The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission conducted the UPPSC PCS Prelims exam 2025 on October 12 as per the exam pattern mentioned in the official notification. The candidates are suggested to read the official notification to get all the details about the UPPSC Exam Pattern. The candidates need to practise with the previous year's question paper so that they can internalise and master the UPPSC 2025 exam pattern. The UPPSC previous year paper, syllabus and exam pattern are the three components of the UPPSC preparation.
To prepare for the UPPSC exam, the candidates are suggested to prepare all the topics notified in the official UPPSC syllabus and practice with the mock test papers.
- UPPSC PCS Exam Pattern 2025 for Prelims
- Negative Marking in the UPPSC Prelims Exam 2025
- UPPSC PCS Main Exam Pattern 2025
- UPPSC UPPCS Exam Pattern 2025 FAQs
UPPSC PCS Exam Pattern 2025 for Prelims
UPPSC PCS prelims exam is a Multiple Choice Objective type question paper where the candidates are required to select the correct option from the given four choices. UPPSC continued with the existing UPPSC prelims exam pattern. In the current pattern, there are two papers in the prelim exam. The time allotted for each paper is two hours. The details are as follows:
| Paper Name |
No. of Questions |
Marks |
|---|---|---|
| General Studies – I |
150 |
200 |
| General Studies– II(Aptitude) |
100 |
200 |
| Total |
400 |
|
The General Studies paper–II (Aptitude) is only qualifying in nature and the candidates need to score only 33% (66 marks) in it to qualify for the main exam. The UPPSC PCS prelims exam is a screening exam only. It filters out the candidates and reduces the number of candidates for the main exam. The marks secured by the candidates in the UPPSC PCS prelims exam are not counted for the final merit. But it is a very important stage of the exam as the candidates need to qualify in the prelims exam to appear in the main exam.
Commonly asked questions
In most cases, the candidates prepare for various exams simultaneously. There are certain core topics which are common to all the competitive exams. The candidates are suggested to prepare them well so that they can score better in the exam. Some of these topics are given below:
- History
- Geography
- Economy
- Indian Polity
- Environment Studies
- Current Affairs
In addition to the above, the candidates are suggested to prepare the important festivals, celebrations and local folklores of the regions of Uttar Pradesh for the prelims and Mains exam.
The candidates should note that there is a negative marking in the UPPSC Prelims exam. The candidates should mark their answers carefully because the negative marking reduces the score drastically if the answers are not marked judiciously. The negative marking in the UPPSC PCS prelims exam is summarised below:
| UPPSC General Sudies Paper 1 Marking Scheme | |
|---|---|
| Answer | Marks Assigned |
| Correct Answer | 1.333 |
| Incorrect Answer | - (1.333/3) |
The candidates should note that there is a negative marking of same quantum in the UPPSC prelims General Studies paper 2 also.
Negative Marking in the UPPSC Prelims Exam 2025
The candidates should note that there is a negative marking in the UPPSC Prelims exam. The candidates should mark their answers carefully because the negative marking reduces the score drastically if the answers are not marked judiciously. The negative marking in the UPPSC PCS prelims exam is summarised below:
| UPPSC General Sudies Paper 1 Marking Scheme | |
|---|---|
| Answer | Marks Assigned |
| Correct Answer | 1.333 |
| Incorrect Answer | - (1.333/3) |
The candidates should note that three incorrect answers will eat up the marks scored by one correct answer and the resultant score of these four questions will be zero. There will be no deduction of marks for the questions left unattempted.
Read in Detail: UPPSC 2025 Eligibility Criteria
Commonly asked questions
Yes, the UPPCS is the premiere exam of the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) and it conducts the UPPCS exam every year without fail. The UPPSC maintains the exam calendar and almost all the exams are conducted based on that calendar. UPPSC Prelims 2023 was conducted on May 14, a fortnight before the IAS prelims exam 2023.
UPPSC PCS Main Exam Pattern 2025
Instead of the optional subjects, the Commission introduced two papers related to the Uttar Pradesh local folklores. These papers will be descriptive in orientation. UPPSC main exam is a descriptive type exam where the candidates are required to write the essay-type conventional answers in the answer booklet provided by the Commission. The Commission asks analytical questions in the paper. The score of the candidates will be based on how the candidates describe their answers in the shortest word limit. Brevity is the key to success in the UPPSC main exam. There are four general studies papers instead of two papers general studies. UPPSC has changed the nature of the exam altogether. Previously, the two general studies paper were objective-type offline papers, but now there are four descriptive-type question papers. Besides, a new paper of Ethics was introduced.
