FAQs on UPSC IAS Syllabus

UPSC Syllabus for CSE Prelims

The first stage of the Civil Services Examination is IAS Prelims . More than 12 lakhs candidates applied for UPSC Prelims  in 2023 while approximately 11 lakh candidates applied for the same in 2022.

Aspirants preparing for UPSC 2024 must start preparing for the Civil Services exam in February 2023. One year of preparation is a must thing if aspirants want to score well in UPSC 2024 exam. This timeline of almost a year is crucial if you want to have a planned and smooth preparation phase where you can strengthen your concepts and clarify all doubts related to topics.

The two papers of the IAS prelims are discussed in detail below: 

1. General Studies
   • The General Studies test is the first paper of the preliminary examination.
   • This test is intended to test the general awareness of a candidate in a wide range of subjects that include: Indian Polity, Geography, History, Indian Economy, Science and Technology, Environment and Ecology, International Relations and associated  UPSC Current Affaairs.
2. Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT) (Generally conducted between 2:30 PM and 04:30 PM)
   • This UPSC Prelims syllabus for CSAT intends to assess the aptitude of the candidate in solving ‘Reasoning and Analytical’ questions, apart from ‘Reading Comprehension’ and the occasionally asked ‘Decision Making’ questions.
   • The ‘Decision Making’ based questions are generally exempt from negative marks.

To be noted:

• The preliminary examination is only meant for screening a candidate for the subsequent stages of the exam.
• The marks obtained in the Prelims will not be added up while arriving at the final rank list.

The subjects included in the prelims are common for all. However, there is an option to opt for a few subjects in the mains phase of the examination. Get the detailed list of IAS Subject  included in the syllabus for UPSC prelims and mains at the linked article.

• Current events of national and international importance.
• 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, Biodiversity, and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialisation.
• General Science

Some important links for UPSC Prelims GS Paper-I Preparation are listed below:

UPSC Syllabus for CSAT Paper (Prelims Paper-II)

• Comprehension
• Interpersonal skills including communication skills
• Logical reasoning and analytical ability
• Decision-making and problem solving
• General mental ability
• Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency, etc. – Class X level)

Candidates are advised to refer to the following links below that will help them to cover the UPSC CSE syllabus for the CSAT paper:

Get in touch with previous years’ questions asked in prelims from the UPSC Civil Services syllabus. The compilation of topic-wise UPSC Prelims Questions PDF can be downloaded from the linked article.

IAS Mains Exam Pattern