List of Top 10 Toughest Exams in India

In India, numerous government exams are held throughout the year where lakhs or even crores of candidates appear in the examinations. Candidates look for government jobs to get a stable career, benefits and a prestigious position. The toughest exams offer more income, good position, allowances and power.

Various central government and state government bodies conduct these exams every year to recruit potential candidates for the required posts. Some of the toughest exams we will be covering in this article are -

Top Government Exams to Prepare

Also check -

• Upcoming Government Jobs

• Government jobs without exams

• Government Jobs 2024

1. UPSC CSE (Civil Services Examination)

Union Public Service Commission conducts the UPSC CSE exam every year with an aim to recruit candidates for various administrative roles for the Indian government. Some of the positions include IAS, IPS, IFS, etc.

• UPSC CSE Eligibility - Candidate must be an Indian citizen and must meet the required educational qualifications. The candidate must be between the age 21 and 32.

• UPSC CSE Exam Pattern - The UPSC CSE exam pattern consists of a prelims exam, mains, followed by a personal interview.

• The UPSC CSE exam will be conducted in over 80 cities across India. Those who clear all the stages of the UPSC selection process will be eligible for the position. UPSC also offers a large salary and benefits to employees.

2. UPSC ESE (Engineering Services) Examination

The UPSC ESE exam is another highly competitive exam conducted by UPSC. The UPSC ESE exam is conducted at the beginning of every year. The exam aims to recruit engineers from various branches for the Government of India.

• UPSC ESE Eligibility - The nationality of the candidate must be Indian and between the age 21 to 30 years. The Candidate must meet the required educational qualification given in the official notification.

• UPSC ESE Exam Pattern - To get selected, Candidates will have to clear the prelims, mains, and personal interviews. The UPSC ESE syllabus will also be given in the official notification for all the subjects/ branches.

3. UPSC NDA (National Defence Academy) Examination

The UPSC NDA and Naval Academy exam is conducted by UPSC twice a year. The UPSC NDA exam is conducted to recruit cadets for the Army, Navy and Airforce. Candidates who clear the UPSC NDA exam will be trained in the Academy for 3 years before they get allotted in their respective Defence forces.

• UPSC NDA Eligibility - The candidate must be unmarried and a citizen of India. The age limit to apply must be between 16.5 and 19.5 years. A 12th-pass candidate is eligible to apply for the exam.

• NDA Exam Pattern - The UPSC NDA exam pattern consists of a written exam and an SSB (Service Selection Board). The SSB further consists of 2 stages. Candidates will be filtered at each stage before they get to study and train in the Defence Academy. The UPSC NDA syllabus will be given in the official notification for reference.

4. UPSC CDS (Combined Defence Services) Examination

Union Public Service Commission conducts the UPSC CDS exam twice a year to recruit personnel for the Military academy, Naval academy and many more. The commission releases a fixed number of seats every year for candidates to choose their academy.

• UPSC CDS Eligibility - The candidate must be unmarried and a citizen of India. Those between the ages of 20 and 24 years with a graduation degree are eligible to apply for the UPSC CDS exam.

• UPSC CDS Exam Pattern - The competitive UPSC CDS exam consists of a written exam and SSB interview which need to be cleared. The UPSC CDS written exam is an objective type test in English, General Knowledge, and Elementary Mathematics. Candidates who clear the written exam will be called for the SSB interview which consists of various tests to assess the candidate’s eligibility to become an officer.

5. SSC CGL (Combined Graduate Level) Examination

The SSC CGL exam is a National level exam conducted to fill up various Group ‘B’ and Group ‘C’ posts in different Ministries/ Departments. Candidates can check the various posts that will be released in the official notification. However, the final allotment of the SSC CGL post will be based on merit and preference of the post.

• SSC CGL Eligibility - The nationality of the candidate needs to be Indian and the age limit to apply for the exam varies depending on the post. The SSC CGL educational qualification also varies depending on the post. Candidates are recommended to check thoroughly before applying.

• SSC CGL Exam Pattern - Candidates need to first appear for the Computer Based Test which consists of 2 Tiers- Tier 1 and Tier 2. The Tier 2 CBT test will further consist of 3 Papers - Paper 1 , Paper 2 & Paper 3. All the qualified candidates will then go through a document verification process.

6. AFCAT - Air Force Common Admission Test

The AFCAT exam is conducted by the Indian Air Force. The AFCAT exam is conducted twice a year to hire potential candidates for various posts under flying branch and ground duty (technical and non-technical). A fixed number of vacancies will be released in the official notification which the candidates can check before applying.

• AFCAT Eligibility - The candidate must be a citizen of India.

