UPSC & State PSC
UPSC CSE preparation
Prelims, Mains and the Personality Test for the IAS, IPS, IFS, IRS and other central services.
28 free guides·Conducted by Union Public Service CommissionOfficial website
About the UPSC CSE exam
The Civil Services Examination is how the Union Public Service Commission fills the IAS, the IPS, the IFS, the IRS and a long list of other central services. It is open to graduates, and it asks more of you than almost any exam in the country: breadth and accuracy for the objective Prelims, depth and writing speed for the descriptive Mains, and clear judgement in front of an interview board. It rewards steady, planned preparation far more than bursts of reading.
Think of it as three exams run back to back. Prelims is a gate: two objective papers, where CSAT only has to reach 33 per cent and no marks carry forward. Your rank is built in Mains, where seven papers worth 1,750 marks count, and in the 275-mark Personality Test. The two language papers in Mains are qualifying. Services and cadres are then allotted by rank and preference, so a handful of marks can change the career you get.
Start with the “Start here” guides below: the pattern, the syllabus read like an examiner, a first-year plan, NCERTs and current affairs. Then go subject by subject. Each subject page groups the guides for Polity, History, Economy, Ethics and the rest, and ties them to the Prelims and Mains papers where they are tested. Read one guide, make short notes, attempt the practice questions at the end, and come back to it when you revise.
| Stages | Prelims → Mains → Personality Test |
|---|---|
| Prelims | GS Paper I and CSAT, 200 marks each; CSAT qualifying at 33% |
| Negative marking | One-third of the question's marks, in both Prelims papers |
| Mains | 9 descriptive papers; 7 count for merit (1,750 marks) |
| Personality Test | 275 marks |
| Final merit | Mains + interview = 2,025 marks |
Patterns change. Confirm details in the latest notification on the official website.
Start here
New to UPSC CSE? Read these first, in this order.
- 1The UPSC Civil Services exam, stage by stagePrelims, Mains and the Personality Test are three different exams wearing one name. Here is what each stage actually tests, how the marks add up, and what that means for how you prepare.
- 2Reading the UPSC syllabus like an examinerThe official syllabus is barely a few pages long, yet most aspirants read it once and never again. Used properly, it is the single most reliable guide to what UPSC will ask.
- 3A 12-month plan for your first serious UPSC attemptA realistic month-by-month plan for a first attempt — what to read, when to start writing, when to switch to Prelims mode, and how to protect the months after Prelims.
- 4Which NCERTs to read for UPSC, in what order, and howNCERT textbooks are the most recommended and least understood part of UPSC preparation. Here is the list that matters, the order that works, and a way of reading them that pays off later.
- 5Current affairs without drowning: the newspaper methodCurrent affairs is where preparation time disappears. A simple method — read with the syllabus, note by topic, consolidate monthly — gets you what the exam needs in about an hour a day.
- 6Integrated preparation: one syllabus, three stagesPreparing for Prelims and Mains as two separate projects doubles the work. Integrated preparation treats them as one — here is how the overlap works, where it breaks down, and when to shift gears.
- 7Prelims arithmetic: guessing, elimination and riskNegative marking turns Prelims into a game of probability as much as knowledge. The maths is simple, and once you understand it you will know exactly when a guess helps and when it hurts.
- 8Choosing a UPSC optional subject without regretThe optional is 500 of your 1,750 Mains marks, and it is the one decision you cannot easily undo mid-year. A clear set of questions — and honest answers to them — makes the choice much less fraught.
Subject by subject
Strategy
How the exam works and how to plan for it: the pattern, the syllabus, NCERT foundations, current affairs, revision, choosing an optional and preparing alongside a job. Read these before any subject guide, because they decide how well the rest of your hours are spent.
- How to use previous-year questions (without just reading them)
- Choosing your first ten books for UPSC
- The UPSC Civil Services exam, stage by stage
Polity
The Constitution, Parliament, the executive, the judiciary, federalism and local government. Prelims tests articles, bodies and procedures through closely worded statements; GS Paper II in Mains asks you to analyse how institutions actually work, with cases and recent examples.
- The Preamble, word by word
- Fundamental Rights (Articles 12–35) for Prelims and Mains
- Directive Principles vs Fundamental Rights: the long argument
History
Ancient, medieval and modern India, the freedom struggle and world history from the revolutions onward. Prelims draws on facts and chronology; GS Paper I asks for causes, consequences and interpretation rather than dates alone.
- The Harappan civilisation for UPSC
- The Mauryas and Ashoka's Dhamma
- The Gupta age: how classical was it?
Answer Writing
The skill that decides Mains rank: reading directive words, structuring introductions and conclusions, using diagrams, and finishing about twenty answers in three hours. Every GS paper rewards it, so practise from the start, not after Prelims.
All 1 Answer Writing guide