PCS Officer Salary, Posts and State PSC Exam Guide

If you want an officer's job in your own state, the State PCS route is the one to study. Students ask me two things first: what is the pcs officer salary, and how hard is the exam. This page answers both in plain words, along with posts, eligibility, the exam stages and how to prepare.

PCS stands for Provincial Civil Service, now usually called State Civil Service. Every state has its own Public Service Commission (PSC) that runs a yearly combined exam to fill posts like SDM, DSP, Block Development Officer and Tehsildar. So when people say "pcs exam" or "psc exam", they mean this state level civil services exam.

What is PCS exam and who conducts it

The PCS exam is the state version of the UPSC Civil Services exam. UPSC picks officers for the whole country, like the IAS and IPS. A state PSC picks officers for one state only. You work in that state for your whole career, close to home, in your own language.

Each commission gives its exam its own name. Here are some of the big ones students search for:

Many other states, like Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, West Bengal, Odisha and Punjab, run a similar exam. Commissions also hold smaller exams for single departments. For example, BPSC has run a separate exam for Assistant Education Development Officer (AEDO). The bpsc aedo exam pattern is not the same as the CCE pattern, so read that notice on its own.

Posts you can get through a state PCS exam

One exam fills many posts. Your rank and your choice of posts decide where you land. The exact list changes each cycle and is printed in the "details of posts" part of the notification. The posts that usually draw the most interest are:

• Deputy Collector / SDM (Sub Divisional Magistrate): runs a sub division, handles land records, law and order, elections and disaster relief.
• Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP): a police officer post at the circle or sub division level.
• Block Development Officer (BDO): runs rural schemes in a block, works with gram panchayats.
• Tehsildar and Naib Tehsildar: revenue officers for a tehsil, deal with land, mutation, certificates.
• Commercial tax, treasury, cooperative, labour, education and other department officers.

Post names differ by state. In Rajasthan the top post is in the Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS). In Karnataka it is the Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS). In Haryana it is the Haryana Civil Service (HCS).

PCS exam eligibility and age limit

The basic pcs exam eligibility is similar across states, but the details are not.

• Qualification: a bachelor's degree in any subject from a recognised university. Final year students can apply in some states and not in others. A few posts ask for a specific degree, for example law or commerce for some posts.
• Nationality: Indian citizen. Reservation and some age relaxation are usually only for residents (domicile) of that state.
• Age limit: most states keep the lower limit around 21 years. The upper limit for the general category varies a lot by state. For example, BPSC says its age limits for the general category vary from 21 to 37 years depending on the post.
• Relaxation: extra years are given to SC, ST, OBC, women (in some states), persons with disability, ex servicemen and state government employees. The number of years is set by each state.

Because the cut off date and relaxation change each cycle, check your exact age with the tool below and then match it with the notification.

For a state by state view of age rules, see our page on age limit for govt jobs.

PCS exam pattern and syllabus

Almost every state uses three stages. Each stage has to be cleared to reach the next.

UP PCS exam pattern: the uppsc pcs exam pattern follows this same three stage model. In recent cycles the prelims has had a general studies paper and an aptitude paper (CSAT) that is only qualifying, and the mains has had General Hindi, Essay and several General Studies papers, including papers on Uttar Pradesh. UPPSC has changed its scheme before, so take the paper list and marks from the latest notification on its website.

RAS exam pattern: RPSC also uses prelims, mains and interview, with Rajasthan history, culture and geography given strong weight in the papers.

MPSC exam pattern: MPSC has revised its State Services scheme in recent cycles. Read the latest MPSC notice for the paper list, marks and the MPSC exam age limit.

KAS exam syllabus: KPSC has its own syllabus with Karnataka specific topics, and language papers are part of the scheme. Download the current KAS syllabus from the KPSC website.

The common pcs exam syllabus covers Indian history, the freedom movement, Indian and world geography, polity and the Constitution, economy, science, environment, current affairs, and the history, geography and economy of your state. The state portion is what makes a PSC paper different from UPSC.

