Exam overview
- Qualification
- A bachelor degree with at least one of animal husbandry and veterinary science, botany, chemistry, geology, mathematics, physics, statistics or zoology, or a bachelor degree in agriculture, forestry or engineering from a recognised university.
- Age limit
- Same window as the Civil Services notice: at least 21 and under 32 years for General candidates on the date in the notice, six attempts as the baseline, with relaxations.
- Selection process
- Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination as the first stage, then the Indian Forest Service (Main) written examination, then a personality test.
At a glance
Conducting body: Union Public Service Commission
Qualification: A bachelor degree with at least one of animal husbandry and veterinary science, botany, chemistry, geology, mathematics, physics, statistics or zoology, or a bachelor degree in agriculture, forestry or engineering from a recognised university.
Age limit: Same window as the Civil Services notice: at least 21 and under 32 years for General candidates on the date in the notice, six attempts as the baseline, with relaxations.
Selection: Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination as the first stage, then the Indian Forest Service (Main) written examination, then a personality test.
Stages to expect
Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination.
Indian Forest Service (Main) written examination.
Personality test.
How to prepare
Because the first stage is shared with the Civil Services examination, prepare the objective papers as a civil services aspirant would and then build your optional subjects for the forest service Main.
Choose Main subjects from your degree background and use previous years papers from the UPSC site to judge depth.
Before you apply
Every cycle publishes its own notice, and it overrides anything summarised here. Save the notice, check its reference and any corrigendum, confirm qualification and age dates, and apply only through the official portal. No one can promise you a selection, so avoid anyone who does.
Official sources
Editorial review: 24 October 2026. This is an evergreen guide, not a recruitment notification. Dates, fees, vacancy numbers and cut-offs change every cycle, so check the current official notice.
