UPSC Exam Pattern 2022 Overview
It is crucial to understand the IAS Exam pattern in detail to have a better understanding of the exam.
Applicants who fill out the UPSC IAS 2022 application form are only qualified to take the IAS Prelims exam, according to the UPSC CSE 2022 selection process.
- Those who pass the IAS 2022 preliminary exam will be invited to take the IAS mains exam.
- Those who pass the UPSC CSE mains exam will be invited to a personal interview as part of the Civil Service selection process.
- The UPSC IAS 2022 selection process generates a final merit list based on the applicant's performance in the mains and personality test rounds.
Candidates who pass the IAS 2022 cutoff are considered qualified for the UPSC CSE 2022 recruitment. The below image will illustrate the exam pattern for different phases at a glance.
Note: You must also check the latest UPSC Syllabus 2022 for a more directed approach towards exam preparation.
| UPSC IAS Selection Process 2022 | Total Marks | Nature of the exam |
| IAS Prelims Exam | 400 Marks | Objective Exam Qualifying Exam- Marks not Counted in final merit |
| IAS Mains Exam | 1750 Marks | Descriptive Test Marks counted in final merit |
| IAS Interview | 275 Marks | Personality Test |
| Total IAS Exam marks | 2025 Marks | Total Marks |
UPSC IAS Prelims Exam Pattern 2022
The Prelims examination consists of two compulsory papers. All the questions of both papers are objective or MCQ type with four options.
- Paper-2 is qualifying in nature (33% marks required). Its marks don't count in Merit.
- The Prelims Question Paper is both in English and Hindi.
| Sr. No. | Name of Paper | Nature of Paper | Exam Duration | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks |
| 1. | General Studies- Paper-I | Marks are counted to determine the merit | 2 Hours | 100 | 200 Marks |
| 2. | CSAT- Paper–II | Qualifying in Nature (33% marks required) | 2 Hours | 80 | 200 Marks |
UPSC Prelims Marking Scheme
Note the prelims marking scheme below.
- Paper 1: +2 marks per question
Paper 2: +2.5 marks per question - Negative marking: One-third of marks allotted to each question
| Paper | No. of questions | Marks | Negative Marks |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Studies I | 100 | 2*100 = 200 | Yes, 0.66 |
| General Studies II(CSAT) | 80 | 2.5*80 = 200 | Yes, 0.83 |
UPSC IAS Mains Exam Pattern 2022
Candidates who clear the IAS Prelims Exam 2022 are eligible to appear for the Mains exam.
- There are two sorts of papers in the mains exam: qualifying papers and merit papers.
- The nature of Papers A and B qualifies them as qualifying (25 per cent i.e. 75 marks required). The final order of merit will be determined by adding the scores from Papers 1 to 7.
- For the Mains exam, candidates must choose one optional subject.
- To be considered for the final selection, applicants must obtain a minimum of 25% on each paper.
- Candidates would be required to write their answers on answer sheets given by UPSC. Extra sheets will not be provided.
| Sr. No. | Paper | Name of Paper | Nature of Paper | Duration | Marks |
| 1. | Paper – A | Compulsory Indian Language (One of the Indian Language to be selected by the candidate from the Languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution) | Qualifying in Nature (25% i.e. 75 marks required) | 3 Hours | 300 Marks |
| 2. | Paper – B | Compulsory English | 3 Hours | 300 Marks | |
| 3. | Paper – I | ESSAY | Marks are counted to determine the final order of merit. | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| 4. | Paper-II | GS–I (Indian Heritage and Culture, History, and Geography of the World and Society) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks | |
| 5. | Paper – III | GS-II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks | |
| 6. | Paper – IV | GS– III (Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks | |
| 7. | Paper – V | GS– IV (Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks | |
| 8. | Paper – VI | OPTIONAL PAPER– I (Candidates may choose any one of the optional subjects from amongst the list of subjects given in the link here) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks | |
| 9. | Paper – VII | OPTIONAL PAPER-II | 3 Hours | 250 Marks | |
| TOTAL | 1750 Marks | ||||
| Personality Test/Interview | 275 Marks | ||||
| GRAND TOTAL | 2025 Marks | ||||
UPSC Mains: Optional Subjects
A list of optional subjects is mentioned by UPSC. Candidates may choose one of the following optional subjects for two descriptive papers, Paper VI and VII.
| Agriculture | Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science | Anthropology | Botany | Chemistry |
| Civil Engineering | Commerce and Accountancy | Economics | Electrical Engineering | Geography |
| Geology | History | Law | Management | Mathematics |
| Mechanical Engineering | Medical Science | Philosophy | Physics | Political Science and International Relations |
| Psychology | Public Administration | Sociology | Statistics | Zoology |
| The literature of any one of the following languages: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu and English. | ||||
UPSC Interview/ Personality Test
This is the last round of the UPSC Exam 2022. Candidates who clear the Mains Exam are called for the personality test.
- The UPSC Interview is for 275 Marks.
- The total marks that will be counted for the final result are 2025. (Mains 1750 + Interview 275 = 2025 marks).
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