Interested and eligible candidates will be able to apply for the UPSC Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist Exam 2022 from 21st September 2022. The candidates will have to appear for the written exam and then for an interview. Clearing both these rounds will make the candidates eligible for recruitment at different posts as per their choice and qualification. The process of application will be completely online and the exam will be conducted in offline mode. The complete details of the recruitment process can be found from this article.

What’s new- The application form for Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist Exam 2023 is releasing on 21st September 2022.

Major Highlights

• A valid and active email id is mandatory during registration as any communication by the commission will be made through it.
• Candidates who clear the written exam will have to submit a DAF (detailed application form) and send its self-attested copy (every page should be attested) to the commission.
• Admit card will only be released for the candidates who submit their application on time and complete in every respect.
• Commission’s decision in regard to any dispute regarding eligibility, application, result, etc will be final.
• No request for withdrawal of candidature after submission of application will be entertained under any circumstances.

Important Dates

The important dates regarding UPSC Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist Exam 2023 are given in the table below.

Exam Pattern

The overview of UPSC Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist exam pattern 2023 is given below:

• Mode of exam: Offline
• Exam duration: 3 hours for each paper
• Type of questions: Conventional (essay) type
• Total marks: 200 (each paper except General English which carry 100 marks)

Syllabus

The syllabi for different papers of the Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist exam are given below:

• General English: Short Essay, Basic Understanding of English and Workmanlike Use Of Words
• Geology Paper I: Geomorphology and Remote Sensing, Structural Geology, Geodynamics, Stratigraphy and Paleontology
• Geology Paper II: Mineralogy and Geochemistry & Isotope Geology, Igneous Petrology, Metamorphic Petrology & Processes, Sedimentology and Environmental Geology and Natural Hazards
• Geology Paper III: Indian Mineral Deposits & Mineral Economics, Ore Genesis & Geophysics, Mineral Exploration, Geology of Fuels and Engineering Geology
• Geophysics Paper I: Solid Earth Geophysics, Earthquake and Engineering Seismology, Mathematical Methods in Geophysics, Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics, Electrodynamics, etc
• Geophysics Paper II: Geophysical Potential Fields, Electrical and Electromagnetic Methods, Seismic Prospecting, Borehole Geophysics, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Nuclear and Particle Physics, etc
• Geophysics Paper III: Marine Geophysics, Geophysical Signal Processing, Solid State Physics, Laser Cavity Modes, Quantum Mechanics, Digital Electronics, Radar Systems, Satellite Communications, etc
• Chemistry Paper I: Chemical Periodicity, Chemical Bonding & Structure, Acid-Base Reactions, Nuclear Chemistry, Chemistry of d- and f- block Elements, etc
• Chemistry Paper II: Kinetic theory and the gaseous state, Thermodynamics, Thermodynamics and Equilibrium, Chemical kinetics and catalysis, Photochemistry, etc
• Chemistry Paper III: Theoretical Basis Of Quantitative Inorganic Analysis, Gravimetric Analysis, Potentiometry, Complexometric Titrations, Organometallic Compounds, Bonding & Physical Properties, etc
• Hydrogeology: Origin, Occurrence & Distribution of Water, Groundwater Hydraulics, Groundwater Exploration & Water Well Construction, Groundwater Quality & Groundwater Management

Eligibility Criteria

The following eligibility criteria need to be fulfilled by the candidates who wish to apply for the Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist exam:

Nationality:

The candidate should be:

• Citizen of India, Subject of Bhutan or Nepal, OR
• Tibetan refugee, who came to India before 1st January 1962 to become a permanent resident, OR
• Person of Indian Origin who migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam who came to India for settling permanently

Age limit:

• For Geologist, Geophysicist and Chemist: The candidate must have attained the age of 21 years and must not have attained the age of 32 years on 1^st January 2023.
• For Jr. Hydrogeologist: The applicants must have attained the age of 21 years and must not have attained at the age of 35 years on 1^st January 2023.
• The upper age limit will be relaxed upto a maximum of 7 years in the case of Government servants, if they are employed in a Geological Survey of India or Central Ground Water Board.

