UPSC IAS Exam 2025: Mains Result, Interview Dates, Admit Card, Syllabus, Pattern & FAQs

The IAS syllabus has no limit since UPSC can ask anything from any topic and no one can question the UPSC about the depth of the topics. The UPSC designs the IAS question paper in a way so that the standard of the question paper remains the same. The question break-up from the IAS topics is altered every year. There is nothing that can be termed as out of UPSC IAS syllabus. There is one common saying about the IAS syllabus "Everything under the Sun is IAS Syllabus".

IAS Syllabus 2025 - Prelims

The candidates can see here the IAS prelims syllabus as mentioned in the official notification. 

• Current events of national and international importance (Current Affairs)
• History of India and Indian National Movement
• Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World
• Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc
• Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc
• General issues on environmental ecology, bio-diversity and Climate Change - that do not require subject specialization
• General Science

With a thorough analysis and understanding of the IAS question papers and exam patterns, we can limit the IAS exam syllabus to the relevant topics. Relevancy is the only criterion that can define the contours of the IAS syllabus. IAS prelims exam is the first stage of the selection process and is considered a hard nut to crack. IAS prelims syllabus is not given in an elaborate manner, only topics are given in the official syllabus. The candidates can see here the detailed IAS exam syllabus (main).

UPSC CSE IAS Exam Pattern 2025

The official notification mentions the exam pattern for all the stages separately. UPSC CSE (IAS) exam pattern is not changed. UPSC requires the approval of the Ministry of Personnel before changing the exam pattern. The candidates can check the previous year's exam pattern to prepare well for the exam. The IAS exam pattern plays a crucial role in the preparation because it helps in time management for the exam.

UPSC IAS Exam Pattern 2025 - Mains

The candidates can see here the IAS exam pattern for the upcoming exam.

The language papers are qualifyng only.

There are three All-India Services (AIS) and various Central Civil Services for which recruitment is made through the Civil Services Exam. The AIS can be created only by an Act of Parliament but the Central Civil Services can be created by Government orders only and no separate Act is required Interestingly, the IAS 2023 notification was released for only 21 Services including the two All-India Services.

All India Services

• Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
• Indian Police Service (IPS) 
• Indian Forest Service (IFoS)

Also Read: IAS vs IPS

IPS Salary and Allowances

Central Civil Services

Central Civil Services are the services that do not have the all-India orientation. They serve in their respective regions and departments.

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The UPSC Civil Service 2025 online application form link was activated with the release of the official notification. The candidates are required to fill out the UPSC 2025 online applications on its official website. The candidates will be required to fill out the Civil Service Application Form 2025 within the time limit. The last date to apply online was February 21, 2025.

Scanned Image Specification for IAS 2025 Application

The candidates can see here the specifications for the scanned images which were uploaded for the application

How to fill the IAS 2025 Application Form?

The candidates were required to be registered at the official website of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The candidates can check here the steps to fill out the IAS 2025 application process:

The candidates were required log in at the official website of UPSC - upsconline.nic.in

After login, the candidates got the application dashboard showing all the active and previous applications

The candidates need to click on the apply button given for the IAS exam 2025

The IAS 2025 online application appeared on the screen where most of the details were prefilled

The candidates were required to fill in the following details

• Educational Qualification
• Exam Centre
• Photo Identity Card Type
• Photo Identity Card Number

After the above details, the candidates are required to upload the scanned images of their

• Passport size photograph
• Signature
• Photo Identity Card

The candidates were required to carry the above-uploaded identity card to the exam centre.

After the details, the candidates were required to submit the application fee as mentioned for their category. 

Direct link to apply: UPSC IAS 2025

IAS 2025 Application Fee

The details of the category-wise IAS application fee are as follows.

The Commission provides the above-said exemption to the mentioned categories.

UPSC IAS Notification 2025

The Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC IAS 2025 notification on its official website - upsc.gov.in. The candidates are suggested to download the UPSC notification 2025 PDF for future reference because the official notification is the ready reckoner for all the information related to the Civil Service Exam 2025.

Download Here: IAS 2025 Notification PDF

IAS eligibility criteria 2025 is defined in the IAS notification 2025 PDF. The eligibility criteria are defined based on the age limit, educational qualifications and the permitted in the IAS exam. Notification will be the official source of all the rules and regulations that govern recruitment till its completion. The candidates need to read and understand all the eligibility conditions prescribed in the official notification and if they conform to IAS eligibility 2025 to ensure that they fulfil the criteria.

Nationality

For appointment in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and Indian Police Service (IPS), a candidate must be a citizen of India. For all other services, a candidate can either be a citizen of India or

• A subject of Nepal/Bhutan
• A Tibetan refugee who came over to India before January 1, 1962, with the intention of permanently settling in India
• A person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India

Note: Candidates who are subjects of Nepal/ Bhutan or Tibetan refugees are not eligible to apply for the Indian Foreign Service (IFS).

Educational Qualifications for IAS

Candidates must hold a Graduate degree in any stream from any university established under the act passed by the Parliament of India or the State legislature. Candidates who are in the last year of graduation and awaiting results are also eligible to apply for IAS preliminary exam. However, such candidates need to submit proof of passing the requisite exam at the time of applying for the Main exam. There is no minimum percentage required in the graduate degree. It implies that any graduate irrespective of the percentage can apply for the exam. 

