Becoming an IAS officer in India is a dream of many. But many aspirants don’t know How to become an IAS Officer in India or how to clear the IAS exam If you are one among them, then you must know that Union Public Commission Services conducts the yearly UPSC exam to choose the individuals for the post of IAS and other reputed posts in India. Have you decided to become an IAS Officer? If your answer is a yes, this post will guide you with the necessary steps to become an IAS officer in India, the eligibility criteria, and all the essential information about an IAS officer.
How to become an IAS Officer?
Before proceeding on how to become an IAS Officer, you must know what IAS stands for. The term IAS stands for Indian Administrative Service. IAS officer is one of the most dignified posts among all the government jobs in India. If one wants to adopt an IAS officer as a career option, then he/she must clear the UPSC Exam. The exam is conducted in two phases- UPSC Prelims and UPSC Mains. The UPSC Prelims are further divided into GS paper 1 and CSAT (GS paper 2), while Mains includes an optional subject.
The eligibility criteria for an individual to be able to appear for the exam are as follows-
- Age Limit– To be eligible to sit in the UPSC Exam, the applicant must be above the age of 21. An applicant can appear for the exam till the age of 32 years (if he comes under the general category), 35 years for the OBC category, and 37 years for the SC/ST category
- Educational Qualification– The applicant must possess a graduate degree from any recognized university or must be studying in the final year of graduation.
- Number of Attempts– You must know that you cannot apply for an IAS officer post infinitely. There is a said limit. An individual from the general category can apply 6 times, one with the OBC category has 9 attempts, and ST/SC does not have an age limit. He can apply till the age of 37.
If an applicant falls under the eligibility criteria, he can apply for the post by going through the official website of UPSC. Usually, it doesn’t take long to clear the exam if you study with dedication and go through the mock test. Here are the tips that will help you in clearing the exam.
- Get familiar with the syllabus– One of the primary steps for clearing the IAS exam in the first attempt is understanding the syllabus completely. Since the exam is divided into two phases, the syllabus is divided into two sections. The UPSC Prelims exam usually deals with general knowledge and CSAT. While the Mains exam involves choosing an optional subject and a general language exam.
- Know about the exam pattern– Knowing about the exam pattern will prove to be a great help as you will get to know about the topics that need to be covered in detail and what requires less emphasis.
- Study well and prepare notes– Being one of the most important exams, it demands the candidates’ dedication. You need to study well. To cut down the time for revisions, you are advised to prepare notes based on your understanding of the subject.
- Never compromise with the study material– You must prepare all the topics well. There are a lot of books that have proved to be a great help to aspiring students. You need to learn about the current affair. You can learn about those events in newspapers, journals, and magazines issued for UPSC preparations.
- Check your Knowledge– Just studying and not analyzing your preparation is one of the most disastrous things for a candidate appearing in competitive exams. You can opt for various mock tests or solve the previous year’s question papers to judge knowledge and time management.
All these tips will help you clear the exam for becoming an IAS officer. You need to note that it is essential to qualify for the UPSC prelims exam to be able to appear in the UPSC Mains exam only. The marks obtained in the Preliminary exam are not combined in the final result.
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