• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

ClearIAS

UPSC: Latest News, IAS, IPS, UPSC Online Preparation

UPSC Prelims Test Series 2021Enroll Now
  • Home
  • Start
    • IAS
    • IAS Exam Eligibility
    • UPSC
    • UPSC Syllabus
    • UPSC Exam Date
    • UPSC Results
    • FAQs
  • Programs
    • Prelims
    • Mains
    • Interview
  • Buy
    • Courses
    • Mock Test Series
    • IAS Books
    • eBooks (PDF)
  • Free
    • Study Materials
    • Guidance
    • eBooks (PDFs)
    • Mock Exams
    • ClearIAS App
    • Downloads
  • Toppers
  • Blog
  • Login
ClearIAS » UPSC Civil Services Exam Syllabus (subject-wise) » UPSC Civil Services Exam New Syllabus (2013) – Analysis

UPSC Civil Services Exam New Syllabus (2013) – Analysis

Last updated on February 6, 2016 by Alex Andrews George

UPSC Civil Services Exam new Syllabus (2013) has produced mixed response from the candidates, though the majority is definitely welcoming the change. The winners and losers of the latest pattern can be realized completely only a couple of years later, but a quick look gives many interesting insights.

Civil Services Latest Pattern Highlights

  1. General Studies weightage doubled – The biggest change! (Good news for generalists, bad news for specialists!)
  2. Optional Subjects halved. ( Worry time for specialists!)

Weightage of Subjects : Distribution of Marks : Revised IAS Mains Exam Syllabus

UPSC New Pattern Weightage

Update (March 24, 2013) : Government reverted changes made to the literature optional and the essay paper, due to protests in the Parliament. As per the latest news, the essay paper will be of 250 marks, with no English comprehension.

What’s new : Summary of the analysis of the changed UPSC pattern:

  • Time for an additional optional is saved.
  • The saved time plus some additional effort needs to be invested in General Studies! General Studies  has already become more general awareness oriented, and this requires extensive reading – particularly newspapers and magazines.
  • IAS coaching will lose it’s importance unless the coaching institutes adapt well enough to the change.
  • Ethics and Integrity paper is a welcome initiative, but the clarity of questions is not available as of now.
  • A welcome move to club IFS with Civil Services Exam – at the preliminary stage.
  • Specialists who are unaware about their surroundings can now pack their bags and look for some other exam.
  • There may be overlap of syllabus and hence advantage for those who take optionals like History, Pub Ad, Sociology, Geography etc – but the case was more or less same before too.
  • Effective presentation and clarity of thinking is the key now.

Good Luck from ClearIAS.com!

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Share
Tweet
WhatsApp

Integrate Learning With Test-Taking!

Is UPSC Prelims your weak area?

Don’t worry!

We can help you score high marks!

Are you ready to practise the right way?

Yes, I want ClearIAS to help me score high!

Get our newsletter

Don't miss our email updates!

About Alex Andrews George

Alex Andrews George is a mentor, author, and entrepreneur. Alex is the founder of ClearIAS and one of the expert Civil Service Exam Trainers in India.

He is the author of many best-seller books like 'Important Judgments that transformed India' and 'Important Acts that transformed India'.

A trusted mentor and pioneer in online training, Alex's guidance, strategies, study-materials, and mock-exams have helped thousands of aspirants to become IAS, IPS, and IFS officers.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. aashiya says

    March 10, 2013 at 8:19 pm

    should we need to make any changes in our preparation now at this time or worry about the changes only after mains.
    what books to refer for ethics paper?

    Reply
    • ClearIAS.com says

      March 10, 2013 at 10:58 pm

      Good queries Aashiya…It’s always better to start early and to have a long term plan in Civil Services Exam, but since UPSC announcement of mains came very late (now only 2.5 months left for Prelims) the time to be spend for mains preparation depends entirely on your confidence level on Prelims. If you are confident of clearing prelims, you can spend time for mains topics, which will surely give you an edge. But if you are worried about clearing prelims, priority should be for Prelims preparation in next 2.5 months.

