The Civil Services Preliminary Examination is of the total 400 marks, in which the general knowledge paper (GS) is the first and the general compulsory paper (CSAT) couple has two compulsory papers. This test will be of objective type. Keep in mind, prelims are only a sort of trimmed exam, its points are not added over all the digits of the exam.

The Commission (UPSC) has set 33% minimum qualifying marks in the general study of prelims called Paper II (which is called the CSAT in the language of spoken language). This means that its numbers will not be added to the prelims integers. Only the digits of Paper 1 will be added in the total marks of the prelims examination.

If you first cross the years cut off marks based on the assessment of the paper, you will have access to the Civil Services Mains exam. But the condition is that at least 2 to 3% (66 marks) will be required in Paper 2, otherwise the MEN examination will not get admission.

IAS or Indian Administrative Services is one of the most prestigious and sought after competitive examination in India. It is conducted every year by UPSC or Union Public Service Commission across India through several examination centers. It is not only the most prestigious examination but also one of the toughest examination in which thousands of candidates participate every year to get a reputed and powerful designation offered by Indian Government. For preparing for such a difficult and important examination, it is essential for the contenders to know IAS syllabus, IAS exam pattern and selection procedure.

IAS Syllabus is same as the syllabus of IPS and Income Tax Services as these are also conducted by UPSC and selection is done by the same examination conducted by UPSC.

Selection Procedure:

Selection procedure of IAS comprises three phases:

Preliminary Examination or CSAT: It is objective type in nature and includes multiple choice questions.

Mains Examination: It is subjective type in nature and includes essay type questions.

Interview: In this the overall personality and knowledge is checked by the interviewers.

IAS Preliminary Exam Syllabus

It is the first phase of the IAS Examination of UPSC and is also known as CSAT or Civil Services Aptitude Test. Introduced by UPSC in 2011 CSAT actually is the second paper of General Studies.

The IAS Preliminary Exam is only conducted for the screening purpose and its marks are not taken into consideration for the final selection. The marks obtained by the candidates in this examination determine whether a candidate will appear in IAS Mains Examination or not.

The test assesses the analytical skills of the candidates and comprises two papers Paper I and Paper II each of 200 marks. Each paper is of 2 hours duration and candidates must take both the papers.

IAS Prelims Exam Pattern

IAS Prelims Syllabus -Paper I

1. Current events of national and international importance.
   
2. History of India and Indian National Movement.
   
3. Indian and World Geography - Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
   
4. Indian Polity and Governance - Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
   
5. Economic and Social Development - Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.
   
6. General issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change - that do not require subject specialization.
   
7. General Science.

IAS Prelims Syllabus - Paper II

1. Comprehension;
2. Interpersonal skills including communication skills;
3. Logical reasoning and analytical ability;
4. Decision making and problem solving;
5. General mental ability;
6. Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level);
7. Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. — Class X level);

Notes:

1. The CSAT aptitude test or Paper-II of the Civil Services (Preliminary) examination will be a qualifying paper only with a minimum of 33% to be secured.
2. The questions in both Paper-I (General Studies) and Paper-II (Aptitude Test) will be of multiple choice or objective type.
3. It is mandatory for the candidates to appear in both the papers of Civil Services (Prelim) examination for the purpose of evaluation. A candidate will be disqualified in case he or she does not appear in both the papers of the (Prelims) examination.
4. The above syllabus was published by the Union Public Service Commission for the Civil Services Examination – 2019.