The Odisha Public Service Commission conducts the Odisha Administrative Services (OAS) examination. The OAS prelims examination was conducted on 16 October 2022. The second stage of the Odisha Administrative Services examination will be held in January 2023.
Aspirants who wish to take the forthcoming OAS examination should go through the exam pattern, OPSC syllabus and previous years’ question papers before starting their preparation for the examination.
All the important stages and exam pattern of the OPSC OAS examination is given below.
Scheme of the OPSC Odisha Administrative Services Exam
The Odisha Administrative Services examination consists of three stages, namely:
- Preliminary examination
- Main examination
- Personality test/interview
More information regarding all three stages is given below.
OPSC OAS Preliminary Examination
The preliminary examination is a screening test. It contains two papers, i.e., General Studies Paper 1 and General Studies Paper 2. Both papers comprise multiple-choice questions. There is a penalty for incorrect answers. One-fourth of the marks assigned to the question will be deducted for every wrong answer. The duration of the exams, maximum marks, etc., are given in the table below.
| OPSC OAS Preliminary Examination Pattern | |||
| S.No. | Name of the Paper | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| 1 | General Studies-Paper I | 200 | 2 hours |
| 2 | General Studies-Paper-II | 200 | 2 hours |
OPSC OAS Main Examination
The candidates who pass the OAS preliminary examination qualify for the OAS main examination. The main exam is a very important phase of the OAS examination, as marks scored in this phase play a primary role in determining the rank of the candidate in the merit list.
The OPSC OAS main exam consists of 9 papers, the details of which are given below.
- Paper I – Odia language
- Paper II – English
- Paper III – English essay
- Paper IV – General Studies I
- Paper V – General Studies II
- Paper VI, VII, VIII, IX – Optional Papers
Among the 9 papers, 5 are compulsory papers, whereas 4 papers VI, VII, VIII and IX are optional in nature. When it comes to compulsory papers, it is common for all aspirants. However, while selecting optional papers, aspirants can choose any subject from the list of optional papers provided in the official notification. There are certain combinations of subjects that cannot be selected by aspirants. More information regarding this is given in the next section.
Scheme of the OPSC OAS Compulsory Papers
The exam pattern of the compulsory subjects, along with the duration and maximum marks, is given in the table below.
| Scheme of the OPSC OAS Compulsory Papers | |||
| Name of the Paper | Name of the Subject | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| Paper I | Odia Language | 300 Marks | 3 hours |
| Paper II | English Language | 300 Marks | 3 hours |
| Paper III | English Essay | 200 Marks | 3 hours |
| Paper IV | GS I | 300 Marks | 3 hours |
| Paper V | GS II | 300 Marks | 3 hours |
Exam Pattern of Paper I – Odia Language
Paper 1 is of qualifying nature and is of matriculation level. The exam pattern for paper 1 (Odia Language) is given in the table below.
| Exam Pattern of Paper I – Odia Language | ||
| S.No. | Topics | Marks |
| 1 | Comprehension of a given passage | 30 Marks |
| 2 | Precis writing with a passage of around 1000 words | 40 Marks |
| 3 | Translation from English to Odia | 30 Marks |
| 4 | Grammar, usage and vocabulary | 80 Marks |
| 5 | Short essay of around 1000 words | 100 Marks |
| 6 | Expansion of an idea | 20 Marks |
| Total | 300 Marks | |
Exam Pattern of Paper II – English
Paper 2 (English) is a matriculation-level qualifying paper. The exam pattern for paper 2 (English) is given in the table below.
| Exam Pattern of Paper II – English | ||
| S.No. | Topics | Marks |
| 1 | Comprehension of a given passage | 30 Marks |
| 2 | Precis writing with a passage of around 1000 words | 40 Marks |
| 3 | Translation from Odia to English | 30 Marks |
| 4 | Grammar, usage and vocabulary | 80 Marks |
| 5 | Short essay of around 1000 words | 100 Marks |
| 6 | Expansion of an idea | 20 Marks |
| Total |
300 Marks |
|
Scheme of the OPSC OAS Optional Papers
Candidates have to choose two optional subjects from the list given below. Each optional subject is divided into paper 1 and paper 2. Each paper carries 300 marks. Optional subjects carry a total score of 1200 marks.
The difficulty of the optional subject papers is that of the Honours degree level. However, in the case of law and engineering papers, the level is that of the bachelor’s degree. The exam pattern of the optional papers, duration of the exam and marks are given in the table below.
| Scheme of the OPSC OAS Optional Papers | |||
| Paper
|
Marks | Duration | |
| Optional Subject I | Paper I | 300 | 3 hours |
| Paper II | 300 | 3 hours | |
|
Optional Subject II |
Paper I | 300 | 3 hours |
| Paper II | 300 | 3 hours | |
Optional Subjects for the OPSC OAS Main Examination
A list of optional subjects for the OPSC OAS main examination is given in the table below.
| Optional Subjects for the OPSC OAS Main Examination | ||||
| Geography | Psychology | Chemistry | Mathematics | Civil Engineering |
| Zoology | Physics | Philosophy | Political Science and International Relation | Economics |
| Anthropology | Mechanical Engineering | Fisheries Science | Home Science | Statistics |
| Law | Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science | Commerce & Accountancy | Public Administration | Electrical Engineering |
| Agriculture | Management | Geology | Education | Agricultural Engineering |
| History | Sociology | Forestry | Botany | Indian Language and Literature (any one) – Odia, Hindi, Sanskrit, English, Persian, Urdu |
Candidates are not allowed to opt for the following combinations of optional subjects.
- Odia, Hindi, Persian, Sanskrit, Urdu, English
- Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Agricultural Engineering
- Mathematics & Statistics
- Anthropology & Sociology
- Political Science & International Relations and Public Administration
- Commerce & Accountancy and Management
- Agriculture and Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science
- Management and Public Administration
- Education and Psychology
- Agriculture and Agricultural Engineering
OPSC OAS Personality Test
After the declaration of the OAS main exam results, the shortlisted candidates have to attend the personality test/interview. The candidates who get shortlisted for the personality test will be interviewed by a Board. The interview carries 250 marks. The marks scored in the main exam, and the personality test will eventually determine the rank of the candidate in the final merit list.
Candidates should prepare well for each stage of the OAS examination. The preliminary exam is a screening test, but it is highly competitive in nature. Candidates wishing to appear in the next OPSC OAS examination should regularly visit the official website of the OPSC to get the latest updates about the OAS exam.
The OAS notification is released on the official website of the OPSC. Before applying for the exam, aspirants should carefully go through the notification. Candidates should meticulously follow all the instructions while applying for the OAS examination. Once the application process is completed, and the registration for the exam is closed, the OPSC OAS admit card is released on the official website a few days before the examination.
The Odisha Administrative Services examination conducted by the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) is a coveted examination and highly competitive. Aspirants should spend sufficient time preparing for each phase of the examination.
