UPSC Prelims Exam Date 2024, Exam Pattern and Syllabus PDF

UPSC has recently announced a rescheduling of the CSE 2024, Initially slated for May 26, 2024, the Prelims exam will now take place on June 16. In this article we discuss UPSC Prelims Exam Date 2024

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UPSC Prelims Exam Date 2024: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has recently announced a rescheduling of the Civil Services Examinations (CSE) 2024. Initially slated for May 26, 2024, the Prelims exam will now take place on June 16. This decision comes in response to the Election Commission’s schedule for the 18th Lok Sabha elections, which are set to occur between April and June 2024.

Due to the clash with the Lok Sabha elections, UPSC has adjusted the timetable to ensure smooth conduct of both processes. Additionally, the mains exams for the Civil Services are now scheduled to commence from September 20, spanning five days.

UPSC Prelims 2024

According to official Notification 2024, released on 14 February 2024, The UPSC Prelims Exam will be conducted on 16 June 2024 in two shifts. In the official announcement of the Union Public Service Commission, the schedule for the UPSC Civil Preliminary exam and important dates are discussed in this article. This notification typically includes information such as the examination date, the syllabus, and the eligibility criteria for the examination. You can find the latest UPSC Prelims Notification on the official website of the UPSC (upsc.gov.in).

UPSC Prelims Eligibility Criteria 2024

UPSC Prelims Eligibility criteria 2024 is discussed below in the table:

UPSC Prelims 2024 Eligibility Criteria
Nationality	An Indian citizen or a subject of Nepal/Bhutan.
Age	Candidates must be at least 21 years old and not more than 32 years old (as of August 1st of the examination year) for the General category. Age relaxations are provided for candidates from reserved categories.
Education Qualifications	A Bachelor’s degree from a recognized university or an equivalent qualification. Final year students of a Bachelor’s degree course are also eligible to apply, but they must produce proof of passing the examination before the Mains Exam.

UPSC Prelims Application Form 2024

As Per the UPSC official calendar, Application forms for UPSC Prelims 2024 can be filled out online from 1 February 2024. The last date to complete the application form is 6 March, previously 5 March 2024.

UPSC Prelims Application Form 2024 (Inactive)

UPSC Prelims Application Fee 2024

The application fee for the UPSC Prelims Examination 2024 is as follows:

General and OBC candidates: INR 100
SC/ST candidates: NIL
Women candidates of all categories: NIL

UPSC Prelims Exam Pattern 2024

UPSC Prelims Exam 2024 is the first phase of the UPSC CSE Exam. The mode of Examination is Objective-based and is divided into two parts. Candidates need to appear for both the Prelims Examination.

UPSC Prelims Exam Pattern 2024
	Marks	Questions	Negative Marking
General Studies Paper -1	200	100	1/3rd
General Studies Paper-2 (CSAT)	200	80	1/3rd

UPSC Prelims Syllabus 2024

The examination will consist of two papers. A brief UPSC Prelims syllabus 2024 PDF of each paper is discussed below:

Paper	Syllabus
Paper – I (General Studies)	Important current events on national and international issues Indian history and the Indian National Movement The physical, social, and economic geography of India and the rest of the world Indian politics and governance, including the constitution, political system, Panchayati raj, public policy, and rights issues Economic and social development: initiatives in the social sector, poverty, inclusion, demographics, etc. Issues of general nature that are related to Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change (do not require subject specialization) General Science
Paper – II (UPSC CSAT Syllabus 2024)	Comprehension interpersonal abilities, particularly communication skills Decision-making and problem-solving skills, analytic thinking, and general mental ability Basic numerical skills (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) at the Class X level, Charts, graphs, tables, and other types of data interpretation (at a Class X level)

UPSC Prelims Cut Off

The UPSC Prelims cut-off is the minimum mark that a candidate needs to score to qualify for the UPSC Mains Exam 2024. The official cut-off marks for Prelims are released after the final results are out. Check the last 5 years cut off for UPSC Prelims for different categories from the following table:

Category	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
General	88.22	87.54	92.51	98	98
OBC	87.54	89.12	89.12	95.34	96.66
ST	69.35	70.71	68.71	77.34	83.34
SC	74.08	75.41	74.84	82	84
PWD 1	49.84	68.02	70.06	53.34	73.34
PWD 2	58.59	67.33	63.94	44.66	53.34
PWD 3	40.40	43.09	40.82	61.34	40.00
PWD 4	41.76	45.80	42.86	61.34	45.34
EWS	82.83	80.14	77.55	90	——

UPSC Prelims Result Date

Going by the trends of previous years, results are generally declared within a month from the date of the examination. By this measure, one can expect the result in the third week of June.

