Hello Aspirant,

There is no such thing as a fixed number the cut-off varies from year to year and category to category. There are 100 Qs in Paper-1 (2 marks/ Q, negative 0.3 marks). As a general principle of thumb, aim for ~90 to 100 marks +; you will often have ~ 55 to 60 net correct along with good accuracy, putting you comfortably above cut-offs.

Optional Subjects should be taken in prelims and mains:

• Prelims: No optionals (only GS Paper 1 + CSAT is qualifying at 33%).
• Mains: One optional subject (i.e., given in 2 papers Paper VI & VII), from the notified list by UPSC (includes several with literature options).

Hello dear student,

As you have not specified which prelims exam you're preparing for like UPSC  CSE, State PSC, SSC, Banking or any other exam so the number of questions should get right depends mainly on

1. Total questions

2. Marking scheme

3. Negative marking

4. Previous year cutoff.

Optional subjects that should be taken are:-

Prelims:- No optional subject.

Mains:- Only 1 optional subject but 2 paper of it.