Qualification:

• For Geologists Grade ‘A’ in Geological Survey of India: Master’s degree in Geological Science/ Geology/ Applied Geology/ Geo-Exploration/ Mineral Exploration/ Engineering Geology/ Marine Geology/ Earth Science and Resource Management/ Oceanography and Coastal Areas Studies/ Petroleum Geosciences/ Petroleum Exploration/ Geochemistry/ Geological Technology/ Geophysical Technology from a recognized University is required.
• For Geophysicists Grade ‘A’ in Geological Survey of India: Candidates with M.Sc in Physics/ Applied Physics/ Geophysics/ Applied Geophysics/ Marine Geophysics or Integrated M.Sc. (Exploration Geophysics) or M.Sc (Tech.) (Applied Geophysics) from a University are eligible.
• For Chemists Grade ‘A’ in Geological Survey of India: A degree of M.Sc in Chemistry/ Applied Chemistry/ Analytical Chemistry is required by the candidates to be eligible.
• For Junior Hydrgeologists (Scientist B), Group ‘A’ in Central Ground Water Board: The applicants must hold a Master’s degree in Geology/ Applied Geology/ Marine Geology/ Hydrogeology from a recognized University.

Relaxation in upper age limit:

• 5 years for SC/ ST candidates
• 3 years for OBC candidates
• 10 years for PH candidates
• 5 years if a candidate had ordinarily been domiciled in Jammu & Kashmir from the 1st January, 1980 to the 31st day of December, 1989.
• 3 years in the case of Defence Services Personnel disabled in operations during hostilities with any foreign country or in a disturbed area and released as a consequence thereof:
• 5 years in the case of Ex-Servicemen including Commissioned Officers and ECOs/ SSCOs who have rendered at least five years Military Service as on 1^st January, 2020 and have been released (i) on completion of assignment (or will be completed within one year from 1^st January, 2020 ) otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency, or (ii) on account of physical disability attributable to Military Service or (iii) on invalidment
• 5 years in the case of ECOs/ SSCOs who have completed an initial period of assignment of 5 years Military Service as on 1^st January, 2020 and whose assignment has been extended beyond 5 years and in whose case the Ministry of Defence issue a certificate that they can apply for civil employment and that they will be released on 3 month’s notice on selection from the date of receipt of offer of appointment

Application Form

The application form for UPSC Combined Geo-Scientist & Geologist exam will be released on the official website of UPSC.  The application form will consist of two stages- part 1 and part 2 and the candidates should carefully fill both the parts to complete the application process.

• Personal details such as name, gender, category, nationality, etc will be provided in the application form.
• Details of the qualifying exam such as marks obtained, passing year, university/ board name, etc will also be asked in the application.
• The candidates will have to upload scanned copies of photograph and signature into the application form.
• Applicants should carefully provide the choice of exam center in their application form.
• Once all the information are entered successfully, the candidates can make submission of the form.
• After successful submission, the candidates should take a printout of the duly-filled for and keep it safe for future use.

Application fee:

• The candidates are required to pay a fee of Rs. 200/- (except SC/ ST/ PwBD/ Female candidates who are exempted from payment of fee).
• The payment can be done either by depositing the money in any branch of SBI by cash, or by using SBI net banking or any credit card/ debit card.

Admit Card

• Admit card to appear in the exam will be released on the official website of UPSC around 3 week before the exam.
• Candidates should download the admit card and take its printout to be carried to the exam center.
• On the admit card, the basic details of the candidates and the details of the exam- its schedule and center will be mentioned.
• Any kind of discrepancy must be communicated to the commission for correction or else the admit card will not be considered as valid.
• Any candidate without a valid admit card will not be allowed to appear for the examination.

Result

• The result of the written test will be announced hopefully in the month of August 2023.
• Candidates who clear the written test will be eligible for the personality test/ interview round.
• Such candidates will have to first fill and submit their DAF to the commission after which they will be called for the interview.
• The applicants should report for the interview round as per the schedule decided by the commission and uploaded on their website.
• Documents of the successful candidates will also be verified at the time of the interview.
• Those who clear both the written test and the interview will be considered for recruitment.