UPSC Prelims Exam Centers List

Here is a list of centres at which the examination will be conducted as per UPSC Notification 2024.

UPSC Prelims 2024 Exam Centers
AGARTALA	GORAKHPUR	PATNA
AGRA	GURGAON	PORT BLAIR
AJMER	GWALIOR	PRAYAGRAJ (ALLAHABAD)
AHMEDABAD	HYDERABAD	PUDUCHERRY
AIZAWL	IMPHAL	PUNE
ALIGARH	INDORE	RAIPUR
ALMORA (UTTARAKHAND)	ITANAGAR	RAJKOT
ANANTHAPURU	JABALPUR	RANCHI
AURANGABAD	JAIPUR	SAMBALPUR
BENGALURU	JAMMU	SHILLONG
BAREILLY	JODHPUR	SHIMLA
BHOPAL	JORHAT	SILIGURI
BILASPUR	KOCHI	SRINAGAR
CHANDIGARH	KOHIMA	SRINAGAR (UTTARAKHAND)
CHENNAI	KOLKATA	SURAT
COIMBATORE	KOZHIKODE (CALICUT)	THANE
CUTTACK	LEH	THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
DEHRADUN	LUCKNOW	TIRUCHIRAPALLI
DELHI	LUDHIANA	TIRUPATI
DHARWAR	MADURAI	UDAIPUR
DISPUR	MUMBAI	VARANASI
FARIDABAD	MYSURU	VELLORE
GANGTOK	NAGPUR	VIJAYAWADA
GAUTAM BUDDH NAGAR	NASIK	VISHAKHAPATNAM
GAYA	NAVI MUMBAI	WARANGAL
GHAZIABAD	PANAJI (GOA)

UPSC Prelims 2024 Preparation Strategy

Every year, many aspirants dream of qualifying for the prelims. However, only a few make it. It needs a clear, crafted strategy to get through this stage. Over the years, many toppers have shared their strategies, the gist of which is discussed below:

Completion of the Syllabus: One must have a basic understanding of all topics listed in the syllabus. One can go through NCERT textbooks to cover them. Daily reading of newspapers is needed to link the static portion one is reading in textbooks with the current happenings around them.
Notes Making: While reading textbooks and newspapers, it is always advisable to make short bulleted notes which are handy for revision.
Comprehensive Approach: An aspirant mustn’t see prelims and mains examination as separate while covering the syllabus. In fact, one can largely say that the mains exam syllabus is a detailed version of the prelims exam syllabus. Developing good conceptual clarity is the fundamental requirement of both exams. Furthermore, for the preliminary exam, one must have a firm grasp of a number of critical facts.
Previous year papers and official syllabus: Both of them should be the guiding light as one moves forward in the preparation journey.
Revision: Once the syllabus is complete, the next step is multiple revisions of notes. One can also supplement the notes with content from current affairs magazines to bring a sense of completion.
Practice: It is always advisable to practice a few mock tests before one writes the actual paper. One must ensure to adhere to strict timings while practising the mocks. Also, one must keep practising the previous year’s questions to have an idea of what type of questions are expected in the actual exam.

UPSC Prelims Test Series

It is generally advised that an aspirant practice a sufficient number of questions based on the UPSC pattern to be in a comfortable position during the actual exam. An aspirant can go with any test series released by a good institute. We at StudyIQ provide a comprehensive UPSC Prelims Test Series which is designed by experts and matches the level of real-time exam in terms of quality and content of the questions.

UPSC Prelims 2024 FAQs

When can I apply for UPSC Prelims 2024?

Application process Has started from 14th, February 2024.

Is 2 months enough for UPSC Prelims revision?

Yes. Many years hundreds of aspirants crack the exam. What is needed is good strategy. Please see above for detailed UPSC prelims strategy.

Is optional removed from UPSC 2024?

There is no official statement by the UPSC in this respect. It is important that one focus on the preparation of optionals as well, unless any official word is out regarding any changes.

When was UPSC Prelims 2024?

The UPSC CSE 2024 prelims exam is set to be held on June 16.

When should I start preparing for UPSC 2024?

UPSC Prelims Exam is scheduled for May 26th, 2024. Aspirants have six months to prepare. Study in advance by covering all topics in the syllabus by January 2024.