IAS Exam Pattern 2025 - Check UPSC Prelims & Mains Pattern Here
Indian Administrative Services 2025 ( IAS )
The Union Public Service Commission will notify the Civil Service (IAS) exam pattern in the official notification. The candidates must practice with the previous year’s IAS question papers to get the accustomed to the changing answer options in the UPSC IAS exam.
The IAS exam pattern is one of the most important component of UPSC IAS preparation. The candidates can score better marks in the IAS prelims exam if they solve the previous year question papers in time bound limit. The exam pattern coupled with the IAS syllabus forms the basis of preparation. The Union Public Service Commission will notify the exam pattern in the official notification.
The Commission mentions the UPSC CSE Prelims and Main exam pattern separately in the official notification which will be released on January 14, 2026.
- UPSC IAS Exam Pattern 2025 - Prelims Exam
- Negative Marking in UPSC IAS 2025
- UPSC IAS Exam Pattern 2025 - Main Exam
- List of Optional Subjects in UPSC IAS Exam
- UPSC IAS Exam Pattern - Personality Test/ Interview
- UPSC IAS 2025 Exam Pattern FAQs
UPSC IAS Exam Pattern 2025 - Prelims Exam
UPSC IAS exam pattern is very important from the preparation perspective because it outlines the layout of the exam and the candidates can plan better for the UPSC IAS exam. Understanding the UPSC IAS exam pattern is very important from the viewpoint of UPSC IAS preparation. The UPSC IAS selection process consists of three stages:
- UPSC IAS Preliminary Exam
- UPSC IAS Main Exam (written)
- UPSC IAS Main Exam (Personality Test)
UPSC IAS exam pattern is designed to filter a large number of candidates in the prelims exam and test the in-depth knowledge of the candidates in the main exam. UPSC IAS Exam is conducted by UPSC every year to recruit candidates for the prestigious All India Services and Central Civil Services in India. A clear understanding of the UPSC IAS exam pattern is essential for UPSC IAS preparation.
UPSC IAS Preliminary Exam 2025 will consist of two papers of 200 marks each, containing objective-type multiple-choice questions. Candidates need to mandatorily appear for both papers and complete them in a two-hour duration each.
| Paper |
Questions |
Marks |
|---|---|---|
| General Studies Paper- I |
100 |
200 |
| General Studies Paper-II (Aptitude Test) |
80 |
200 |
| Total |
400 |
|
Note: The questions in both papers (I and II) will be set in English and Hindi. Paper-II of UPSC IAS prelims exam will be a qualifying paper with 33% is minimum qualifying marks.
Commonly asked questions
The IAS prelims exam is an objective type exam. The IAS prelims is conducted offline and the candidates need to mark their answers on the answer sheet (OMR). There are two papers in the IAS prelims exam. The details of IAS prelims exam is given below:
- General Studies Paper 1
- General Studies Paper 2 ( Aptitude Test)
The Aptitude paper is qualifying only and the passing marks in the aptitude paper is 67.5 marks out of 200.
The IAS prelims exam is conducted offline in a pen and paper mode. The IAS prelims exam is conducted in two shifts on a single day. The candidates are required to appear in both the papers and clear both of them. The IAS prelims result is prepared based on the marks scored in the General Studies paper 1. The IAS prelims General Studies paper 2 is qualifying only.
The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the IAS 2026 exam on May 24, 2026. The Commission is expected to release the IAS admit card online in the last week of April 2026.
Negative Marking in UPSC IAS 2025
There is a negative marking in the UPSC IAS prelims exam. The candidates need to be very careful while answering the questions because negative marking can reduce their score sharply. There is a negative marking of (1/3). It means (1/3) marks, of the assigned marks to the questions, will be deducted for the wrong answer. No marks will be deducted for the questions left blank by the candidates.
It can be further explained that the three wrong answers will eat up the marks of one right answer. In the second (qualifying) paper, each question carries 2.5 marks and the negative marking is also increased in the same proportion.
Commonly asked questions
The candidates should note that there is no minimum marks that can be ascretained for the IAS. The final UPSC merit list is based on the marks secured in the main (written) and personlaity test condcuted at Dholpur House, UPSC. The Commission arrange the candidates in the order of their merit and select top candidates for the Indian Administrative Service if they have opted for it as their first choice.
The minimum marks for IAS cannot be asertained as the cutoff for each year differs from year to year.
The IAS prelims exam is an objective type exam. The IAS prelims is conducted offline and the candidates need to mark their answers on the answer sheet (OMR). There are two papers in the IAS prelims exam. The details of IAS prelims exam is given below:
- General Studies Paper 1
- General Studies Paper 2 ( Aptitude Test)
The Aptitude paper is qualifying only and the passing marks in the aptitude paper is 67.5 marks out of 200.
