\n
The UPSC CSE 2026 consists of three stages: Preliminary Examination (Prelims), Main Examination (Mains), and Personality Test (Interview). The Prelims serves as a screening test, while the Mains and Interview determine the final merit list.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/details>\n\n\n\nHow is the UPSC Prelims 2026 structured?
<\/div>
<\/path><\/svg><\/summary>\n
The Prelims comprises two papers: General Studies Paper I (merit-based) and CSAT Paper II (qualifying). Both are objective-type, lasting 2 hours each, with 200 marks per paper. Negative marking applies, with 1\/3rd mark deducted for each incorrect answer.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/details>\n\n\n\nWhat is the format of the UPSC Mains 2026 examination?
<\/div>
<\/path><\/svg><\/summary>\n
The Mains consists of 9 descriptive papers, including two qualifying language papers, one essay paper, four General Studies papers, and two papers on an optional subject. The total marks for the written examination are 1750.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/details>\n\n\n\nHow important is the CSAT paper in UPSC Prelims 2026?
<\/div>
<\/path><\/svg><\/summary>\n
CSAT is a qualifying paper requiring a minimum score of 33% (66 out of 200 marks) to advance. Despite being qualifying, it’s crucial as it eliminates many aspirants who underestimate its importance or prepare inadequately.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/details>\n\n\n\nWhat does the UPSC Interview stage involve?
<\/div>
<\/path><\/svg><\/summary>\n
The Interview, or Personality Test, carries 275 marks and typically lasts 20-30 minutes. A panel evaluates candidates on qualities like mental alertness, critical thinking, balanced judgment, and leadership abilities. There’s no minimum qualifying score for this stage.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/details>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The UPSC CSE exam, considered one of India\u2019s most prestigious and challenging competitive exams, attracts…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":16144,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39,9,439,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-civil-services-preparation","category-ias","category-ips","category-upsc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16142"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16142\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16145,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16142\/revisions\/16145"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.borthakursiasacademy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}