Home » Career Guidance » Insights on Cracking UPSC with the Right Optional Subject
With over 10 lakh applicants in a year, the IAS Exam is considered one of the most preferred government examinations among candidates.
As demanding as its preparations are the end results are worth every blood and sweat shed. And that is why students give their full dedication and time to prepare for this exam. But just preparing for UPSC exams is not enough, as a candidate, you need to know all about the optional subject in UPSC, the best subject for you to choose and much more.
Now, the question arises of how you are going to select your optional subject. You will get all the answers related to selecting UPSC optional subjects. This will make your decision easy and you can concentrate on your preparations. So, without any further delays let’s get started.
According to the latest UPSC exam syllabus, there are 48 UPSC optional subjects from which the candidate can choose one subject. Each optional subject in UPSC comprises two papers (Paper I and Paper II) carrying 250 marks each, making it a total of 500 marks.
Hence, the weightage of the optional paper, i.e., 500 marks out of the total 2025 marks, makes the optional subject about 25% of the final score. Therefore, the choice of UPSC’s main optional subject is extremely crucial. You have to choose an alternative subject in which you believe you can score high.
Some subjects are more scoring than others. However, if we look widely, IAS toppers usually score more than 320 in both technical and non-technical subjects. Some subjects are perceived as low-scoring because candidates cannot put in the requisite effort or they have selected an optional subject for UPSC that isn’t the right fit for them.
Technical subjects like Mathematics can fetch you high marks as the answers in it are absolute. Basically, unlike humanities subjects, the examiner’s biases or preferences don’t impact much. However, non-technical subjects, especially those which overlap with the General Studies syllabus, give you more preparation time and reading material overall, thereby helping you prepare well for the IAS Mains exam.
Certain factors can help you decide on the best optional subject in UPSC. Before deciding on an optional subject, a candidate must ask themselves the following questions-
Once you get the answers to the above questions, you can make the right choice in selecting the best optional subjects.
Also Read: Amazing Tips for IAS Preparation at Home
Source: BYJU’S
Agriculture |
Animal Husbandry & Vet Science |
Anthropology |
Manipuri |
Botany |
Chemistry |
Civil Engineering |
Marathi |
Commerce |
Economics |
Electrical Engineering |
Nepali |
Geography |
Geology |
History |
Oriya |
Philosophy |
Political Science |
Psychology |
Punjabi |
Public Administration |
Physics |
Sociology |
Sanskrit |
Law |
Maths |
Management |
Santhali |
Medical Science |
Statistics |
Mechanical |
Sindhi |
Zoology |
Assamese |
Bengali |
Tamil |
Bodo |
Hindi |
Konkani |
Telugu |
Dogri |
Kannada |
Maithili |
Urdu |
Gujarati |
Kashmiri |
Malayalam |
English |
Here is the UPSC optional subjects list which is the popular choice among IAS aspirants from both technical and non-technical fields. Because of the high overlap with General Studies papers or other sections of the UPSC exam, these subjects can appear to be the right choice.
Subjects in like Economics, Philosophy, and Agriculture are also good choices for optional subjects in UPSC.
For a few people who have worked in a big company, Public Administration is a great choice and in fact, it has been the most chosen option by working aspirants or the people who have worked in the past. Medical students may settle on Medical Science, Zoology or Anthropology as these papers are related to their field.
Out of the available options, Medical Science is a natural choice. There have been several IAS toppers with a medical background who took medical science as their optional subject in UPSC.
To some extent, subjects like Zoology, Animal Husbandry, and Veterinary Science can also be considered. However, if a candidate from a medical background isn’t willing to opt for medical science as the choice for the optional subject, then non-technical subjects that have some overlap with GS become their choice.
A lot of candidates from engineering backgrounds perform well in the IAS exams. However, if a candidate wants to choose an optional subject based on their previous knowledge, then there are comparatively lesser options, namely Civil, Mechanical and Electrical engineering.
Obviously, no one would prefer to opt for a technical subject unless one studied the same at the graduate level. Subjects like Maths, Physics and Chemistry can also be considered. These UPSC optional subjects reduce the subjectivity in marking to some extent, but the preparation time and effort are huge. So, it’s always better to go through the IAS syllabus and past question papers first.
Also Read: Difference between IAS and IES | Guide to UPSC
After considering the latest UPSC syllabus and recent IAS results, the top 10 optional subjects in UPSC can be listed as follows:
1. Sociology
2. Agriculture
3. Medical Science
4. Literature
5. Anthropology
6. Public Administration
7. Psychology
8. Law
9. Geography
10. History
We know that the UPSC exam is conducted in three phases. While each phase has its own different approaches, the toughest one to crack for many is the UPSC Prelims.
The Prelims consist of two examinations – General Studies I and II, which are also known as CSAT or the Civil Services Aptitude Test. These exams test the general knowledge of candidates in the different fields of Math, Science, and English.
Due to its complicated questions, UPSC Prelims are considered to be one of the toughest entrance exams in the country. Therefore, students work hard to get through UPSC Prelims. However, if you heed the following steps, you can have a better chance of cracking the IAS exam.
