10 Things to Know about UPSC Civil Services

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is the government agency responsible for recruiting officers into the civil services of the country. It conducts the exam and selects candidates based on pre-selected criteria. The civil services include services like the IAS, IFS, IPS, IRS, etc. that form a part of India’s civil services – the backbone of the country’s administration.

In this article, we have presented ten facts to know about the civil services examination. These facts will cover almost everything about the UPSC exam in brief.

All you need to know about the UPSC

Below we present to you a few brief facts about the UPSC Civil Services-

Fact #1: The civil services include three types of services namely, the All India Services, Group A and Group B Central Services. The services that come under each of these types are mentioned below:

All India Services:

1. Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
2. Indian Foreign Service (IFS)
3. Indian Police Service (IPS)

Group ‘A’ services:

1. Indian Revenue Service
2. Indian P & T Accounts & Finance Service
3. Indian Customs and Central Excise Service
4. Indian Audit & Accounts Service
5. Indian Ordnance Factories Service
6. Indian Defence Accounts Service
7. Indian Postal Service
8. Indian Defence Estates Service
9. Indian Civil Accounts Service
10. Indian Railway Account Service
11. Indian Railway Traffic Service
12. Indian Railway Personnel Service
13. Railway Protection Force
14. Central Industrial Security Force

Group ‘B’ services:

1. Delhi and Andaman & Nicobar Islands Civil Service
2. Delhi and Andaman & Nicobar Islands Police Service
3. Central Secretarial Service
4. Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Service
5. Railway Board Secretariat Service
6. Custom Appraisers Service
7. Pondicherry Civil Service

Fact #2: The prescribed UPSC exam eligibility criteria are that the candidate should be a graduate and must have attained 21 years of age. There is also an upper age limit and a number of attempts restriction based on the candidate’s category. Generally, the upper age limit is 32 years, but the commission gives age relaxation for OBC, SC, ST and PH candidates. For the detailed relaxation criteria, you may go through the links given below this article.

Fact #3: The UPSC exam is held in three stages. The three stages are Prelims, Mains and Interview/personality test. The prelims exam consists of two papers of objective type questions. The mains exam consists of nine descriptive type papers. The last stage consists of an interview round with the UPSC board. Candidates should clear each round in order to qualify for the subsequent round.

Fact #4: As we saw above, there are various services candidates can get into after clearing this exam. But the service allotted to the candidate depends on his/her preference indicated while applying for mains, vacancy in that service for the particular category and the candidate’s rank. Commonly aspired services like the IAS, IFS and the IPS need a high rank.

Fact #5: The UPSC also conducts various other exams apart from the civil services. A few examples are Engineering Services Exam, Combined Medical Services Exam, Indian Forest Service Exam, Combined Defence Services Exam, Indian Statistical Service, etc.

Fact #6: Candidates should know that the civil services and the Indian Forest Services have a common prelims exam. While applying for prelims, candidates should indicate whether they are taking both the exams or only either one of them.

Fact #7: The UPSC syllabus is huge and eclectic. There are several subjects to study under this syllabus. In addition, candidates should pay extra heed to the topics that come under ‘current affairs’. All important national and international news and events that affect polity and society are relevant for this exam, and candidates should study them in detail.

Fact #8: An irrefutable fact as far as the UPSC exam is concerned is that newspapers must be read and analysed as part of the preparation. It is not enough if candidates study only the syllabus and static topics. They must read the newspaper every day. You may check the links given below this article for tips on how to read the newspaper for the UPSC exam.

Fact #9: In order to clear the UPSC exam, it is important that candidates get enough test practice. This is true for both prelims and mains exams. Practising IAS mock test papers will give candidates the chance to assess their own weak points in the preparation. Additionally, it will help them improve their speed of answering.

Fact #10: The IAS exam is tough. This is a fact. But it is also a fact that this exam is not insurmountable. With a systematic approach, hard work and dedication, you can come out with flying colours and land your dream job!

Candidates can go through the linked article IAS Preparation to know everything about the UPSC exam. You can find more UPSC-related preparation materials and other articles with the links given in the table below:

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