Every year lakhs of candidates apply for the UPSC civil services exam to try their luck for much coveted civil services. But only a few hundred of them make it to IAS, IFS, IPS, and many other central services. There are certain eligibility criteria that candidates must satisfy to get entry to the examination. Here is the list of conditions that need to be satisfied by the candidates.
Educational Qualification
The candidate must have a bachelor’s degree.
Candidates who have written the final year exams of their bachelor's degree are also eligible but must produce proof of having passed the final exam at the time of submission of their UPSC mains exam forms.
Candidates having professional or technical qualifications equivalent to degrees, from government-recognized institutions, are also eligible.
Candidates who have passed the final year of the MBBS degree or any other medical examination and are yet to complete the internship can also appear for the mains examination. However, they must furnish a certificate of having passed the final professional examination at the time of the interview.
Age Limit.
A candidate should have attained the age limit of 21 years and must not be more than 32 years old.
The upper limit is relaxable for the following candidates:
Schedule castes and Schedule tribes – 5 Years.
Other Backward Classes – 3 Years.
Defense Service Personnel – 3 Years.
Ex-servicemen, who have rendered at least 5 years of military service – 5 Years.
Blind, deaf-mute, and orthopedically handicapped persons – 10 Years.
Number of Attempts.
General Category candidates – 6 Attempts till the age of 32 years.
Other Backward class candidates – 9 Attempts till the age of 37 years.
Schedule caste and Schedule tribe Candidates – No limits till the age of 37 years.
Physically handicapped – 9 Attempts for both General Category and Other Backward Classes category and unlimited for Schedule caste and Schedule tribe candidates.
Nationality.
For IAS, IFS, and IPS, the candidate must be a citizen of India.
A Candidate must be a citizen of India
A candidate must be a subject of Bhutan or a citizen of Nepal.
The candidate must be a Tibetan refugee, who came to India before January first, 1962, to be settled permanently in India.
The candidate must be a person of Indian Origin, who has migrated from Ethiopia, Kenya, Pakistan, Myanmar, Malawi, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Uganda, Vietnam, Zaire, and Zambia intending to permanently settle in India.
Apart from that, the candidate should always check the notification every year to check whether the Department of Personal and Training has incorporated any changes or not. A candidate should always be cautious about his eligibility and should keenly read the notification. A candidate should always keep ready and up with date all the certificates to prove eligibility.