Also read about IAS Exam Syllabus, Dates, Admit Card and Result.
A student cannot excel in an exam if they do not know what the exam contains. While it is important to know the type of examination, it is equally important to understand the topics that can be covered within the examination.
The UPSC releases a document on their website consisting of all this information, including the syllabus for the exam, the type and format of the paper, and even the schedule. Students must also understand the eligibility criteria well before starting their preparations.
All of this is categorised as the pre-preparation for the examinations. This must be done as the first step so that the student is not left confused on, or a few days before the exams about these small details. Thus, starting with these important details lets you move through the preparation journey in a more systematic and organised manner.
After completing step 1, you must be aware of the syllabus and the format of the papers. With this knowledge, you can begin your actual studies for the exams. The easiest method of studying is picking up your old schoolbooks. All the syllabi for the UPSC exams can be studied from the NCERT books.
If you are unable to find your old schoolbooks, then you can download them for free. While reading, you may remember most of the concepts, however, you must go over them twice to better prepare yourself.
Additionally, you need to start reading the latest news. The majority of questions in the General CSAT exams come from current events.
Watching YouTube videos on topics of History and Science can also help students better prepare for the exams. There are many YouTube channels that give UPSC coaching.
One of the habits we leave after we complete our schooling is learning by writing. While many do it in school, after it ends, people focus more on glazing through the contents of a book in order to memorize it. While this may work in schools, for the UPSC examinations, you must practice by writing.
Writing helps you learn a particular topic twice over – once when you read it out loud and once when you write it. But, more importantly, it psychologically embeds the topic in your mind. Thus, when you are done through your first round of glancing over the books, you must find your old notebooks and begin penning down your subject matter.
After you have prepared yourself well for the exam, you must take many practice exams. There are many websites that will provide you with past exam question papers for you to attempt. This step is crucial in your preparation as it helps you understand what a real exam would be like.
You must take it with honesty and stick to the time limits. This will not only help you in managing your time better, but it will also help you understand your mistakes and calm your nerves for the final paper. You can more about it on UPSC Exams.
Choosing the best optional subject for UPSC is entirely your decision. Only an aspirant knows their strengths, weakness, taste, and availability of study materials. Therefore, you can follow the process recommended by us and choose what suits you best.
Serving your nation in any way is a dream of every Indian, by becoming a civil officer after clearing your UPSC exams you get a chance to do so. But to be able to pass your exams with flying colours you need to know all about exam patterns, optional subjects in UPSC, scoring, syllabus etc.
And now that you know what are the best optional subject in UPSC and how you can choose the ones which are the right fit for you; you can make your decision easily. So, without any further delay start preparing to ace your IAS exam.
Evaluate numerous career choices to choose the right career path for yourself. Dive in to our guide on Career Advice.
The best optional subject in UPSC is the one that suits your interests and aptitude. You should opt for an optional subject that will help you achieve success. Some of the best subjects are History, Geography, Economics, Political Science, and Sociology.
The 26 optional subjects in UPSC are:
1. Anthropology
2. Agriculture
3. Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science
4. Botany
5. Chemistry
6. Civil Engineering
7. Commerce
8. Economics
9. Electrical Engineering
10. Geography
11. Geology
12. Indian History
13. Law
14. Mathematics
15. Management
16. Mechanical Engineering
17. Medical Science
18. Philosophy
19. Physics
20. Political Science
21. Psychology
22. Public Administration
23. Sociology
24. Statistics
25. Zoology
26. Literature of any languages
Some of the easiest UPSC optional subjects are:
1. History
2. Geography
3. Public Administration
4. Political Science
5. Sociology
6. Philosophy
7. Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science
8. Geology
9. Civil Engineering
10. Mechanical Engineering
11. Agriculture
Most of the candidates who have scored highest mostly prefer these optional subjects in UPSC. But the candidate should give preference to the subjects of his/her interest.
There are 48 optional subjects in UPSC out of which one subject can be chosen for both Paper I and Paper II. Both the papers are 250 marks each. The optional subject syllabus is of graduation level. Candidates can choose an elective subject depending on their graduation degree or subject in which they are interested.
The five compulsory subjects are:
1. General Studies
2. Essay
3. English
4. Indian Language
General Studies consists of four papers of 250 marks each. The essay is of 250 marks where the candidate has the option to choose any language as the medium. Apart from these, English and other Indian language paper carry 300 marks each. All the candidates will have to give these five compulsory subjects as the qualifying examination in addition to the optional subjects.
Philosophy is one of the highest scoring subjects in UPSC as its syllabus is less as compared to other subjects. Apart from this, Sociology and Public Administration are also scoring subjects. But scoring the highest in UPSC also depends on the candidate’s interest in the subject and how familiar they are with it.
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Chegg India does not ask for money to offer any opportunity with the company. We request you to be vigilant before sharing your personal and financial information with any third party. Beware of fraudulent activities claiming affiliation with our company and promising monetary rewards or benefits. Chegg India shall not be responsible for any losses resulting from such activities.