1. Flying branch - Age of the candidate must be between 20 to 24 years. Candidates must have mandatorily passed with a minimum of 50% marks each in Maths and Physics in 10+2 level.

2. Ground Duty (Technical) Branch - Candidates between the age 20 - 26 years can apply. Those with a minimum of 50% marks each in Physics and Mathematics at 10+2 level and a minimum of four years degree graduation from any branch can apply. The AFCAT educational qualification also varies with branch and post.

• AFCAT Exam Pattern - the AFCAT exam pattern consists of a written test and AFSB (Air Force Selection Board). Those who clear the written exam will be going to the AFSB round. The AFSB testing consists of 3 stages where candidates will be screened based on tests like Picture Perception, discussion test, and Psychological test, etc.

7. IBPS PO (Probational Officer) Exam

Institute of Banking Personnel Selection conducts the IBPS PO exam for the recruitment of Probationary Officer/ Management Trainee posts. Candidates who clear the exam will be placed in the 11 participating banks listed in the official notification. The IBPS PO notification consists of all the important details regarding the exam like the vacancies, general instructions and more.

• IBPS PO Eligibility - Candidates who have Indian citizenship between the ages of 20 - 30 years are eligible to apply. A Degree (Graduation) in any discipline from a University recognised by the Govt. Of India or any equivalent can apply for the IBPS PO exam.

• IBPS PO Exam Pattern - The IBPS PO exam pattern is as follows - Prelims, Mains, Interview, and provisional allotment. Candidates who clear all the stages of the IBPS PO selection process will be selected to work in any of the participating banks.

8. SBI PO (Probationary Officer) exam

State Bank of India conducts the SBI PO exam to recruit potential candidates for the post of probationary officer. It is one of the exams which is difficult to crack due to its high level of competition. Candidates who clear the exam will be offered a basic pay of Rs. 41,960. The SBI PO exam is conducted once a year. Candidates are recommended to go through the SBI PO official notification carefully before applying for the exam.

• SBI PO Eligibility - An Indian citizen between the age limit of 21 - 30 years can apply for the exam. The candidate must also have a Graduation degree in any discipline from a recognized University or any equivalent.

• SBI PO Exam Pattern - The SBI PO exam pattern consists of a Preliminary exam, Mains exam and a psychometric test..

1. SBI PO Prelims exam - The exam consists of an objective type test conducted online for 100 marks. The test consists of sections like English Language, Quantitative Aptitude, and Reasoning Ability.

2. SBI PO Mains exam - The mains exam consists of an objective type test conducted for 200 marks and a descriptive test conducted for 50 marks. The mains descriptive test will be conducted immediately after the objective test.

3. Psychometric test - Those who qualify the mains exam will get shortlisted in the psychometric test which is a combination of group exercise and Interview.

4. Final Merit - The SBI PO final merit will then be calculated based on the scores from the Mains exam and Psychometric test.

9. SSC CHSL (Combined Higher Secondary Level) exam

Staff Selection Commission conducts this competitive exam to recruit candidates for ‘Group C’ posts like Lower Divisional Clerk/ Junior Secretariat Assistant and Data Entry Operators for various ministries in the Indian Government. The SSC CHSL pay scale and vacancies vary depending on the posts they are applying for. Candidates can check all the essential details in the official notification.

• SSC CHSL Eligibility - Candidates who have an Indian citizenship and between the age 18 - 27 years meet the eligibility criteria. However, the educational qualification may slightly vary depending on the posts. In addition to that, a candidate must have passed 12th class.

• SSC CHSL Exam Pattern - The SSC CHSL CBT exam will be conducted in 2 Tiers.

1. Tier 1 - The SSC CHSL Tier 1 exam consists of objective-based questions conducted for a duration of 60 minutes. There will also be a negative marking of 0.5 marks for wrong answers.

2. Tier 2 - On the other hand, the SSC CHSL Tier 2 exam consists of 3 sections which are further divided into modules.

10. IBPS RRB Exam

Institute Of Banking Personnel conducts the IBPS RRB exam every year with a goal to recruit suitable candidates for the post of Group A Officers (Scale 1, 2, & 3) and Group B Office Assistants. Recruitment of the candidates will be done in various Regional Rural Banks in India. The IBPS RRB exam is considered one of the toughest exams to crack as candidates will be recruited for prestigious roles which require experience.

• IBPS RRB Eligibility - The candidate must be a citizen of India.The IBPS RRB age limit and educational qualification vary by post and can be checked from the table below.

IBPS RRB Eligibility Criteria

• IBPS RRB Exam Pattern - The IBPS RRB exam pattern is the model in which the exam will be conducted. The IBPS exam pattern for Office Assistant and Officer Scale 1 consists of prelims and mains. Whereas, the Officer Scale 2 & 3 is a Single examination.