From our research
What this interview looks like
The Personality Test carries 275 of the 2025 marks in the final merit list, with no minimum qualifying marks, so it typically decides service and cadre. A board of about five members, chaired by a UPSC Member, interviews each candidate for roughly 25 to 30 minutes at Dholpur House, New Delhi. The chairperson opens from the Detailed Application Form: name, home district and state, education, work experience, gaps, optional subject, hobbies and service preference. Members then take turns on current affairs and policy, administrative and ethical situations, and the candidate's hobbies and motivation, often arguing the opposite side to test balance. The candidate may answer in English or in any language in the Eighth Schedule. ExamPilot compresses the board into a 20-minute mock: DAF opening, current affairs and governance, an administrative dilemma, hobbies and motivation, and a closing, personalised to the profile you choose and scored on clarity of thought, awareness, integrity, communication and motivation.
Choose your post
3 posts available
Each post has its own panel, rounds and subject list.
What to expect
5 rounds, one after another
A board led by a chairperson with members taking turns, mirroring the UPSC Personality Test. Opens from the candidate's DAF (home state, education, work, hobbies, optional subject), then a member probes current affairs and policy with a demand for balanced views, a member poses an administrative ethics dilemma, and a member explores hobbies, motivation and service preference. The board assesses personality, balance and judgement, not recall.
- Round 1
Opening from the DAF
· 4:00Set a courteous, unhurried tone and open the candidate's profile as the real board does: home district and state, education, work experience, gap years, optional subject and service preference. Form a first view of composure and honesty.
Shri Devendra Singh Rathore, IAS (Retd.)2–3 questionsup to 1 follow-up each - Round 2
Current affairs & governance
· 5:00Test awareness of national and international developments and governance debates linked to the candidate's background, and whether they can hold a balanced, reasoned view when the opposite side is put to them.
Smt. Vandana Krishnamurthy, IAS (Retd.)3–4 questionsup to 2 follow-ups each - Round 3
Ethics & administrative situations
· 5:00Assess integrity and practical judgement in a district administration dilemma: political pressure, disaster response, corruption, communal tension or a conflict between rules and compassion.
Dr. Farhan Qureshi2–2 questionsup to 2 follow-ups each - Round 4
Hobbies, motivation & service preference
· 4:00Explore a declared hobby in genuine depth, the candidate's motivation for the civil services and their service preference, and look for leadership indicators and realism about the first posting.
Smt. Vandana Krishnamurthy, IAS (Retd.)2–3 questionsup to 1 follow-up each - Round 5
Closing
· 2:00Close the board courteously, as the UPSC does, without feedback or hints about performance.
Shri Devendra Singh Rathore, IAS (Retd.)1–1 questions
Meet the panel
Your AI interviewers
Distinct personas, voices and questioning styles, briefed on this interview.
Shri Devendra Singh Rathore, IAS (Retd.)
ChairChairperson
Former Secretary to Government of India; UPSC-style board chairperson
Measured, senior, tests balance and composure.
Male voice · 2 languages
Smt. Vandana Krishnamurthy, IAS (Retd.)
External member
Former Chief Secretary of a state; served as District Collector in two districts; member on civil-services boards
Warm but exacting, field-rooted, allergic to slogans.
Female voice · 4 languages
Dr. Farhan Qureshi
Psychologist
Educational psychologist & inclusive-education expert
Calm, observant, empathetic.
Male voice · 3 languages
Prof. Arvind Deshpande
External member
Professor of economics and public policy; former member of a central finance commission's research team; external member on civil-services boards
Analytical, soft-spoken, probes reasoning and numbers.
Male voice · 4 languages
Languages
Answer in the language you think in
Interviewers speak and understand each language natively. Switch mid-answer if you like.
- English
- हिंदीHindi
How scoring works
A report you can act on
Every round is scored on the rubric
Each interviewer scores only the criteria their round covers. Weights add up to your overall score out of 100.
Only what you actually said counts
Feedback quotes your own answers. Rounds you skip show as “Not assessed” rather than a zero.
Communication is always measured
Fluency, clarity, confidence and structure are tracked across the whole interview, in any language.
Pass mark, then a plan
You see the pass mark for this interview, your gaps, and the courses that close them fastest.
Scored on
- Clarity of thought & balance25%
Structured, balanced views; distinguishes fact from opinion; sees more than one side of a policy question; avoids extreme or partisan positions; can hold a view under counter-argument without becoming rigid.
- Awareness & depth25%
Grasp of current affairs, home state, academic background and DAF entries, with genuine depth on follow-ups rather than headline recall.
- Integrity & situational judgement20%
Ethical reasoning, honesty under pressure, administrative practicality: knows the rules, the people and the sequence of actions in a district situation.
- Communication & composure20%
Concise expression, listening, poise when challenged, admits not knowing gracefully, does not bluff or ramble.
- Leadership & motivation for service10%
Genuine, specific motivation for public service; service-preference reasoning; evidence of initiative, teamwork and taking responsibility.
Pass mark 60 / 100 · Civil services personality test — UPSC-style board
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