UPSC IAS preparation 2022-UPSC IAS, also known as UPSC Civil Services, is the most prestigious exam administered by the Union Public Service Commission. Every year, thousands of students take the exam, with only a small percentage passing. It is critical to have a drive for UPSC because it is a year-long exam that tests your patience and consistency. Whatever the exam, your ‘will’ is the only thing that keeps you motivated to overcome every obstacle that stands in your way of passing it. UPSC Exam is one of the most difficult exams that require your whole concentration. If you are unable to keep yourself motivated, your performance in the exam will suffer. The UPSC exam assesses a candidate’s general knowledge and awareness, analytical abilities, and written and spoken communication skills.
Appearing for IAS 2022? We got You Covered. Get Free Material for IAS Preparation Here
> IAS Syllabus PDF
> UPSC IAS Exam Pattern
> Free IAS Mock Test
> Best Books for IAS
> Last 08 Year IAS Previous Year Question Paper with Solutions
UPSC IAS Preparation 2022
The Civil Services Exam (CSE) is often regarded as the mother of all written exams. It is a curriculum-heavy exam, particularly in the Main exam stage. As a result, a candidate is eager to know ‘how to start UPSC preparation from zero level’. Aspirants should start with UPSC syllabus and exam pattern. Thereafter, they can proceed with IAS preparation books available online. They can also refer to the IAS mock test.
Note: UPSC conducts common exam for IAS Prelims and IFS Prelims. So, aspirants who have applied for IAS and IFS exam can refer to this article for preparations.
UPSC IAS 2022 Preparation Tips
Most UPSC applicants are perplexed when it comes to developing a thorough UPSC preparation strategy. As a result, we have developed this UPSC Preparation Guide to assist you.
Step1: Understand the exam well.
- Read the UPSC test notification attentively to familiarise yourself with the exam syllabus, exam format, exam timeline, and eligibility requirements.
- After you’ve finished that, go ahead and read over the previous year’s papers to get a sense of what will be asked in the exam.
- Devote a set amount of time to this exercise, candidates will save a significant amount of time during the preparation journey!
Step 2: Make your foundation stronger.
- No matter what background is, candidates must master the fundamentals of the UPSC syllabus.
- As a result, refer to NCERTs, which may be obtained for free from NCERT’s official website.
- Before writing notes, read them at least twice, and then read our NCERT collections.
Step 3: Standard books
- After you’ve finished all of the NCERTs, it’s time to broaden your knowledge by reading the standard books..
- Read the books at least twice and then take handwritten notes to use for later answer-writing practise!
Step 4: Answer writing practice
- After candidates have finished a subject from the NCERT as well as standard books, you can begin practising answering questions.
- Prior to that, it will be a pointless exercise because you would have to rely on books for the answer’s content.
- It is also critical at this point to incorporate constant revision. You should set aside your weekends for serious revision of any new information you’ve absorbed during the week.
Step 5: Mock-Test-Based Learning Strategy
- Candidates should start using a mock test-based learning technique two months before the preliminary exam. It will make you feel like you’re taking an exam.
- Simultaneously take an exam-style simulated test and analyse your performance .
- It will not only help you manage anxiety during the exam, but it will also prepare them incredibly well for the exam.
Recommended: IAS Previous Year Question Paper
UPSC IAS Subject Wise Preparation tips
General Studies Preparation
If one can learn the fundamentals of General Studies, he is almost certain to pass the Prelims. The entire UPSC Prelims pattern is focused on general studies, which has a wide range of subjects to cover. Ideally, one should aim for topic understanding at the high school level.
Here is a subject-by-subject approach to mastering General Studies:
Indian Culture History
- Concentrate on Modern India, Art, and Culture.
- Don’t cite too many books.
- Bipin Chandra’s History of Modern India is one of the greatest books for a candidate on Modern History.
Geography
- Physical geography, including topography characteristics, region formation, mineral riches, climate, and other basic details of the geographical position of the place, should be thoroughly studied.
- Physical geography and the environment are two of the most important themes to study in World Geography. Along with this, learn about the planet and the universe, wind systems, landform formation, clouds and precipitation, and the atmosphere. It is recommended to maintain an Atlas when reading geography so that candidates can learn with the map by combining it with the theory.
Polity
- Polity is about civil government, and there is no end to what an Indian Civil Service aspirant can learn about it. It is critical to understand the principles of the subject. Keep up to date on the newest policies and updates. Civil concerns are always debated, and one should be aware of the current decision and be able to interpret it in light of previous occurrences.
Economy
- It is critical to have conceptual clarity in order to do so. Principles of Macroeconomics and Microeconomics, as well as Indian Economic Development, are important topics to study. Refer to the subject’s class 12th books.
- Along with this, it is critical to read about the Indian Budget and use an analytical approach to connect the critical financial decisions with the status quo.
Technology & Science
- The correct strategy would be to first improve the fundamentals. To comprehend the concepts of science and its natural phenomena, the best approach to do so is to refer to the 7th-10th level ICSE books.
