UPSC has released the schedule for the Civil Services Main Examination 2025. The examination will be held in two sessions from August 22nd to 31st. Only candidates who clear the preliminary examination will be eligible to participate.
UPSC CSE Mains 2025: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has released the timetable for the Civil Services Main Examination 2025. This examination will be held on August 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 30th, and 31st. The examination will be conducted in two sessions – from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM and from 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM.
Dates and Schedule of the Main Examination
UPSC has uploaded the schedule for the UPSC CSE Mains 2025 on the official website upsc.gov.in. The examination will commence on August 22nd (Friday) with the Essay paper and conclude on August 31st with the second paper of the optional subject.
Examination Time and Sessions
The Civil Services Main Examination will be held in two sessions:
First Session: 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM.
Second Session: 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM.
Examination Pattern and Procedure
The UPSC Civil Services Examination consists of three stages – Preliminary Examination (Prelims), Main Examination (Mains), and Interview.
1. Preliminary Examination (Prelims)
This is an objective type examination consisting of two papers:
Paper I (General Studies): 200 marks
Paper II (CSAT): 200 marks (for qualifying only)
A minimum of 33% marks is required in CSAT to qualify.
2. Main Examination (Mains)
The Main Examination consists of a total of 9 papers:
2 Qualifying Papers:
- Indian Language (Paper A)
- English Language (Paper B)
Both papers are of 300 marks each and are not included in the merit list.
7 Merit Papers:
- Essay: 250 marks
- General Studies Paper I to IV: 250 marks each
- Two papers of the Optional Subject: 250 marks each
3. Interview
Candidates who qualify in the Main Examination are called for an interview of 275 marks. There are no minimum qualifying marks set for this stage.
Eligibility to Participate in the Main Examination
Only those candidates who have successfully cleared the Preliminary Examination 2025 are eligible to participate in the Main Examination. After the preliminary examination, a Detailed Application Form (DAF-I) was filled by the commission.
When was the Preliminary Examination held?
The UPSC CSE Prelims 2025 examination was held on May 25th. It included two MCQ-based papers, each of two hours duration and a maximum of 200 marks. The result was declared in June.
Next Stage After the Main Examination
After the Main Examination is concluded, selected candidates will be called for the interview round. Following this, the final result will be announced, and the final merit list will be prepared based on the marks obtained in the Main Examination and the interview.
