Eligibility, syllabus, exam pattern and preparation strategy for every major exam — 5 guides.
Union Public Service Commission
The UPSC NDA Exam is the national-level entrance examination for admission to the National Defence Academy and the Naval Academy through the National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination. It is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for candidates who want to begin an officer career in the Indian Armed Forces after school.
The UPSC Combined Defence Services Examination, commonly called UPSC CDS, is a national-level examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for graduate candidates who want to join the Indian Armed Forces as officers. Through CDS, eligible candidates may compete for admission to the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Indian Naval Academy (INA), Air Force Academy (AFA) and Officers Training Academy (OTA), subject to the latest official notification, academy-wise eligibility, SSB recommendation, medical fitness, merit position and vacancies.
The UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) is the national-level competitive examination through which India recruits officers for the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Revenue Service and several other central civil services. For many aspirants, it is commonly called the IAS Exam, but IAS is only one of the services filled through the Civil Services Examination. The examination is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and is known for its wide syllabus, multi-stage selection process, low selection ratio and high public importance.
UPSC (Union Public Service Commission)
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is India's premier constitutional recruitment body. It conducts some of the country's most respected competitive examinations for appointment to senior administrative, diplomatic, police, revenue, engineering, medical, defence, forest, and other public services under the Government of India. For lakhs of aspirants, UPSC is most closely associated with the Civil Services Examination (CSE), which recruits officers for services such as the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Revenue Service (IRS), Indian Audit and Accounts Service (IA&AS), and many other Group A and Group B services.
Union Public Service Commission (Government of India)
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is a constitutional body established under the Constitution of India, headquartered in New Delhi. It conducts India's most prestigious national-level competitive examinations for recruitment to senior administrative, diplomatic, police, revenue, engineering, medical, defence, forest, and other Group A and Group B services under the Government of India. UPSC conducts several examinations through the year — including the Civil Services Examination (CSE), Combined Defence Services Examination (CDS), National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination (NDA/NA), Combined Medical Services Examination (CMS), Engineering Services Examination (ESE), Central Armed Police Forces Examination (CAPF AC), and Indian Forest Service Examination (IFoS) — each covering a distinct set of services, eligibility criteria, and exam patterns. This page is a starting point for the individual UPSC exams; see the guides below for exam-specific eligibility, pattern, syllabus, and selection process.