- There are major websites, such as the Ministry of Science and Technology, ISRO, and DRDO, that help to contextualise the issue.
Environment
- To learn the fundamentals, use NCERT books on geography, science, economy, biology, and chemistry, as well as Rajagopalan’s Environmental Studies.
Current Events
It is critical to stay up with current events when studying for Civil Services. The Prelims paper may include questions about politics and economics. For example, any news on climate change can be inquired about from the standpoint of Indian economics, Indian environment, or both.
UPSC IAS Books
For Prelims
General Studies (Paper I)
- NCERTs of History, Geography & Polity Class 8th-12th
- India’s Struggle for Independence by Bipan Chandra
- Certificate of Physical Geography by GC Leong
- Indian Polity by M Laxmikanth
- Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh
- Current Affairs – The Hindu, Yojna Magazine, Kurukshetra Magazine
- Oxford World Atlas
- International Relations NCERT XI and XII
- Indian Culture- Spectrum
- NIOS Course Materials
CSAT
- Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning – RS Agarwal
- TMH CSAT Manual
- Quicker Maths by M.Tyra
- English Grammar & Composition Wren & Martin
UPSC IAS books for Mains
General Studies – 1
- India’s Struggle for Independence by Bipan Chandra
- India After Independence by Bipan Chandra
- Ancient India by RS Sharma
- History of Medieval India by Satish Chandra
- From Plassey To Partition And After by Sekhar Bandyopadhyay
- Introduction to Indian Art for Class XI (NCERT)
- Geography of India – Majid Hussain
- World Geography- Majid Hussain
- Oxford Atlas
- Central Physical and Human Geography by GC Leong
- Geography NCERTs (Class XI and XII)
General Studies -2
- Indian Polity by M Laxmikanth
- Constitution of India by DD Basu
- India’s Foreign Policy by Rajiv Sikri
General Studies-3
- Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh
General Studies- 4
Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude by Subba Rao and PN Rao Chaudhry
UPSC IAS Syllabus
The IAS test contains a vast amount of material, ranging from topics taught in our earlier grades in high school to topics learned in college. Covering the entire IAS syllabus provides a person the highest chance of passing the exam.
Prelims Syllabus
- Current events with national and worldwide ramifications.
- India’s history and the Indian National Movement
- Geography of India and the World – Physical, Social, and Economic Geography of India and the World.
- Indian Politics and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Human Rights Issues, and so on
- Economic and Social Development – Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, and so on.
- General Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity, and Climate Change concerns that do not necessitate topic expertise
CSAT syllabus
- Comprehension
- Interpersonal abilities, including communication abilities; logical reasoning and analytical abilities
- Making decisions and solving problems
- Mental ability in general
- Fundamental numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (X-level class), Interpretation of data (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. – Class X level)
Mains Syllabus
- Paper A- Indian language
- Paper B- English
- Paper I- Essay
- Paper II- General Studies I – Indian Heritage & Culture, History & Geography of the World & Society
- Paper III- General Studies II – Governance, Constitution, Welfare Initiatives, Social Justice & International Relations
- Paper IV- General Studies III – Technology, Economic Development, Agriculture, Biodiversity, Security & Disaster Management
- Paper V- General Studies IV – Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude
- Paper VI- Optional Subject – Paper I
- Paper VII- Optional Subject – Paper II
Recommended: IAS Mock Test
UPSC IAS Exam Pattern
The UPSC test pattern for the Preliminary stage consists of two papers that are administered on the same day. Both papers are made up of objective type questions with multiple choice solutions. The prelims test is a qualifying stage used to select candidates for the main exam. The UPSC prelims pattern is detailed below:
| Paper | Paper type | Total questions | Total marks | Frequency |
| General studies paper I | Objective | 100 | 200 | 2 hours |
| General studies paper II | Objective | 80 | 200 | 2 hours |
| Total | 400 marks (where GS Paper II is qualifying in nature ) | |||
UPSC IAS Mains exam pattern
| Paper | Subject | Frequency | Total marks |
| Paper A | 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 paper I | 3 hours | 250 |
| Paper VII | Optional paper II | 3 hours | 250 |
About IAS
The Union Public Service Commission administers the IAS (Civil Services) exam at the national level (UPSC). Every year, thousands of students take the IAS exam. Candidates with a bachelor’s degree are eligible to take the IAS exam. Candidates that are eligible must first take the prelims exam, then the mains exam, and finally the interview.
UPSC IAS Preparation 2022 FAQs
Ans. Aspirants can get free material for IAS preparation from this article. Here, you will get official UPSC syllabus PDF, preparation tips, free mock test link.
Ans. Yes. There are a lot of toppers who have cleared IAS exam without coaching. However, with proper dedicated and hard work aspirants can crack the exam.
Ans. to start IAS preparation, aspirants should start with IAS syllabus and exam pattern. Then, study these topics with the help of best books for IAS. Lastly, keep practising IAS last year question paper with solutions.