UPSC IAS Exam Pattern 2025 - Main Exam
The Main exam will consist of a total of two qualifying papers, seven merit-based papers and a personality test (interview round). Each paper will be of three hours duration. Details regarding all the papers are mentioned below:
Qualifying Papers
There will be two qualifying papers mentioned below. It may be noted that marks for the below two papers will not be counted at the time of preparation of the rank list.
| Paper |
Description |
Marks |
|---|---|---|
| A |
One of the Indian language to be selected by the candidate from the languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the constitution(Qualifying only) |
300 |
| B |
English(Qualifying Only) |
300 |
| 1 |
Essay |
250 |
| 2 |
General Studies-I (Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society) |
250 |
| 3 |
General Studies –II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations) |
250 |
| 4 |
General Studies –III (Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management) |
250 |
| 5 |
General Studies –IV (Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude) |
250 |
| 6 |
Optional Subject - Paper 1 |
250 |
| 7 |
Optional Subject - Paper 2 |
250 |
| Sub-Total (Written Test) |
1750 |
|
| - |
IAS Personality Test (Interview) |
275 |
| Grand Total |
2025 |
|
Note: Paper A is not mandatory for Persons with Benchmark Disability (only Hearing Impairment sub-category) and candidates hailing from the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim.
Note: IAS Question papers (other than the literature of language papers) will be set in Hindi and English languages only. However, candidates will have the option to answer all the question papers (except the qualifying language papers, Paper-A and Paper-B) in either English or any one of the languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India, which informs the official website.
The candidates will conduct the UPSC IAS main exam 2025 in August 2025.
Commonly asked questions
The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the UPSC Civil Service (prelims) exam on May 24, 2026. The exam will be conducted in two sessions and the General Studies Paper 2 will be qualifying only.
As the name suggest, the IAS main exam has 9 descriptive papers. The details of these papers are given below:
| Paper | Description | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| A | One of the Indian language to be selected by the candidate from the languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the constitution (Qualifying only) | 300 |
| B | English (Qualifying Only) | 300 |
| 1 | Essay | 250 |
| 2 | General Studies-I (Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society) | 250 |
| 3 | General Studies –II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations) | 250 |
| 4 | General Studies –III (Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management) | 250 |
| 5 | General Studies –IV (Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude) | 250 |
| 6 | Optional Subject - Paper 1 | 250 |
| 7 | Optional Subject - Paper 2 | 250 |
List of Optional Subjects in UPSC IAS Exam
The candidates can see below the list of UPSC Optional subjects as mentioned in the official notification.
| Agriculture |
Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science |
Anthropology |
| Botany |
Chemistry |
Civil Engineering |
| Commerce and Accountancy |
Economics |
Electrical Engineering |
| Geography |
Geology |
History |
| Law |
Management |
Mathematics |
| Mechanical Engineering |
Medical Science |
Philosophy |
| Physics |
Political Science and International Relations |
Psychology |
| Public Administration |
Sociology |
Statistics |
| Zoology |
|
|
Literature Optional Subjects
The candidates can see below the list of Literature subjects available for UPSC Optional choice
| Assamese | Bengali | Bodo |
| Dogri | Gujarati | Hindi |
| Kannada | Kashmiri | Konkani |
| Maithili | Malayalam | Manipuri |
| Marathi | Nepali | Odia |
| Punjabi | Sanskrit | Santhali |
| Sindhi | Tamil | Telugu |
| Urdu | English |
Commonly asked questions
The candidates should prepare the five fundamental subjects as mentioned for the IAS prelims exam. These fundamental subjects are
- History
- Geography
- Economy
- Polity
- Current Affairs
- Environment issues
- General Science
The candidates should also prepare the Environmental issues because they have gained more importance in the recent years.
Yes, the Union Public Service Commission extended the UPSC IAS 2025 application dates through an official notification. The last date to apply online for the UPSC IAS 2025 exam is February 18, 2025. Earlier, it was February 11, 2025. The UPSC IAS 2025 online applications were started on January 22, 2025.
The UPSC IAS prelims exam 2025 will be conducted on June 16, 2025.
UPSC IAS Exam Pattern - Personality Test/ Interview
There is no set pattern of the UPSC IAS personality test/interview. It differs from candidate to candidate and Board to Board. The IAS interview is conducted at the UPSC officer premises in New Delhi. After candidates clear all the written tests, they will be interviewed by a board of competent observers. In the IAS interview test, candidates will be judged on different skills mentioned below:
- Mental Alertness
- Critical Powers of Assimilation
- Clear and Logical Exposition
- Balance of Judgement
- Variety and Depth of Interest
- Ability for Social Cohesion and Leadership
- Intellectual and Moral Integrity
Also Read: UPSC IAS Eligibility
UPSC IAS 2025 Exam Pattern FAQs
The candidates can see here important questions related to UPSC IAS exam pattern.