The structure of the UPPSC PCS main exam is as follows
| Description |
Duration of Paper |
Marks |
|---|---|---|
| General Hindi |
3 Hours |
150 |
| Essay |
3 Hours |
150 |
| General Studies (First Paper) |
3 Hours |
200 |
| General Studies (Second Paper) |
3 Hours |
200 |
| General Studies (Third Paper) |
3 Hours |
200 |
| General Studies (Fourth Paper) |
3 Hours |
200 |
| Optional Subject - Paper 1 General Studies (Fifth Paper) |
3 Hours |
200 |
| Optional Subject - Paper 2 General Studies (SixthPaper) |
3 Hours |
200 |
| Sub-Total (Written Test) |
|
1500 |
| Personality Test (Viva-Voce) |
25 - 45 minutes |
100 |
| Grand Total |
1600 |
|
The duration of each of the paper will be three hours. The marks secured in the UPPSC main exam will be considered for the final UPPSC result. The higher marks ensure selection in the UPPSC exam.
UPPSC PCS Main (Interview) Exam Pattern
There is no set pattern for the UPPSC PCS interview and it differs from candidate to candidate and board to board. The interview is conducted on the office premises of the UPPSC in Prayagraj. The candidates need to report at the office on the assigned date. In the interview process, all the original documents related to the academic records and professional experience are verified by the office staff and the candidates are assigned to a particular interview board. Each board i
Besides the exam pattern, the number of candidates passing the prelims exam was also changed recently. Now the number of candidates passing the prelims exam is restricted to thirteen times the number of vacancies. This ratio was 18 times earlier. It made the prelims exam tougher. Also, the number of candidates passing the UPPSC PCS main exam will be two times the number of vacancies.
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Commonly asked questions
There are three exam centres for UPPSC main exam. The Commission conduct the UPPSC Main exam in three cities only. These cities are Prayagraj, Lucknow and Ghaziabad. The Ghaziabad is added lately after the demand of the candidates. The UPPSC main exam is a descriptive type exam conducted offline.
The UPPSC Prelims exam is conducted in 51 districts across the state.
No, the UPPSC PCS main exam pattern was not changed but the Commission removed the Optional subject from the main exam and introduced the General Studies Paper 5 and 6. These papers will ask the Uttar Pradesh specific topics and questions related to the local folklore of the state.
The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission under the directives of the State Government, removed the optional subject from the main exam. The UPPSC Main exam is conducted as the offline exam in the pen and paper mode.
UPPSC UPPCS Exam Pattern 2025 FAQs
The candidates can see here important questions related to UPPSC UPPCS exam pattern.
Commonly asked questions
It is a very subjective consideration. Each candidate should assess his or her potential and weaknesses by analysing the previous year question papers and decide accordingly. The candidates should take advice from seniors, mentors and see the Toppers videos for the right strategy and plans. In case, the candidates need feels that he or she needs guidance, then he or she must join the coaching.
The UPPSC PCS exam analysis is important for the candidates who have appeared in the exam as well as for the candidates preparing for the exam. The UPPSC exam analysis will provide a clear idea about the difficulty level of the UPPSC PCS paper and the important areas from where the questions have been asked in the paper.
The candidates can see the exam analysis such as the guiding force for the next year exam paper. The canddiates can see here the exam analysis video of the candidates who appeared in the exam.
No, the Uttar Pradesh did not mention any changes in the UPPSC PCS exam pattern. The Commission notified the old exam pattern in the official notification. The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission released the UPPSC PCS 2025 notification on February 20, 2025 for 200 vacancies with no changed in the exam pattern.
The UPPSC PCS prelims 2025 exam was conducted on October 12, 2025.
The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission conducted the UPPCS Prelims exam 2025 on October 12, 2025. The Commission released the official exam calendar and the official notification on its official website - uppsc.up.nic.in. The Commission released the official notification for 200 vacancies.
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