UPSC Syllabus 2025, UPSC CSE Prelims And Mains Syllabus

UPSC Syllabus 2025 is crucial for candidates preparing for the Civil Services Examination. This syllabus outlines what topics to study and how to approach both the Prelims and Mains exams. The UPSC Syllabus 2025 includes various subjects which are divided into topics to help candidates navigate their preparation.

The UPSC Syllabus 2025 PDF will be released on the official website along with the notification. It is expected that the UPSC 2025 will follow the previous year’s pattern, ensuring consistency in the examination structure. Candidates should familiarize themselves with the UPSC Syllabus for 2025 to identify key areas of focus and allocate their study time effectively.

UPSC Syllabus 2025 Overview

The UPSC Syllabus 2025 covers a wide range of subjects, including General Studies, Aptitude, and Optional Subjects. Each subject has its own set of topics and subtopics, which are designed to test the candidate’s knowledge, analytical skills, and problem-solving abilities.

Understanding the UPSC Syllabus 2025 helps streamline study plans and focus efforts on the right areas. Here is an overview of the UPSC Syllabus 2025:

UPSC Exam Syllabus 2025 PDF

For a detailed understanding, candidates should download the UPSC Syllabus 2025 PDF as soon as it is available online. This document provides a complete view of the syllabus, including all topics and sub-topics. To access the UPSC Syllabus 2025 PDF, visit the official UPSC website and download the latest UPSC CSE notification. The UPSC Syllabus 2025 PDF download link will be active here soon.

UPSC Syllabus 2025 for Prelims

The UPSC Prelims consist of two papers: General Studies Paper I and CSAT. These papers are qualifying in nature since the Prelims is the screening round that shortlists candidates for Mains. The duration of each question paper is 2 hours in which candidates need to attempt multiple choice, objective-type questions worth 200 marks.

Here is the UPSC Prelims Syllabus 2025 for candidates:

Paper I General Studies 

This paper covers a wide range of subjects, including:

• 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, Bio-diversity, and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.
• General Science

Paper II CSAT

In this paper, you need to score 33% marks to be eligible for the next stage:

• 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)

UPSC Syllabus 2025 for Mains

The Mains exam is more comprehensive, consisting of nine papers that test knowledge across a wide range of topics. However, since two papers, namely Paper A and Paper B, are qualifying in nature, the total score for the merit list is calculated out of 1750 marks, with each of the remaining papers worth 250 marks.

Here is the UPSC Mains syllabus for each paper: 

Paper A English

(i) Comprehension of given passages.

(ii) Precis Writing.

(iii) Usage and Vocabulary.

(iv) Short Essays. 

Paper B Indian Languages

(i) comprehension of given passages.

(ii) Precis Writing.

(iii) Usage and Vocabulary.

(iv) Short Essays.

(v) Translation from English to the Indian Language and vice-versa

Essay Paper 

Candidates may be required to write essays on multiple topics. They will be expected to keep closely to the subject of the essay to arrange their ideas in orderly fashion, and to write concisely. Credit will be given for effective and exact expression.

General Studies Papers I to IV

1. General Studies I: Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society.
2. General Studies II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice, and International Relations.
3. General Studies III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security, and Disaster Management.
4. General Studies IV: Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude.

Optional Papers I & II

Candidates choose two papers from a list of  48 optional subjects provided by the UPSC. These subjects can vary widely, from literature to engineering. There will be two papers from the selected subject worth 250 marks each. The syllabus of these subjects is detailed in the official notification. Here is the list of subjects for UPSC Optionals:

1. Literature Subjects (Assamese, Bodo, Bengali, Dogri, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Maithili, Marathi, Manipuri, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sindhi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu.)
2. Agriculture
3. Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science
4. Anthropology
5. Botany
6. Chemistry
7. Commerce and Accountancy
8. Civil Engineering
9. Economics
10. Electrical Engineering
11. Geology
12. Geography
13. History
14. Philosophy
15. Public Administration
16. Political Science and International Relations
17. Psychology
18. Physics
19. Sociology
20. Law
21. Mathematics
22. Management
23. Medical Science
24. Mechanical Engineering
25. Statistics
26. Zoology

UPSC Syllabus 2025 for Interview

The interview stage, also known as the personality test, evaluates a candidate’s overall personality, including their leadership qualities, ethical integrity, and communication skills. According to the UPSC Syllabus 2025 for interviews, the board will ask questions on general topics to evaluate the candidate’s suitability for a career in public service. 

The interview aims to assess the candidate’s mental sharpness, social skills, and interest in current affairs. It will also evaluate qualities like clear reasoning, sound judgment, leadership potential, and moral integrity. Candidates will need to prepare their background, academics, and current events well to score good marks in this stage.

UPSC Exam Pattern 2025

The UPSC Exam Pattern 2025 consists of three stages: the Prelims, the Mains, and the Interview. The Prelims include two objective-type papers, General Studies Paper I and CSAT. The Mains involve nine descriptive papers, including Essay, General Studies I-IV, Optional Papers I & II, and Language Papers. 

Finally, the Interview stage worth 275 marks assesses the personality of the candidates. Here is the UPSC Exam Pattern 2025 according to the previous year:

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