Week


Interview

January / February


Final Results

February / March


Overview

Civil Service Examination consists of 3 stages as mentioned below:

  • Stage 1

    Preliminary Exam (Objective Type)

  • Stage 2

    Mains Exam (Descriptive Type)

  • Stage 3

    Interview (Oral)

Preliminary Exam (For Civil & Forest Service)

The Preliminary Examination which is common for both Civil services and Forest service is conducted during May or June every year. It consists of two papers - one is held in the forenoon and the other in the afternoon of the same day and both papers consist of a set of multiple choice questions. The forenoon session is General Studies Paper–I where questions are based on general awareness and other topics as mentioned in the syllabus. In afternoon session is CSAT – Paper II where questions based on Quantitative aptitude, Reasoning and Verbal ability as mentioned in syllabus. Candidates should note that there will be a penalty (negative marking) for wrong answers

Information given below are based on UPSC Civil Services Examinations 2018.

General Studies Paper–I

No. of Questions

100

Total Marks

200

Marks for Correct Answer

2

Marks for Incorrect Answer

-0.66

CSAT – Paper II

No. of Questions

80

Total Marks

200

Marks for Correct Answer

2.5

Marks for Incorrect Answer

-0.83

*    For Wrong answers one - third of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as penalty.

Result

  • Paper I marks is used for the selection of candidates to the mains examination.

  • Paper II marks is qualifying paper with a minimum qualifying marks fixed at 33% (i.e 66 marks).

  • Two set of results are published - one list is for those who qualified for Civil Service Mains Examinations and other list is for those who qualified for Forest Service   Mains Examination.

  • This is only a screening test, marks will not be added in calculating final results.

Mains Examination

Mains Examination syllabus, pattern and schedule is different for Civil Service and Forest Service Examination.

Civil Service Mains Examinations

The candidates who qualify for Civil Service Mains Examination have to choose one optional subject which has two papers.

The mains examination is intended to assess the overall intellectual traits and depth of understanding of candidates rather than merely the range of their information and memory. The nature and standard of questions in the General Studies papers (Paper II to Paper V) will be such that a well-educated person will be able to answer them without any specialized study. The questions will be such as to test a candidate’s general awareness of a variety of subjects, which will have relevance for a career in the Civil Services. The questions are likely to test the candidate’s basic understanding of all relevant issues, ability to analyze and take a view on conflicting socio-economic goals, objectives and demands. The candidates must give relevant, meaningful and succinct answers.

The scope of the syllabus for optional subject papers (Paper VI and Paper VII) for the examination is broadly of the honours degree level i.e. a level higher than the bachelors degree and lower than the masters degree. In the case of Engineering, Medical Science and Law, the level corresponds to the bachelors degree.

In all, the aspirants are to appear in nine papers, details of which are given below:

Subjects

Papers

Marks


Indian Language*

Paper-A

300


English*

Paper-B

300


Essay

Paper-I

250


General Studies 1

Paper-I

250


General Studies 2

Paper-II

250


General Studies 3

Paper-III

250


General Studies 4

Paper-IV

250


Optional Subject

Paper-VI

250


Optional Subject

Paper-VII

250


*    Qualifying Papers - For qualifying, candidates have to secure a minimum of 25% in these papers.

Interview

Interview for Personality test will be conducted in Delhi for candidates who clear the Mains examination. (Maximum mark : 275)

Final Results

Final Result of both Civil Services and Forest Service exam will be based on Mains examination and Interview marks.

GS Preliminary

Upsc notes  Indian Polity

Lakshmikanth

Indian Polity book by Shankar IAS Academy

Upsc notes  Indian History

Standard 11th and 12th Standard NCERT old edition

Upsc notes  India’s struggle for Independence

Spectrum’s "A brief history of Modern India"

Upsc notes  Geography

Standard 6th to 12th NCERT

Certificate Physical and Human Geography by Goh Cheng Leong, Oxford Student Atlas.

Upsc notes  Indian Economy

Indian Economy & General Economics book by Shankar IAS Academy

Economic Survey

Upsc notes  General Science

Standard 9th and 10th Old NCERT

Class Notes

Upsc notes  Environment

Environment Book by Shankar IAS Academy

Upsc notes  India Year Book

Publication Division, Government of India

Upsc notes  Indian Art and Culture

NCERT Books

Art and Culture book by Shankar IAS Academy

Upsc notes  General Trends of Exams

Shankar IAS academy’s Blog

  • The respective NCERT Textbooks have to be mandatory studied.

  • The Corresponding Ministry websites should also be referred to for latest policy updates.

  • For current events read a Daily Newspaper (preferably The Hindu).

GS Mains Examination

Paper I

HISTORY AND CULTURE

Upsc notes  Ancient India / Medieval India / Art and Culture

Old NCERT, Introduction to Fine Art NCERT Ancient & Medieval India book by Shankar IAS Academy

Upsc notes  India’s Struggle for Independence

NCERT

Spectrum’s A brief history of Modern India

Upsc notes  India Since Independence or India After Gandhi

Bipin Chandra or

Ramchandra Guha

Upsc notes  History of the World Contemporary World

World History book by Shankar IAS Academy

Old NCERT (by Arjun Dev)

Upsc notes  Art and Culture Fine arts

Standard 12th NCERT

SOCIETY IN INDIA

Upsc notes  Indian Society

Standard 12th NCERT

Upsc notes  Social Change and Development in India

Standard 12th NCERT

Upsc notes  Indian Society

S.C.Dube / Relevant GOI Website

GEOGRAPHY

Upsc notes  Standard 11th & 12th NCERT

NCERT

Class Notes

Paper II

INDIAN POLITY

Upsc notes  Indian Constitution at Work

Indian Polity by Shankar IAS Academy

Upsc notes  Indian Polity

IAS Parliament Material

GOVERNANCE

Upsc notes  From Government to Governance

Kuldeep Mathur

Upsc notes  2nd ARC Report

Published by Government of India

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Upsc notes  Newspaper

The Hindu

Paper III

ECONOMY

Upsc notes  Economic Survey

Government of India

Upsc notes  Business Line - Newspaper (Editorial)

The Hindu group.

Upsc notes  Indian Economy Since Independence

Uma Kapila

INDIAN AGRICULTURE

Upsc notes  Agriculture Topics

Agriculture Book by Shankar IAS Academy

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Upsc notes  Newspaper

The Hindu

Upsc notes  Science and Technology

Science and Technology Book by IAS academy

Class Notes

ENVIRONMENT

Upsc notes  Newspaper

The Hindu

Environment Book by Shankar IAS Academy

INTERNAL SECURITY ISSUES

Upsc notes  Internal Security

Internal Security Book by Shankar IAS Academy

News Paper Notes

Paper IV

Upsc notes  2nd ARC Reports

Government of India

Upsc notes  From Government to Governance

Kuldeep Mathur

Upsc notes  Shankar IAS Academy Book and Class Notes

FOR REFERENCE PURPOSE ONLY

Upsc notes  Competitive Exams - A Success Guide

V Palanichamy IIS

Upsc notes  Civil Services Exam - A Complete Guide

V Palanichamy IIS

Upsc notes  At the Service of a Billion Plus

Shankar Ganesh Karuppiah

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