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UPSC CSE Optional Subjects List & Syllabus
UPSC Civil Services Main Exam has two optional papers from one subject only. Paper VI and VII are those two optional subject papers in the UPSC Mains exam. Each optional paper carries 250 marks. Hence, a total of 500 marks for both optional papers of one optional subject can significantly influence the All India Ranking (AIR) of the candidate in the final result.
For our own convenience, the optional Subjects for UPSC CSE can be broadly divided into three categories namely:
- Technical optional subjects
- Non-Technical optional subjects
- Literature optional subjects
UPSC CSE Technical Optional Subjects
There are Sixteen optional subjects that are technical in nature, namely:
- Civil Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
- Medical Science
- Physics
- Chemistry
- Botany
- Zoology
- Geology
- Agriculture
- Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science
- Economics
- Mathematics
- Commerce and Accountancy
- Statistics
- Law
UPSC CSE Non-Technical Optional Subjects
There are Nine optional subjects that are non-technical in nature, namely:
- Geography
- History
- Management
- Philosophy
- Political Science and International Relations (PSIR)
- Public Administration
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Anthropology
UPSC CSE Literature Optional Subjects
The list of twenty three literature optional subjects are as follows:
- Assamese
- Bengali
- Bodo
- Dogri
- Gujarati
- Hindi
- Kannada
- Kashmiri
- Konkani
- Maithili
- Malayalam
- Manipuri
- Marathi
- Nepali
- Oriya
CSE Optional Subjects Available in NEXT IAS
Currently, there are seven optional subjects being taught in NEXT IAS institute namely Geography, History, Economics, Political Science and International Relations (PSIR), Sociology, Anthropology and Mathematics.
Learn more about the optional foundation courses for UPSC civil services examination offered by NEXT IAS.
CSE Mains Optional Subjects Previous Year Question (PYQ) Papers
UPSC Mains optional subjects PYQ papers (2013–2025) reveal pattern consistency across 48 choices, with 250 marks per paper (500 total). Popular optionals like Geography, Anthropology, and PSIR show 60-70% questions from static syllabus, 30% analytical. Low-competition subjects like Statistics (0-5% success) emphasize numericals from past 10 years' repeats. Solving PYQs boosts answer-writing precision by 25–30% for toppers.
To understand the optional paper exam process in a better way, have a look at the UPSC Mains optional previous year questions (PYQs). You can follow the link below.
FAQs
What is the UPSC CSE optional syllabus?
The UPSC optional syllabus is the detailed topic list for the one subject which a candidate chooses for the Mains exam. It has two papers: Paper I & II of 250 marks each totalling 500 marks.
How many optional subjects are available in the UPSC Civil Service exam (CSE)?
There are 48 UPSC CSE optional subjects which include 25 core subjects such as History, Geography, PSIR, Sociology, Anthropology and 23 literature optional subjects of various Indian languages mentioned in 8th schedule of the Indian Constitution.
Where can I download the official optional syllabus?
You can download PDFs of all 48 optional subjects from the UPSC official website and numerous coaching portals that provide subject-wise links at one place.