IAS Age Limit

UPSC prescribes the age limit for the IAS exam in the official Civil Service notification. The prescribed age limit for the IAS exam is mentioned below.

The above age criteria were mentioned for the unreserved category. The candidates can see the age limit for the reserved category candidates as prescribed in the official notification. 

Age Limit Relaxations for IAS 2025

There is also age relaxation of some years for reserved category candidates:

No age relaxation was provided to the Economically Weaker Sections in the UPSC Civil Services (IAS) Exam 2025.

IAS Exam Attempts Allowed

All candidates are allowed to have six attempts in the IAS exam. However, it may be noted that the restriction of the number of attempts is not applicable for candidates belonging to SC/ST category. Also, candidates belonging to OBC and Persons with Benchmark Disabilities categories are allowed a maximum of nine attempts in the exam.   

If a candidate appears in any one paper of the IAS prelims exam, then it is deemed that s/he has made an attempt in the IAS exam.

The Union Public Service Commission released the number of vacancies in the official notification. The IAS vacancies 2025 impact the IAS cutoff at every stage. The Commission releases the IAS cutoff for 2025 after the declaration of the final result. 

Previous Years Vacancies

The candidates can see here the previous year's vacancies as notified by the Commission.

The official notification laid down the IAS 2025 selection process in the official notification. The Union Public Service Commission will provide all the details for the selection process in the official notification.

The IAS exam is conducted in two stages – preliminary (objective-type paper) and main (descriptive paper and interview). UPSC IAS preliminary paper is conducted to select candidates for the main (written) exam. The IAS prelims exam is just a screening test. The IAS selection process is fully defined in the official UPSC notification. The stages of the IAS exam are given below.

• IAS notification
• IAS application
• IAS prelims exam
• IAS prelims result
• IAS Main (written)
• IAS Main (personality test)
• Medical Examination after a personality test

UPSC Civil Service's main exam, as the name suggests, is the most important phase of the IAS exam process. The marks of the IAS main exam are taken into consideration for the IAS final result. The final merit list for the UPSC Civil Services exam provides the ranks to the candidates. Based on these ranks, services are allotted to the candidates.

IAS 2025 Notification

UPSC will release the official notification soon. The official advertisement notified the eligibility conditions, vacancies, recruitment rules, exam dates and other important aspects related to the exam such as the list of optional subjects in the IAS exam. In addition to the IAS exam 2025 notification, UPSC also releases the Civil Services exam conducting rules with the notification. The rules and procedures for the IAS exam are provided in that notification.

IAS 2025 Application 

The last date to apply for the IAS exam 2025 was February 11, 2025. The IAS form link was activated after the notification was released.

IAS Prelims Exam

The IAS prelims exam 2025 will be conducted on May 25, 2025. The IAS prelims exam is a screening test that filters out and limits the number of candidates for the IAS main exam. The marks secured in the IAS prelims exam is not considered for the final merit list.

UPSC IAS Prelims Result

The IAS prelims result will be released online in the first/second week of June 2025. The UPSC prepares an IAS Prelims to answer key for the prelims exam but releases it only after the exam process is over. The Commission will release the IAS answer key after the completion of the exam process next year.

IAS Main DAF

The candidates, who clear the IAS prelims exam, need to fill out the Detailed Application Form (DAF) for the IAS main exam. The DAF is a very important document and plays a very important role in the IAS Interview and during the service allocation process. It is important because the candidates mention their service preference and state preference in this form only. Based on the information given in the DAF and the IAS vacancies, the services and the state cadres are allotted to the candidates after the IAS result.

IAS Main Exam

IAS main exam 2025 will be conducted in September 2025. Candidates need to appear for the IAS mains exam as per the details mentioned on the admit card. IAS mains exam consists of a total of nine descriptive papers. Out of nine, two papers are qualifying in nature. The qualifying IAS question papers are General English and General Language papers. Apart from that, there are four general studies papers, one essay paper and two optional subject papers. The marks of each paper are as follows:

After the IAS main (written) exam, the candidates will be called for the IAS interview based on the IAS main (written) result. The IAS interview will be conducted at the UPSC building, New Delhi.

IAS Personality Test

IAS personality test is the official name of the interview. The candidates who clear the IAS main exam will be called for the personality test. IAS personality test will be conducted at the UPSC office premises in New Delhi only. The candidates must prepare dedicatedly for the personality test because it can make or break the dream of becoming IAS. The candidates can see here the IAS interview preparation tips in detail.

Medical Examination after IAS Interview

Each candidate has to undergo a medical examination after the IAS personality test. There will be a Central Standing Medical Board (CSMB) which will examine the mental and physical status of the candidate based on which the service will be allocated. The UPSC has empanelled the below-given hospitals and the candidates are sent to these designated hospitals for IAS candidates' medical examinations. The list of hospitals is given below.

• Safdarjung Hospital
• Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital
• Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital
• Sucheta Kriplani Hospital
• Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital
• Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital
• B.R. Ambedkar Hospital
• AIIMS, New Delhi

IAS 2025 Exam Centres

The number of IAS exam centres was increased (in the official notification) to 79 exam cities across the nation. UPSC has added two more exam centres for the IAS Prelims Exam. The IAS mains exam is conducted in a total of 24 cities across India. The IAS exam centres for prelims and main exams are notified in the official UPSC notification every year.

The candidates can see below some of the most important questions related to IAS exam.