IAS basically stands for Indian Administrative Service in India. It is one of the most prestigious government service among the 24 civil services like IPS, IFS, etc., for which the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts Civil Services Examination (CSE) for recruiting candidates.
UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) is the government agency responsible for recruitment of the right candidates for this service. Annually, only around 1000 candidates are recruited for all the 24 services combined. After an officer is recruited into the Indian Administrative Service, he/she procures exposure in very diverse roles like the collector, head of public sector units, chief secretary, cabinet secretary, commissioner etc.
Any graduate with any percentage in their respective course can apply to become an IAS officer. The only educational qualification mandatory is that the candidate must be a graduate or equivalent in any discipline from a recognised university. There is nowhere stated of the minimum passing percentage required to appear in the examination.
Each year, the number of candidates who apply for the UPSC Civil Service Exam is approximately around 10 lakh, out of which about 5 lakh applicants appear for the examination (prelims). UPSC Civil Services Examination is believed to be the toughest exam in the world, in consideration to the exam duration (extends to 1 year), depth of the syllabus and the prevailing competition.
The IAS Exam has following stages, namely :-
• The first stage – Paper 1 – Preliminary which consists of two objective-type papers (General Studies Paper I and General Studies Paper II also known as Civil Service Aptitude Test or CSAT) – usually conducted around June.
• Those candidates who clear prelims then move to second stage – a main examination consisting of nine papers of descriptive (essay) type, in which two papers are qualifying and only marks of seven are counted – conducted around September-October.
• Those who qualify Mains will have to face an interview – It is also known as personality test conducted during the March-May period.
The final result is generally declared around May end.
The successful candidates who secure high rankings in the UPSC civil service examination become IAS officers.
Not only the challenges and experience but also the scope of bringing positive changes in the life of millions in India makes IAS a unique career choice.