      And regarding useful books for ethics paper – ClearIAS.com will soon publish a list after analysis of available books related to the topic. Probably new books will enter market aligned with the changed syllabus within 2-3 months.

  2. raam says

    March 24, 2013 at 9:09 pm

    Sir, your analysis is very good!

    Would you please suggest books for each topic?

    Reply
    • ClearIAS.com says

      March 25, 2013 at 8:49 am

      Civil Service Books for Prelims and Mains are arranged topic wise in the below link.
      https://www.clearias.com/ias-books-civil-services-exam-books/

      All the best!

    • raam says

      March 25, 2013 at 9:52 am

      Thank you so much, sir! it will be really of great help to all the aspirants!

      One more doubt! In UPSC website, the again newly changed syllabus hasn’t been published yet! Is it safe to go with new syllabus(I am going to appear only in 2014)?

    • ClearIAS.com says

      March 25, 2013 at 5:56 pm

      Dear Raam,
      Government has made certain changes to the UPSC notification (new pattern) released on March 5th. Though the notification confirming the details are yet to be released by UPSC, it’s safe to move ahead in line of the UPSC new pattern +Government changes. The changes made by Government on UPSC new pattern is as given below :

      https://www.clearias.com/government-rolls-back-upsc-mains-changes-level-playing-field/

  3. naveen says

    June 17, 2013 at 11:31 am

    sir i want to ask you about the latest syllabus to follow for 2014 exam..plz help me. i am confused a bit.

    Reply
    • ClearIAS.com says

      June 17, 2013 at 3:37 pm

      Dear Naveen,

      All the details of latest syllabus are given in the link below :
      https://www.clearias.com/civil-services-exam-details/upsc-syllabus/

  4. rinku says

    September 18, 2013 at 9:31 pm

    sir plz tell is qualifying language paper will be there in 2014 mains or not.sowhere it is mention that quallifying langauge paper are removed and somewhere it is mention that it be there in mains 2014

    Reply
    • ClearIAS.com says

      September 18, 2013 at 10:49 pm

      Dear Rinku,

      There is no official communication about the removal of qualifying papers from UPSC. So till any notification comes about the removal, you may safely go ahead with the latest syllabus published.

  5. ram says

    September 22, 2013 at 1:26 am

    sir
    as i am doing mtech so i dont have time to join coaching….so is postal courses are good..can you just suggest me which institute postal notes should i refer…is upscportal postal notes are good i am thinking to purchase it.thank you

    Reply
    • ClearIAS.com says

      September 22, 2013 at 2:22 pm

      Dear Ram,

      We advice you to give more preference to authoritative text books and government websites for preparation. Details of the suggested books given in the below link.

      https://www.clearias.com/civil-services-exam-details/ias-books/

  6. ram says

    September 24, 2013 at 11:06 pm

    i am doing mtech in computer science ..can you just suggest which optional would be good for me as computer science is not an optional subject in upsc…i know it depends on one’s own interest ..but still iam confused …just need your suggestion and help..thankq….

    Reply
  7. tushar deore says

    June 8, 2014 at 10:03 pm

    I m get confused about IAS books for mains.
    Whether i should start with one particular book of GS-1,GS-2,GS-3,GS-4 by developindiagroup, unique publisher

    or i should start with several book like majid hussain, m.laxmikant, ramesh singh, ncert,bipin chandra,etc.

    Plz suggest me the one best way
    Thank you

    Reply
  8. tushar deore says

    June 8, 2014 at 10:11 pm

    I just starting with my last year in degree course
    If i make target of study of one year of IAS EXAM with lot of hard work , & simultaneously do study of degree, without any tutions.
    Could I get success?

    Reply
  9. Parikshit Ramani says

    July 4, 2019 at 3:21 pm

    Sir, would you please suggest books for each topics and subjects. Also the syallabus of 2020 UPSC CSE

    Reply
  10. Parikshit Ramani says

    July 4, 2019 at 3:25 pm

    Sir, would you please suggest books for each topics and subjects. Also the syallabus of 2020 UPSC CSE. Other such question is How to prepare Indian foreign service in UPSC.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Aim to be an IAS Officer?

