UPSC CSE Prelims 2023: The Union Public Service (UPSC) successfully conducted the UPSC IAS Prelims exam on May 28. The UPSC CSE Prelims 2023 exam has been held at 79 exam centers across the country. The preliminary exam was taken by above 12 lakh candidates. The pen and paper-based exam was conducted in two sessions — from 9:30 am to 11:30 am and 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm. The UPSC 2023 prelims paper 1 ( General Studies) exam was conducted in the forenoon shift while the UPSC CSAT paper was conducted in the afternoon shift.
The majority of the candidates who have appeared in the UPSC CSE prelims exam said that UPSC prelims GS were based on a new paper pattern and completely different from previous years. Most of the students have highlighted that the overall exam was moderately difficult as questions were based on the limited use of elimination methods.
UPSC 2023 Prelims: Answer Key | Question Paper | Exam Analysis | Student Reaction | Expected Cut off | Paper Weighatge
UPSC Prelims 2023 Answer Key: Candidates who have appeared in the prelim exam can download the UPSC prelims answer key released by various coaching institutes. The UPSC IAS Prelims 2023 answer key is available to download for both paper prelims paper 1 ( General Studies) and UPSC CSAT Paper 2.
UPSC answer key helps candidates to match their responses with correct answers for the questions asked in the exam. Based on the number of correct and incorrect answers, candidates can calculate the score they can expect in the UPSC Prelims exam. Candidates can below the UPSC prelims marking scheme to calculate their scores.
UPSC Prelims 2023 Answer Key: How to calculate the score
UPSC Prelims marking scheme
|
Paper |
Type |
No. of questions |
Marks |
Duration |
Negative Marks |
|
General Studies I |
Objective |
100 |
2*100 = 200 |
2 hours |
0.66 |
|
General Studies II(CSAT) |
Objective |
80 |
2.5*80 = 200 |
2 hours |
0.83 |
UPSC Prelims Score Calculation Methods
|
Paper 1 = +2 marks per question |
|
Paper 2 = +2.5 marks per question |
|
Negative marking: One-third of marks allotted to each question |
|
UPSC Prelims Marks = Number of Correct answers X marks allotted for each question – Number of Incorrect answers X marks allotted for each question. UPSC Paper II CSAT = Qualifying in nature (Only 33% marks required to qualify) |
UPSC 2023 Prelims 2023 Question Paper: Download SET A | B | C | D
The UPSC Prelims 2023 question is also available to download. Candidates who have appeared in the exam can download UPSC 2023 questions Paper for all sets provided in the exam. A total of four sets of question paper was provided during the exam. Candidates can download UPSC Questions Paper 2023 for sets A, B, C, and D to know analysis and subject-wise weightage.
UPSC Prelims 2023 Exam Analysis Paper 1: Overall Analysis of UPSC GS Paper
UPSC Prelims GS Paper 1 was a 2 hour with 100 multiple-choice questions held in the morning session. The questions in the segment covered a wide range of topics, including General Knowledge, History, Polity, Economics, Geography, and Current Affairs. The candidates who appeared in the exam said that the difficulty level of the paper was moderate to difficult, with a few questions that were considered to be very difficult. The overall consensus among the candidates was that the paper was challenging but fair as per UPSC Analysis 2023.
This year UPSC has surprised students with an Elimination based question pattern which increased the difficulty of questions. Current affairs dominated the Paper I segment of the UPSC prelims exam held on May 28. The exam was of moderate difficulty, with most questions being based on current affairs. The following is a subject-wise analysis of the exam:
- History: The history section was moderate, with a good mix of questions from ancient, medieval, and modern history.
- Political Science: The political science section was also moderate, with questions from a variety of topics, including Indian government and politics, international relations, and public administration.
- Economics: The economics section was slightly more difficult than the other sections, with a focus on current economic issues.
- Geography: The geography section was relatively easy, with questions on a variety of topics, including physical geography, human geography, and economic geography.
- Science and Technology: The science and technology section was slightly more difficult than the geography section, with questions on a variety of topics, including physics, chemistry, biology, and environmental science.
- Comprehension: The comprehension section was relatively easy, with questions on a variety of topics, including current affairs, history, and literature.
UPSC Prelims 2023 Exam Analysis Paper 2: Overall Analysis of UPSC CSAT Paper
UPSC Prelims CSAT Paper 2 was a 2-hour, 100-question paper that tested the candidate’s analytical and reasoning skills. The paper was divided into two sections: Comprehension and Logical Reasoning. The majority of candidates who appeared in the UPSC prelims exams found the difficulty level of the paper was moderate, with a few questions that were considered to be difficult. The overall consensus among the candidates was that the paper was challenging but fair.
UPSC CSE Prelims 2023: How students reacted to UPSC Prelims Exam Paper I and Paper 2
The majority of students who appeared in the preliminary exam said the overall exam was moderately difficult. Rabi a resident of Bihar, who took the exam for the second time said “The GS Paper was tough and questions were complicated as they are not directly based on the concepts and topics.”
Saurav who appeared for the first time in the UPSC prelims exam was surprised by the question difficulty level. He appeared in the exam from Lucknow and said “ The overall paper has been revised and the new paper pattern has surprised me. The question was tough as compared to previous years also questions cannot be solved easily through elimination methods.”
UPSC CSE Prelims 2023: Expected Cut off is Lower as the exam was difficult
UPSC prelims exam 203 was termed as difficult therefore experts have predicted that the overall cut-off score to be on the lower side. It is expected that the UPSC Prelims cutoff score for the general category will be between 90-95 marks. Candidates can check below the category-wise expected cutoff score of UPSC IAS Prelims 2023.
UPSC IAS Expected Cut Off 2023: General, OBC, SC and ST candidates
|
Category |
UPSC Cut Off 2023 (Expected) |
|
General |
94±5 |
|
EWS |
83±5 |
|
OBC |
91±5 |
|
SC |
79±5 |
|
ST |
75±5 |
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) organizes the Civil Services Examination (CSE) on May 28 for the recruitment of Group A and Group B Officers posts. UPSC CSE 2023 notification was released on February 1 for 1255 Posts out of which 1105 for CSE & 150 for IFS.
