UPSC
The UPSC or the Union Public Service Commission is a central agency that is responsible for examinations and recruitment for positions in the All India services and the group A & group B of Central services. The All India Services includes the three Civil services — Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Indian Forest Service (IFoS). Apart from the All India Service, there are clusters of Group ‘A’ Civil Services — which includes 16 types of service forces — and the Group ‘B’ Civil Services, which include 5 types of civil services.
The UPSC examination is one of the toughest and competitive exams in India. The hard work required is extensive as the syllabus is very vast. The test not only tests your knowledge but also your mindset.
Expert Guide
Shri Vijay Dhoke is an Arts Graduate and has been working with the New Vision IAS Academy for more than fourteen years. He is the director of New Vision IAS Academy. He has also worked with the Government of Maharashtra in competitive exam projects and workshops. He guided us on how to crack UPSC, CSE and other competitive exams.
In this article, we will be looking at what UPSC exams are like and what one should do to get the best results. The guidance provided in this article is based on a live career counselling session conducted by the Shashi Dream Foundation, in their initiative to provide career guidance to children in need. The speaker for the session was Shri Vijay Dhoke.
Let us now look at how one should go about understanding the UPSC examinations to prepare in the best way possible.
The complete session is available on SDF’s Instagram page. Check out the full session of our Instagram now👇
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CA0MHD7Jgr1/?igshid=1u0qvbu0c68wy
and on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XDg1kr09nE
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Minimum age and number of attempts:
Educational qualification:
1. Graduation from any discipline from a recognized university under the Centre or state legislature or established by an Act of Parliament, or a Deemed to be university under the UGC.
2. No minimum percentage required for graduation.
3. Candidates who are in the final year or waiting for final year results can also apply for the examination, given they submit proof afterwards.
Nationality:
For IPS and IAS, necessary to be citizen of India.
For all other services candidate must be one of the following:
a. Indian citizen
b. A subject of Nepal
c. Subject of Bhutan
d. A Tibetan refugee who came to India before 1st January 1962 intending to settle in India permanently, or
e. A person of Indian origin (PIO) who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Ethiopia, Zaire and Vietnam intending to settle in India permanently.
Other than that b, c, d, e will all have to submit proof of eligibility and b, c & d cannot apply for the Indian Foreign Services.
SKILLS REQUIRED
PROCEDURE
UPSC examination is conducted in three phases spread throughout the year. Aspirants are required to pass each phase to be qualified for the next phase. The three phases in which the exam is being conducted are given below:
- Preliminary Examination: Objective type examination (Offline)
- Mains: Written Examination (Descriptive)
- Interview: Personality Test
PATTERN OF EXAM
1. PRELIMS EXAMINATION
The preliminary exams for the UPSC consists of two papers that are conducted in one day. These papers are objective, that is, multiple choice questions.
Both the papers are for 200 marks each.
General Studies Paper 1 is for cut off for Main examination and General Studies II is a qualifying paper, with minimum 33% needed.
There negative marking in both papers. 1/3rd of the total marks of a question deducted with incorrect answer.
Time allotted for each is 2 hours.
1. MAIN EXAMINATION
The main examination consists of 9 papers conducted in a span of 5 to 7 days.
All the papers are descriptive / written.
All papers are 3 hours each.
Subjects covered in General Studies Papers:
Subjects for the Optional Paupers — Paper VI and VII:
3. INTERVIEW
This is the final stage of the selection process and it is also called Interview/Personality Test. It is counted for the merit-based ranking and is very important. The maximum marks for this round are 275.
TOP ACADEMIES
There are many academies that prepare one for the UPSC exams. These are some of the academies, their courses and fees structure:
1. Vision IAS
2. Plutus IAS
3. Rau’s IAS Study Circle
4. Elite Academy
There are many other academies around the country.
LIST OF SERVICES
Civil Services exam is conducted to select candidates to be recruited in 3 different cadres. The results are released along with the ranks.
These services are divided into three cadres:
1. All India Civil Services.
2. Group A services or Central Services.
3. Group B services or State Services.
- ALL INDIA CIVIL SERVICES
2. LIST OF ‘GROUP A’ SERVICES BY UPSC
3. LIST OF ‘GROUP B’ SERVICES
IAS SALARY STRUCTURE
The total salary of an IAS Officer comprises of Basic Pay, Dearness Allowance, Transport Allowance, and House Rent Allowance.
There are 18 different Pay Levels under the 7th Pay Commission. The basic pay of civil servants starts from Level 10 that is around 56,100 per month. All Group A civil servants have a level 10 basic pay.
Here is the table of basic pay of an IAS officer according to the grades of designation:
UPSC Examination is among the most difficult competitive exams in India. Every year, several lakh candidates sit for the exam and only some can achieve their goal.
The 3 phases of the exams though are not as easy as it appears to be but with dedication, commitment and hard work combined with smart work, even a so-called average student in academics can clear all the phases and can be successful. On average, the topper in exams conducted by UPSC scores around 55% of the total marks. Thus, any person with impeccable confidence and determination can be victorious.
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