Synopsis

Humanities graduates are increasingly succeeding in civil services exams, while engineering graduates, despite dominating the pool, overwhelmingly choose Humanities for their optional subjects. This trend, highlighted by UPSC data, has prompted parliamentary calls to review the exam's optional component, questioning fairness and the need for greater domain expertise alongside generalist skills. The shift suggests a potential imbalance in the current system.

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New Delhi: Humanities graduates have steadily increased their share among successful civil services candidates over the past seven years, while engineering graduates continue to dominate the successful pool but overwhelmingly opt for Humanities subjects, reinforcing calls for a review of the optional subject component of the Civil Services Examination.

As per data shared by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) with a parliamentary panel, the share of candidates with Humanities degrees among those called for the personality test rose from 20.59% in 2019 to 34.41% in 2025. Among the finally recommended candidates, the proportion increased from 24.19% to 35.28% over the same period.

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Correspondingly, the share of candidates from Science and Technology backgrounds-including engineering, science and medical disciplines-declined from 79.41% to 65.59% among interviewees and from 75.81% to 64.72% among the final selections.

The findings were shared by top UPSC officials during a meeting with the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice last week. Despite engineering graduates forming the single largest educational group among successful candidates, very few continue with engineering subjects in the Mains examination. While 47% of the recommended candidates in 2025 were engineering graduates, Humanities subjects accounted for 84% of all optionals chosen, compared with just 2% for engineering and technology, 11% for science and 3% for medical.

According to UPSC data on the Top 50 rank holders, only one of the 16 engineering graduates in the Top 50 in 2025 opted for an engineering optional, while the remaining 15 chose subjects largely from the Humanities stream.

The pattern has remained consistent over the past decade. In 2016, 36 engineering graduates featured in the Top 50, but only five retained engineering as their optional. The number choosing their own discipline has steadily fallen, reaching just one in 2025.

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Taking note of the trend, MPs across party lines, including several former civil servants, asked UPSC to examine why engineering graduates are increasingly opting against engineering optionals and whether the existing system gives an undue advantage to candidates from certain academic backgrounds.

Members also observed that the civil services need greater domain expertise alongside generalist administrative skills.

The findings are likely to add momentum to the long-running discussion on the optional subject component of the Civil Services Examination, with renewed focus on whether candidates from different academic backgrounds compete on an equal footing and whether the existing system requires a fresh review.