The Indian Administrative Service is the premier administrative civil service of the Government of India. Hierarchy-wise, IAS is the highest administrative post among the 24 services like IPS, IFS etc. Popularly known as the IAS exam, officially it is called as Civil Services Examination (CSE), which is conducted every year by the central recruiting agency, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). IAS is the permanent bureaucracy in India and forms a part of the executive branch. It is one of the three All India Services, its cadre can be employed by both the Union Government, the State Governments and public-sector undertakings. Indian Administrative Service (IAS) has been termed as one of the prestigious services among the 24 government services like IPS, IFS (Foreign), IFS (Forest), IP & TAFS, IAAS, IRS, IDAS, CMSE, IRTS, IRAS, IRPS, ITS, CAPF-AF to name a few.

All these examinations are conducted by UPSC in the form of Civil Services Examination (CSE) for selecting the appropriate candidates for the jobs. Every year lakhs of candidates appear for this examination, testing their lucks and hard work to get through one of these prestigious posts. It is important to mention that any officer selected into the IAS can be employed by Union government, state governments and/or public-sector undertakings and gets exposure in numerous job roles like the collector, head of public sector units, commissioner, chief secretary, cabinet secretary to name a few. When on deputation outside India, the IAS officer can be engaged in inter-governmental organizations like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the United Nations (UN), or its agencies and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to name a few. It is very important for aspirants to know and understand the requirements of the examination such as the UPSC  IAS syllabus, pattern, eligibility criteria, application procedure and other such significant details before kick-starting the registrations.

IAS EXAM 2023 ELIGIBILITY

MINIMUM QUALIFICATION

IAS Exam sets eligibility criteria for the candidates who wish to get recruited in All India Services. Candidates who wish to sit for UPSC Civil Services Exam must hold a graduation degree from any University which has been incorporated by Act of Parliament or which is to be declared as a Deemed University by University Grants Commission or he/she must possess an equivalent qualification for IAS Exam.

 

AGE CRITERIA

Candidate must be a minimum of 21 years of age and must not be more than 32 years of age.

Category wise UPSC CSE age limit, relaxation and maximum attempts-

  • General Category & EWS: 32 years; 6 attempts.
  • OBC (with certificate): 32 years + 3 years; 9 attempts.
  • SC/ST: 32 years + 5 years; unlimited attempts.
  • Physically Disabled: 32 years + 10 years; Gen/OBC/Person with Benchmark Disability(EWS category)- 9 attempts & SC/ST unlimited attempts.
  • Jammu & Kashmir Domicile: 32 years + 5 years + (3 years, if OBC OR 5 Years, if SC/ST); Number of attempts depends on the reserved category.
  • Disabled and discharged Defence service personnel: 32 years + 3 years + (3 years, if Gen/OBC OR 5 years, if SC/ST)
  • Ex-Servicemen Commission Officer: 32 years + 5 years + (3 years, if OBC OR 5 Years, if SC/ST)

UPSC PRELIMS PATTERN

UPSC MAINS PATTERN

TO DOWNLOAD FULL UPSC SYLLABUS – CLICK HERE