UPSC Exam Pattern: Prelims, Mains Exam & Interview

  Remember what I wrote about the Himalayan valley reminding me about the syllabus of UPSC, it was actually the Mains syllabus that came to my mind then. The vastness of the IAS/IPS syllabus for the Mains is quite capable of stirring up anxiety-ridden shivers in even the most seasoned aspirants. The key highlights from the UPSC Mains syllabus for IAS/IPS are provided in the image below: Mains Syllabus Highlights This is because  only the candidates  that are able to  successfully clear Phase 1,  or the Prelims, are  allowed to appear for the Phase 2  or Mains exam. In other words, only the candidates that are able to score above the  UPSC cut offs  for the Prelims are then allowed to take the Mains exam. Moreover, the UPSC Mains exam  consists of 9 subjective type papers  out of which 2 are qualifying language papers, one  English , and any  other Indian language  of  300 marks each . The rest...

In this section of the blog, I have mentioned the topic of IAS salary in India in detail and also the salary structure/pay scale of IAS officers according to the 7th Pay Commission recommendation.   With that said let me get straight to the point. The basic monthly IAS salary in India starts from Rs. 56,100 (excluding DA, TA, and HRA).   This value can go on to reach a monthly salary of Rs, 2,50,000, which is the salary of the post of Cabinet Secretary of India.   Now let us take a look at the pay scale of IAS officers according to the 7th Pay Commission.   IAS officer Salary Structure – 7th Pay Commission     IAS Salary in India:   Pay Level Number of years required in service Basic Pay (INR) Posts State Secretariat District Administration Central Secretariat 10 1-4 56,100 Undersecretary Sub-Divisional Magistrate Assistant Secretary 11 5-8 67,700 Deputy Secretary Additional District Magistrate Undersecretary 12 9-12 78,80...

   I get down to writing about the UPSC syllabus in detail, I would like to mention in brief the exam pattern. Basically, the UPSC exam is a 3-phase affair: Phase 1 is the UPSC Preliminary Examination, also called UPSC Prelims. This exam contains questions of the objective type. Phase 2 is the UPSC Mains Examination, also called UPSC Mains. This exam contains descriptive-type questions. Phase 3 is the Personal Interview round conducted to test the Personality of the Candidate. UPSC Prelims Syllabus The  UPSC Prelims examination  is basically conducted for the purpose of  screening only.  Thus if you clear the Prelims exam, you will be eligible for the Mains exam. Also, your Prelims marks will not be considered in your final order of merit, provided you manage to make it through to the interview round. The UPSC prelims examination comprises  2 papers , namely the  General studies  paper and the  CSAT ...