- The UPSC Mains test consists of nine papers administered over a period of 5-7 days. Only those candidates who scored at least the specified cut off in General Studies I and 33 percent in General Studies II in the Prelims Examination will be allowed to take the Mains Exam.
- All the papers of the UPSC Mains test comprise of descriptive answer style questions, according to the exam format. It is a time-consuming process, and your total marks in the UPSC mains will have a direct impact on your overall score. As a result, the UPSC exam results for the mains phase are immensely important because they are used to determine merit. The following are the details of the UPSC curriculum, along with their respective marks:
| UPSC CSE Exam – Mains Pattern | |||
| Paper | Subject | Duration | IAS Total marks |
| Paper A | Compulsory Indian language | 3 hours | 300 |
| Paper B | English | 3 hours | 300 |
| Paper I | Essay | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper II | General Studies I | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper III | General Studies II | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper IV | General Studies III | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper V | General Studies IV | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper VI | Optional I | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper VII | Optional II | 3 hours | 250 |
- Except for the language exams A and B, all of the mains papers are merit-based. Papers A and B are qualifying papers, and candidates must achieve at least 25% in each to have their grades from Paper I through Paper VII weighted.
| General Studies 1 | General Studies 2 | General Studies 3 | General Studies 4 |
| Indian Heritage and Culture | Governance | Technology | Ethics |
| History and Geography of the World | Constitution | Economic Development | Integrity |
| Society | Polity | Biodiversity | Aptitude |
| Social Justice | Environment | ||
| International relations | Security and Disaster Management |
- Candidates from Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Sikkim, as well as candidates with hearing impairment, are free from Paper A if they can show that they have been exempted from such 2nd or 3rd language courses by their respective board or university. The Indian Language paper covers any of the languages included in the Constitution’s 8th Schedule. x
- The UPSC interview stage has a total score of 275, raising the total score for UPSC Mains and Interview for merit list consideration to 2025.
- The UPSC IAS examination has a comprehensive exam pattern, and the competition is fierce. Because the examination procedure lasts over a year and failing to make the cut means beginning over the following year, one should begin studying as soon as possible.
