The UPSC Pre 2024 will be conducted at the designated exam centres across the nation in two sessions. The Union Public Service Commission mentioned the UPSC exam timing in the official admit card. The candidates can see here the UPSC pre-exam timing, reporting time and important exam day instructions as mentioned in the admit card.
UPSC Exam Timing: The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the UPSC Civil Service (IAS) prelims exam on June 16, 2024. The Commission released the UPSC prelims admit card 2024 on June 7 for the candidates to inform the candidates about the UPSC exam timing. The candidates should strictly follow the UPSC pre-exam timing so they can appear in the prelim exam without any hassle.
Also Read: UPSC Answer Key 2024 Live Updates
- UPSC Pre-Exam Timing
- Reporting Time for UPSC Prelims Exam 2024
- Important UPSC Prelims Exam Instructions
- UPSC 2024 Exam Day Instruction
- UPSC IAS Prelims Exam Pattern
UPSC Pre-Exam Timing
The candidates should note that the Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC Prelims exam timetable on its official website just before the release of the UPSC admit card but this year, it was not released. The Commission mentioned the UPSC exam timing in the official UPSC admit card 2024. The candidates can see below the UPSC 2024 exam timing:
The Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC IAS 2025 prelims and main exam date. The Commission released the IAS 2025 notification online on January 22, 2025. The last date for the IAS 2025 application was February 21, 2025. The Commission will conduct the IAS 2025 prelims exam on May 25, 2025.
The IAS main exam 2025 will be conducted from August 22, 2025. The Commission preponed the main exam by one month.
The IAS 2023 Prelims exam was held on May 28th, 2023. The exam was moderately to difficult overall, with the General Studies Paper 1 being moderate to difficult and the GS Paper 2 CSAT being very lengthy. The exam also included more questions from the Environment and Geography section, and fewer questions from current affairs and international relations. The exam pattern changed, with altered Assertion and Reason questions, and a new format for multiples.
The cut-off for the exam was expected to be between 82 and 85, compared to 88 in 2022. Only 14,624 students scored above the cut-off and were eligible to proceed to the Mains round.
Some students who took the CSAT paper said it was very difficult, and some even approached the courts against the UPSC. Even some candidates files a petition against the difficulty level of the IAS prelims GS-2 (CSAT) paper.
| Session | Paper Timing | Paper Name |
|---|---|---|
| Morning Session | 9.30 AM to 11.30 AM | General Studies Paper 1 |
| Noon Session | 2.30 PM to 4.30 PM | General Studies Paper 2 (CSAT) |
The candidates should note that there will be a gap of three hours between the two papers. The Union Public Service Commission also print the QR code on the UPSC admit card so that its details can be verified online just by scanning the QR code.
Reporting Time for UPSC Prelims Exam 2024
The candidates should note that the Union Public Service Commission mentions in its official admit card that the “Entry to the Examination Venue shall be closed 30 minutes before the commencement of the examination in each session. No candidate shall be allowed entry into the examination venue after the closure of entry”. As per the official UPSC admit card, the reporting time for each session can be summarised below:
| Session | Paper Timing | Reporting Time |
|---|---|---|
| Morning Session | 9.30 AM to 11.30 AM | 9.00 AM |
| Noon Session | 2.30 PM to 4.30 PM | 2.00 PM |
It implies that the candidates cannot afford to be late for the examination otherwise the examination centre can deny their entry. Although it does not happen in reality.
Important UPSC Prelims Exam Instructions
The Union Public Service Commission mention the most important exam instructions in the UPSC admit card itself. The candidates can see below the important instructions as mentioned in the UPSC admit card 2024:
The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission is planning to conduct the UPPSC Prelims exam 2024 in 41 districts of the state. There are 75 districts in the State. Last year, the UPPSC PCS prelims exam was conducted in 51 districts. Earlier the UPPSC prelims exam was conducted in around 25 cities in the state.
The UPPSC 2024 prelims exam will be conducted on December 7 & 8, 2024. The Commission is expected to release the UPPSC 2024 admit card on November 27, 2024 in its official website - uppsc.up.nic.in.
UPSC Civil Service (IAS) 2025 will be conducted on May 25, 2025. The Union Public Service Commission released the UPSC Civil Service (IAS) 2025 notification was released on January 22, 2025. The Commission activated the IAS 2025 online application form on its official website - upsc.gov.in.
The last date to apply for the IAS 2025 application form was February 21, 2025.
The candidates are suggested to download and read the official IAS notification pdf. The steps to download the IAS notification pdf are as follows:
- Go to the official website of UPSC - upsc.gov.in
- Click on the Civil Service notification 2026 link
- A new window will appear (on clicking above link)
- Click on the link for the Civil Service (IAS) 2026 notification pdf link given corresponding to the exam name
- Download and Save the IAS 2026 notification PDF.
The IAS notification 2026 will be available on January 14, 2026.
- The candidates will be required to carry the same photo identity proof whose details are mentioned in the UPSC admit card.
- The candidates are required to bring a black ball-point pen to mark the answers in the OMR sheet.
UPSC 2024 Exam Day Instruction
The Union Public Service Commission mentioned the standard exam day instructions which apply to all of its exams. The candidates can see below some of the most important instructions below:
- Candidates are required to bring their UPSC e-admit card, along with the original photo identity card whose number is specified on the admit card, to each examination session to gain entry to the centre. The UPSC IAS admit card must be kept safe until the final results of the Civil Services exam 2024 are announced
- Candidates should be aware that any omissions, mistakes, or discrepancies in encoding or filling in details on the OMR answer sheet, particularly regarding the roll number and test booklet series code will result in the rejection of the answer sheet.
- Candidates are advised to enter the exam hall well in time for frisking
- They must read the "Special Instructions for Candidates Admitted to the Examination" found in the "Rules for the Examination" in the notice, as well as the "Poster" containing instructions displayed outside the centre
UPSC IAS Prelims Exam Pattern
There are two papers in the UPSC (IAS) prelims exam. The candidates are required to appear and clear both papers to get selected. The Union Public Service Commission will conduct the UPSC Prelims exam offline at the designated exam centres across the nation. The candidates can see below the UPSC Prelims Exam Pattern 2024:
| Paper |
Questions |
Marks |
|---|---|---|
| General Studies Paper- I |
100 |
200 |
| General Studies Paper-II (Aptitude Test) |
80 |
200 |
| Total |
400 |
|
Note: The questions in both the papers (I and II) will be set in English and Hindi languages. Paper II of the UPSC IAS prelims exam will be a qualifying paper with 33% is the minimum qualifying mark.
Also Read: UPSC IAS Syllabus 2024

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Student Forum
Answered 2 weeks ago
The Union Public Service Commission conduct the Civil Service Exam every year to recruit the candidates for the All India Services and Central Civil Services. There are around 25 Central Civil Services whose exam is combinedly conducted as Civil Service Exam.
R
Beginner-Level 5
Answered 3 weeks 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 a month 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.
Answered a month 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 2 months 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 2 months 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 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 were required to download the admit card from the official website by logging in with thei
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

The UPSC IAS 2024 notification was released on February 14, 2024. The notification included important dates, the number of vacancies, the syllabus, and all the criteria for appearing in the UPSC Civil Services Examination. Candidates can apply for the UPSC IAS application form until March 5, 2024. There are 1056 UPSC vacancies in the IAS 2024 exam.
The IAS Exam for 2024 prelims phase will take place on May 26, 2024. The minimum age to fill the IAS 2024 application is 21 years and the maximum age is 32 years. Age relaxation is provided to candidates belonging to certain categories.