KPSC Question Papers - KAS Exam

The Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS) Exam (officially known as the Gazetted Probationers Exam) is conducted by the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC).

KPSC recruits for Group A and Group B vacancies in the executive branch of the state government via the KAS Exam.

An essential and often overlooked part of KAS preparation is going through the Previous Years’ Question Papers. The KPSC question paper can help candidates ascertain not just the difficulty level of the KAS exam but also the amount of preparatory effort needed.

In this article, we are giving the previous years’ papers PDFs. From the links below, you can directly navigate to the desired exam year.

Aspirants should know that KPSC KAS also stands for Kerala Public Service Commission – Kerala Administrative Service. Aspirants looking for information on Kerala Administrative Service may check the links given below:

Download KAS Question Papers (Prelims and Mains)

• KAS Gazetted Probationers Exam 2017-18
• KAS Exam 2014
• KAS Exam 2011

The KAS Exam Pattern changed from 2011 Mains onwards and has become more aligned to the UPSC IAS exam pattern. Earlier, there used to be only two General Studies Papers in KAS Mains. Now, there are four GS papers.

The KAS Exam Pattern for Prelims and Mains is given in brief below:

1. KAS Prelims
   • Two papers – objective type (MCQs)
   • Both papers are of 200 marks each
   • There are 100 questions in each paper
   • Time – 2hrs (for each paper)
   • Negative Marking – 0.25 marks for every incorrect answer
2. KAS Mains
   • Nine Papers – essay/descriptive type
   • Two qualifying papers – English and Kannada – have 35% qualifying criteria
   • Four General Studies Papers – GS I, GS II, GS III, GS IV
   • Choice of One optional subject (Two papers)
   • One Essay Paper
   • The Essay, GS and optional papers will be for 250 marks each

For more information on KPSC KAS Exam, candidates can refer to the links below:

1. KAS Recruitment
2. KAS Eligibility
3. KAS Syllabus (updated)
4. KAS Admit Card

For KAS Prelims preparation, solving MCQs is important because losing marks in the actual exam because of negative marking can be the difference between success and failure.

The theory papers in Mains require a lot of answer-writing practice beforehand. The requisite knowledge and the skill of writing to-the-point answers in the exam comes from practice. Also, writing 2000-3000 words in three hours is no mean feat and it takes a toll on the handwriting of candidates as well. Simulating the exam environment is a good way to prepare for the gruelling exam.

KAS Exam Previous Years’ Question Papers

For other KPSC question papers (FDA/SDA etc.) and the previous years’ question papers of KAS Exam Optional Subjects, candidates can download the same from the official website  (http://kpsc.kar.nic.in/questionpaper.html). To prepare Government Schemes for the KPSC exam, check the linked article.