Hi Aspirant,

IFS is all about preserving diplomacy, drafting, handling and formulating foreign policy. You don't need to specialise in this, but if you want a degree with subjects like International Affairs, foreign policy will have an advantage. But this should be your preference.

• Political science
• International Relations
• Public Administration
• Economics
• Philosophy
• Journalism
• Business Administration
• Law

I would like to recommend you to choose the subject(s) according to the optional subject(s) that you would vote for in the UPSC , or vice-versa because it will definitely help you to prepare more efficiently for that exam. Anyone can apply as a candidate from any stream. But you need to finish your degree to be eligible for the IFS exam.

Thank you

Hello,

In order to appear for Indian Foregin Service Exam, candidates are required to pass graduation any degree from a recognized university with no specific aggregate required in this case, minimum age is 21 years while maximum is 30 years, in case of SC or ST there is relaxation of five years, while OBC gets relaxation of 3 years, UR has seven attempts to their credits, 9 attempts for OBC, and for SC/ST there is no restriction. IFS comes under Group A and B of the central civil services, the administrative head here is the foreign secretary while political head of the service is external affairs minister.