Commonly asked questions
The Union Public Service Commission released the IAS 2024 notification online on February 14, 2024. The Commission is expected to release the IAS 2024 admit card online on May 1, 2024. The UPSC will conduct the IAS 2024 exam on May 26, 2024. The Commission will conduct the IAS 2024 exam in online mode in the pen and paper mode. The exam will be conducted at the designated exam centres.
IAS 2024 notification was released online on February 14, 2024 mentioning that there will be 1056 vacancies for the exam.
In the IAS interview test, candidates will be judged on different skills mentioned below:
- Mental Alertness
- Critical Powers of Assimilation
- Clear and Logical Exposition
- Balance of Judgement
- Variety and Depth of Interest
- Ability for Social Cohesion and Leadership
- Intellectual and Moral Integrity
The above information is taken from the official notification and mentioned by the Union Public Service Commission.
The Union Public Service Commission mention the number and names of the exam cities in the official notification. The IAS 2024 notificatin was released online on February 14, 2024. The Commission mention that the IAS 2024 prelims exam will be conducted in 80 cities across the nation.
The IAS prelims exam is conducted offline simultaneously across the nation. The candidates are required to opt for three exam centres in the IAS application and the Commission allots the exam centre on first apply first allot basis.
IAS Exam
Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 5 days ago
The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the UPSC Civil Service (prelims) exam on May 24, 2026. The exam will be conducted in two sessions and the General Studies Paper 2 will be qualifying only.
M
Beginner-Level 5
Answered 2 weeks ago
The Union Public Service Commission will release the UPSC IAS 2026 notification on January 14 on its official website - upsc.gov.in. The Commission will also activate the UPSC CSE (IAS) 2026 online application link on its website. The last date for the UPSC IAS application form is February 3, 2026.
Contributor-Level 9
Answered 2 weeks ago
The candidates should analyse the UPSC CSE previous year question papers to know the trend of the most asked topics. The Commission releases the UPSC question paper on its official website - upsc.gov.in. The candidates can get the UPSC question paper of previous year here. The candidates can downloa
N
Beginner-Level 5
Answered a month ago
The Union Public Service Commission will release the UPSC Civil Service (IAS) notification on January 14, 2026. With the release of official notification, the UPSC IAS Application form 2026 will also be activated for the candidates. The last date to apply online for the UPSC CSE (IAS) exam 2026 wil
M
Beginner-Level 5
Answered a month ago
The Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC CSE notification 2025 on January 22, 2025. In the official notification, the Commission notified 979 vacancies for the UPSC CSE 2025 exam. But this is a tentative number and the final number of vacancies will be mentioned in the final Result of
N
Beginner-Level 5
Answered a month ago
The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the UPSC CSE (IAS) Main exam (written) from August 22 to 31, 2025. The Commission will conduct the UPSC IAS main exam in offline mode at the designated exam centres. The candidates are informed about their exam centre through their UPSC admit card.
T
S
Beginner-Level 5
Answered a month ago
Yes, the Union Public Service Commission has released the UPSC CSE (IAS) Main exam admit card 2025 on its official website - upsc.gov.in. The candidates are required to log in with their UPSC OTR and password. The UPSC CSE admit card will inform the candidate about their UPSC exam centre.
The UPSC IA
R
Beginner-Level 5
Answered 2 months ago
The Union Public Service Commission has released the UPSC CSE (IAS) main admit card 2025 on its official website - upsc.gov.in. The Commission released the admit card for the candidates to download. The candidates are required to download the admit card from the official website by logging in with t
Contributor-Level 9
Answered 2 months ago
The Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC CSE (IAS) Prelims cutoff 2024 after the declaration of final result. The candidates can see below the UPSC IAS Prelims Cutoff 2024
Category | IAS Prelims Cut off 2024 |
|---|---|
General | 87.98 |
EWS | 85.92 |
OBC | 87.28 |
SC | 79.03 |
ST | 74.23 |
PwBD1 | 69.42 |
PwBD2 | 65.30 |
PwBD3 | 40.56 |
PwBD5 | 40.56 |
Shiksha.com had predicted the UPSC CSE cutoff most accurately in some cases.
V
Beginner-Level 5
Answered 2 months ago
The UPSC CSE (IAS) exam result 2024-25 was released on June 11. The Commission released the final UPSC CSE (IAS) 2024 cutoff for all the categories and stages of exam. The Commission released the UPSC Cutoff 2025 for all the stages of exam as given below:
| Category | CS (Prelim)* | CS (Main)# | CS (Final) |
|---|---|---|---|
| General | 87.98 | 729 | 947 |
| EWS | 85.92 | 696 | 917 |
| OBC | 87.28 | 702 | 910 |
| SC | 79.03 | 685 | 880 |
| ST | 74.23 | 684 | 884 |
| PwBD-1 | 69.42 | 663 | 876 |
| PwBD-2 | 65.30 | 696 | 913 |
| PwBD-3 | 40.56 | 307 | 701 |
| PwBD-5 | 40.56 | 361 | 461 |
M
Beginner-Level 5
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