IFS Selection Process
Last verified 31 Jul 2026
UPSC Indian Forest Service (IFS) selection runs through the stages below, each of which must be cleared in sequence.
- Preliminary Examination — the Civil Services (Prelim) paper, sat in common
- Main Examination (written, descriptive)
- Interview / Personality Test
Exam pattern by stage
| Paper | Subjects | Questions | Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prelims Paper-I | General Studies | 100 | 200 | 2 hours |
| Prelims Paper-II | CSAT (qualifying at 33%) | 80 | 200 | 2 hours |
| Mains Paper-I | General English | Descriptive | 300 | 3 hours |
| Mains Paper-II | General Knowledge | Descriptive | 300 | 3 hours |
| Mains Paper-III to VI | Two optional subjects, two papers each | Descriptive | 200 each | 3 hours each |
| Interview | Personality Test | — | 300 | — |
Document verification
UPSC verifies eligibility against original documents only after a candidate has qualified for the Interview or Personality Test. Until that point, admission to every stage is purely provisional — the issue of an e-Admit Card does not mean your candidature has been cleared. A candidate can therefore sit and clear a paper and still be found ineligible later.
Final merit
Merit is prepared from the marks that count for this examination, and posts are allotted by merit-cum-preference against the confirmed vacancies. Ties are broken by rules published by the Commission — typically the marks in the compulsory papers, and where those are equal, seniority in age.