Nothing can beat practice!

Join ClearIAS Prelims Test Series 2021

Practice 40+ online mock exams!

Limited Period Offer: 40% OFF!

Enroll Now!

ClearIAS Study Materials for UPSC Prelims and Mains

  • Indian History - Indian History and Culture.
  • Geography - Indian and World Geography.
  • Economics - Indian Economy.
  • Indian Polity - Constitution, Social Justice etc.
  • General Science - Science and Technology.
  • Environment - Biodiversity, Climate Change etc.
  • Current Affairs - National and international.

ClearIAS Study Materials for UPSC Mains (Extra-Topics)

  • World History - GS paper 1.
  • Indian Society - GS paper 1.
  • Foreign Relations - GS paper 2.
  • International Affairs - GS paper 2.
  • Internal Security - GS paper 3.
  • Disaster Management - GS paper 3.
  • Ethics - GS paper 4.

ClearIAS Study Materials for UPSC Mains (Paper-wise)

  • Essay Paper
  • GS 1 Paper
  • GS 2 Paper
  • GS 3 Paper
  • GS 4 Paper

ClearIAS Online Mock Exams (Prelims and Mains)

  • Prelims Mock Exams
  • Mains Mock Exams (AWP)

Congrats! You are at the right place - ClearIAS!

  • 1 million+ monthly users!
  • 9,00,000+ ClearIAS App Downloads!
  • 4,50,000+ Facebook Followers!
  • 3,50,000+ Email Subscribers!
  • 3,00,000+ Registered Aspirants!

Prepare for UPSC Online!

Get Started

UPSC Online Preparation Guidance

  • UPSC - Union Public Service Commission
  • IAS - Indian Administrative Service
  • Civil Services Exam (CSE) - Exam Pattern
  • UPSC Syllabus - Subjects to learn
  • IAS Books - Books to learn
  • UPSC CSE Eligibility - Who can appear?
  • UPSC Exam Dates - When should you apply?
  • UPSC Result - Check UPSC Results
  • UPSC FAQs - Clarify your queries

What do toppers' say about ClearIAS?

Poonam Dalal

"Working 24*7 in the police for the last 5 years and been out of touch with the preparation, I took the guidance from your website, especially the ClearIAS prelims test series. I bought it and found it to be the best available online." - Poonam Dalal, ClearIAS Online Student

Read more reviews by UPSC Toppers...

Enroll in

ClearIAS UPSC Prelims Online Test Series 2021

Score High in the IAS Exam!

Trusted by Toppers

Limited Period Offer: 40% Discount!

Enroll now

Don’t lose out without playing the right game!

Adopt the 3 Strategies for Success in the UPSC Civil Services Exam.

Learn UPSC Strategies

  • Home
  • IAS
  • UPSC
  • FAQs
  • Blog
  • Login

UPSC Online Preparation

  • Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
  • Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
  • Indian Police Service (IPS)
  • IAS Exam Eligibility
  • UPSC Free Study Materials
  • UPSC Exam Guidance
  • UPSC Prelims Test Series
  • UPSC Syllabus
  • UPSC Online
  • UPSC Books
  • UPSC Prelims
  • UPSC Mains
  • UPSC Interview

ClearIAS

  • About ClearIAS
  • ClearIAS Programs
  • IAS Coaching
  • Announcements
  • Book Review
  • ClearIAS App
  • Sitemap
  • Work with us
  • Advertise with us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Contact Us

UPSC 2021

UPSC Exam Calendar 2021

Follow us

Follow us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on ClearIAS Learning AppFollow us on ClearIAS Test Prep AppFollow us on Telegram

Featured on

ClearIAS Featured in The Hindu
ClearIAS Featured in the Times of India
ClearIAS Featured in the New Indian Express
ClearIAS Featured in the Yourstory

and many more...

Copyright © 2020 - ClearIAS.com