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UPSC Indian Forest Service (IFoS)

Evidence status: ⚪ unverified. The scheme, marks, eligibility, fees and syllabus on this page were last checked on 2026-05-22. Always read the current notice before you apply or pay a fee.

The Indian Forest Service is recruited by the UPSC in two stages: the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination runs as the screening test, and the Indian Forest Service (Main) Examination — written papers plus an interview — decides the final merit. The 2026 notification expects about 80 vacancies (33 unreserved, 21 OBC, 12 SC, 8 EWS, 6 ST), a number liable to change.

At a glance
Conducted by Union Public Service Commission
Stages CSE Preliminary (screening) → IFoS Main (6 written papers) → Personality Test
Screening CSE Prelims: two objective papers of 200 marks each. Paper II (CSAT) is qualifying at 33%; Paper I sets the cut-off. Prelims marks carry no weight in the final merit. About 12–13 times the vacancies reach the Main exam, on a separate IFoS list drawn from the shared CSE candidates
Final merit Main written 1400 + interview 300 = 1700
Age (as on 1 August 2026) 21–32 years (born 2 August 1994 – 1 August 2005); upper limit relaxable for SC/ST/OBC/defence/ex-servicemen/PwBD as per the notice
Qualification A Bachelor's degree with at least one of Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science, Botany, Chemistry, Geology, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, Zoology — or a Bachelor's degree in Agriculture, Forestry or Engineering
Attempts 6 for all other candidates; 9 for OBC and for General/EWS candidates with benchmark disability; no limit for SC/ST
Fee Rs 100 (Prelims) + Rs 200 (Main); female, SC, ST and PwBD candidates pay nothing

Official sources

Exam pattern

Preliminary (screening only). Two objective papers of 200 marks each, two hours each. Both papers are set in Hindi and English, and a candidate must sit both — skipping a paper disqualifies the candidature.

Paper Marks Role
General Studies Paper I 200 Decides the screening cut-off
General Studies Paper II (CSAT) 200 Qualifying only — 33% needed

Each wrong answer costs one-third of the marks assigned to that question; a blank answer costs nothing. The Commission admits about twelve to thirteen times the vacancies to the Main examination, drawing a separate IFoS list from the candidates who sat the shared CSE Prelims.

Main (written). Six conventional (essay-type) papers, three hours each, answered in English only.

Paper Marks
Paper I: General English 300
Paper II: General Knowledge 300
Papers III–VI: two optional subjects, two papers each 4 × 200 = 800

The written papers total 1400, and the Commission may fix qualifying marks in any paper. Candidates who clear the written stage are summoned for the Personality Test (interview) of 300 marks, with no minimum qualifying marks; about twice the vacancies are called. Final ranking is on written + interview = 1700. Ties are broken first on the two common papers (General English and General Knowledge) plus the interview together, then on the two common papers alone, and finally in favour of the older candidate.

Syllabus

Preliminary (shared with the CSE): Paper I covers current events, Indian history and the national movement, Indian and world geography, Indian polity and governance, economic and social development, environmental ecology, biodiversity and climate change, and general science. Paper II (CSAT) covers comprehension, interpersonal and communication skills, logical reasoning and analytical ability, decision-making and problem-solving, general mental ability, and Class-X numeracy and data interpretation. The full syllabi are in Section III of the notification.

Main: General English tests essay writing, comprehension and precis; General Knowledge covers current events, Indian polity, Indian history and geography. The standard of these two papers is that of a science or engineering graduate. Each candidate then offers two optional subjects from the 14-subject list:

Agriculture · Agricultural Engineering · Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science · Botany · Chemistry · Chemical Engineering · Civil Engineering · Forestry · Geology · Mathematics · Mechanical Engineering · Physics · Statistics · Zoology

Barred combinations: Agriculture with Agricultural Engineering, Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science, or Forestry; Chemistry with Chemical Engineering; Mathematics with Statistics; and not more than one of the four engineering subjects. Optional papers are set at honours-degree level (bachelor's level for the engineering subjects) with no practical examination; each paper has eight questions in two parts, of which five are to be attempted with one compulsory question in each part.

How to prepare (free, in order)

  1. Use the CSE Prelims as your first target. IFoS entry is the same screening test as Civil Services, so build the general-studies base from NCERT Class 6–12 and add daily current affairs from PIB. Do not treat CSAT as optional: the 33% floor eliminates candidates every year even though the paper is only qualifying.
  2. Choose your two optionals from degree subjects you have already studied. Check the barred combinations before you commit — one wrong pair can invalidate the form.
  3. Train the answer format, not just the content. Four of the six Main papers are optional-subject papers, and every paper is three hours of structured English writing; begin timed answer-writing early rather than at the end.
  4. Practise on the official papers. UPSC publishes past question papers free; solve them under time and score yourself with the one-third negative marking.

Free resources