What UKPSC Combined State Civil Services is
The Combined State and Upper Subordinate Services Examination, conducted by the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission, recruits into Uttarakhand’s own administrative and allied services: Provincial Civil Service, Provincial Police Service and other Group A and Group B posts within the state government. It uses one combined process and merit list to allocate multiple services, with your rank and preference order deciding your allotment.
Every state runs its own version of this exam under its own Public Service Commission. UKPSC’s Combined State Civil Services exam is Uttarakhand’s, and a candidate applying for a different state’s civil services should look up that state’s own commission rather than treating this pattern as identical everywhere, though the general shape (Preliminary, Main, Interview) is common across most state PCS exams.
Who can apply
A bachelor’s degree in any discipline from a recognised university is the academic requirement; a final year student may apply provisionally. The general age band is 21 to 42 years, reckoned as on 1 July of the examination year, with relaxations of 3 years for EWS and 5 years for OBC, SC and ST candidates, plus additional relaxation for persons with disability and ex-servicemen, as per Uttarakhand government rules.
How the exam runs
The Preliminary Examination is an objective test of two papers, General Studies and CSAT, with CSAT qualifying only, which produces the ranking for advancing to the Main Examination.
The Main Examination is a descriptive written exam of seven papers covering General Studies, Hindi and Essay, and one optional subject paper the candidate chooses. This differs from UPSC CSE’s Main Examination in language emphasis and specific paper structure, so preparation for one is not a direct substitute for the other even though both share a similar overall shape.
Candidates who clear the Main Examination sit an Interview conducted by UKPSC. The final rank combines Main Examination marks and Interview marks.
Preparing the application
UKPSC specifies exact photograph and signature requirements in each notification rather than a fixed year to year standard, so check the current notification’s dimensions and file size before uploading. The tools on this site can resize your photograph to whatever specific target the notification states.
On exam day
Arrive at least an hour before the reporting time on your admit card, with the printed admit card, a government photo identification matching the name and photo on the admit card, one recent passport size photograph, and a black ballpoint pen for the OMR sheet. No electronic devices are permitted, and only material issued by the centre may be used during the exam.
The official UKPSC website, linked above, carries the current notification, exact age requirements, syllabus and schedule for the cycle you are applying to.