UPSC IAS Syllabus 2023 for Prelims and Mains

The UPSC Civil Services Exam is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to recruit eligible candidates for various Grade-A posts in the government sector. The UPSC has released the official notification for the 2023 CSE exam on 1st February 2023, with 1255 vacancies. Aspirants aiming to crack the UPSC exam need to plan a proper strategy for their preparation as the time between prelims and mains is only 3-4 months. To secure a prestigious job in the government sector, candidates must score enough marks to crack the cut-off list, and a proper understanding of the UPSC Syllabus is a must. This article covers a detailed UPSC Syllabus 2023 for Prelims, Mains, and Interview to help aspirants prepare effectively.

UPSC IAS Prelims Exam Pattern 2023:

UPSC Syllabus 2023 for Prelims Exam:

General Studies Paper (Prelims Paper I) : 
1. Current events of national and international importance.
2. History of India and Indian National Movement.
3. Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
4. Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
5. Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.
6. General issues on Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialisation General Science

CSAT Paper (Prelims Paper II) : 

1. Comprehension
2. Interpersonal skills including communication skills
3. Logical reasoning and analytical ability
4. Decision-making and problem solving
5. General mental ability
6. 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 IAS Mains Exam Pattern 2023:

UPSC Syllabus 2023 for Mains Exam

Candidates who clear the UPSC prelims exam will be able to take the Mains exam, which is the stage where candidates are scored and ranked. Each paper of the Mains exam must be passed by the candidate. The Mains exam assesses the candidate's academic knowledge and their ability to present their understanding in a time-bound manner that meets the requirements of the question. The UPSC Syllabus 2023 and Exam pattern for the Mains exam are outlined below.

Paper 1 : Essay writing.

Paper 2 : General Studies–I (Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society).

Paper 3 : General Studies –II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations).

Paper 4 : General Studies –III  (Technology, Economic Development, Bio‐diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management).

Paper 5 : General Studies –IV (Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude)

Paper 6 : Optional Subject – Paper 1  (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 and Zoology)

Paper 7 : Optional Subject – Paper 2 (Literature of any one of the following languages: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu and English)