PCS officer salary: SDM, Tehsildar and BDO pay

Here is the honest answer on pcs officer salary: there is no single figure, because each state has its own pay matrix, its own DA and its own allowances. Many states have moved to a pay matrix built on the same levels as the 7th CPC, so a PCS post is shown as "Level 8" or "Level 10" and so on. The notification lists the pay scale against every post.

What I can tell you with confidence:

• SDM salary: the sub divisional magistrate salary is the one most students ask about. The Deputy Collector or SDM post is usually on the highest scale offered by the exam. When students ask "sdm ki salary kitni hoti hai", the useful answer is to check the pay level printed against Deputy Collector in your state's notice and read it against the pay matrix. For comparison, an IAS officer starts at central Level 10, basic pay ₹56,100.
• Tehsildar salary (also spelt tahsildar salary) and naib tehsildar salary: these posts sit lower than SDM, so their starting basic is lower. In some states the Tehsildar post is filled by promotion, not through the exam.
• BDO salary: usually in between, close to the Deputy Collector scale in some states and lower in others. BDO salary in Bihar and BDO salary in UP are set by those state governments.

Every PCS salary has the same parts: basic pay, dearness allowance (DA, a percentage of basic set by the state), house rent allowance (HRA, based on the city class), travel or conveyance allowance, and for many posts a government vehicle and official housing. Deductions include NPS or the state pension scheme, GPF where it applies, professional tax in some states and income tax. To understand each part, read salary and allowances explained, or use the salary calculator with your state's basic pay.

Selection process, training and posting

After prelims, a fixed multiple of the number of vacancies is called for mains, and a smaller multiple for interview. Each state sets its own ratio in the notification. The final list is made on mains plus interview marks. You fill a post preference form, and posts are given by rank, category and preference.

Selected officers go through training at the state's administrative training institute, followed by field training in a district. Most posts have a probation period of about two years. During probation you learn revenue law, office work, accounts and field work under senior officers.

Promotions and career growth

A Deputy Collector usually moves to Additional District Magistrate and similar senior posts over time. A strong part of the PCS career is promotion to the IAS: a share of IAS posts in each state cadre is filled by promoting senior State Civil Service officers. DSPs can be promoted to IPS in the same way. The timing depends on vacancies and seniority, so it can take many years.

BDOs, Tehsildars and other officers rise within their own department. Pay rises every year through annual increments, and with each promotion you move to a higher pay level.

How to prepare for the PCS exam

• Start with the official syllabus of your state. Print it and tick topics as you finish them.
• Read NCERT books from class 6 to 12 for history, geography, polity, economy and science. They cover the base for both UPSC and PSC.
• Give extra time to your state: its history, culture, rivers, economy, schemes and current news. This is where many UPSC aspirants lose marks in a PSC paper.
• Solve previous year papers from the commission's website. They show what the commission likes to ask.
• Write answers from the start. Mains is descriptive. Practise one or two answers every day and an essay every week.
• Keep the language paper in mind. Hindi, Marathi, Kannada or another state language paper can decide your rank.

Most serious students prepare for 12 to 24 months. Many prepare for UPSC and PSC together, since the syllabus overlaps a lot. If you are still choosing your path, read our list of government exams and toughest exams in India to compare.

Official website and where to check updates

Each state PSC posts its notification, syllabus, admit cards and results only on its own website. A few you will need: uppsc.up.nic.in for UP, bpsc.bihar.gov.in for Bihar, rpsc.rajasthan.gov.in for Rajasthan, mpsc.gov.in for Maharashtra. The number of posts and the schedule are different in each cycle, so read the newest notice on that site before applying. Those searching for "psc today exam" or "next psc exam" should check the exam calendar on the same website.

If you want a central job instead, look at UPSC EPFO or, for engineers, IES (Engineering Services).