Educational Qualification

• (i) For Geologist Group ‘A’ in Geological Survey of India : Master’s degree in Geological Science or Geology or Applied Geology or GeoExploration or Mineral Exploration or Engineering Geology or Marine Geology or Earth Science and Resource Management or Oceanography and Coastal Areas Studies or Petroleum Geosciences or Geochemistry from a University incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or an educational institution established by an Act of Parliament or declared to be deemed university under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 (3 of 1956) i.e. recognized University.
• (ii) For Geophysicist Group ‘A’ in Geological Survey of India and Scientist ‘B’ (Geophysics) Group ‘A’ in C.G.W.B. : M.Sc. in Physics or Applied Physics or M.Sc. (Geophysics) or Integrated M.Sc. (Exploration Geophysics) or M.Sc (Applied Geophysics) or M.Sc. (Marine Geophysics) or M.Sc. (Tech.) (Applied Geophysics) from a University incorporated by an Act of Parliament or State Legislature in India or other educational institutes established by an Act of the Parliament or declared to be deemed universities under the University Grants Commission Act, 1956
• (iii) For Chemist Group ‘A’ in Geological Survey of India and Scientist ‘B’ (Chemical) under C.G.W.B. : M.Sc. in Chemistry or Applied Chemistry or Analytical Chemistry from a University incorporated by an Act of Parliament or State Legislature or other educational Institutes established by an Act of the Parliament or declared to be deemed Universities under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 i.e. recognized University.
• (iv) For Scientist ‘B’ (Hydrogeology) Group ‘A’ and Assistant (Hydrogeologist) Group ‘B’ in C.G.W.B. : Master’s degree in Geology or applied Geology or Marine Geology or Hydrogeology from a University incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other educational Institutes established by an Act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as Universities under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956.
• (v) For Assistant Chemist Group ‘B’ in Geological Survey of India and Assistant (Chemist) Group ‘B’ in C.G.W.B. : Master of Science or Integrated Master of Science in Chemistry or Applied Chemistry or Analytical Chemistry or Physical Chemistry or Inorganic Chemistry or Organic Chemistry or Hydro-Chemistry or Industrial Chemistry from a recognized University or Institute. (vi) For Assistant Geologist Group ‘B’ in Geological Survey of India Master’s degree or Integrated Master’s degree in Geology or Applied Geology or Mineral Exploration or Marine Geology or Earth Science from a recognized University or Institute.
• (vii) For Assistant Geophysicist Group ‘B’ in Geological Survey of India and Assistant Geophysicist Group ‘B’ in C.G.W.B. :  Master of Science or Master of Science (Tech) or Integrated Master of Science in Geophysics or Exploration Geophysics or Applied Geophysics or Geo-Exploration or Marine Geophysics or Physics or Applied Physics or Applied Geology from a recognized University or Institute.
  • NOTE I : Qualifications are relaxable at the direction of the Union Public Service Commission for the reasons to be recorded in writing, in the case of candidates otherwise well qualified.
  • NOTE II : Master's degree in respective discipline means the post graduate degree of minimum two years duration after graduation from aforesaid University or Institute in the respective discipline, whether be it an integrated course or otherwise. NOTE III : A candidate who has appeared at an examination, the passing of which would render him/her educationally qualified for this Examination but has not been informed of the result, may apply for admission to the Examination. A candidate who intends to appear at such a qualifying examination may also apply. Such candidates will be admitted to the Examination, if otherwise eligible but their admission would be deemed to be provisional and subject to cancellation. However, all such candidates, who are declared qualified by the Commission for Interview/Personality Test, will be required to produce proof of passing of the requisite qualifying examination within the time limit which is as under:- 
  • The Commission shall provide a window of 10 days after the declaration of result of Main/Stage-II part of Combined Geo-Scientist Examination to the candidates qualified for Personality Test/Interview and who have filled their status of educational qualification. The candidates, who do not have the prescribed Educational qualification at the time of the Online Application, shall be required to update their details and to upload the proof of passing of the requisite qualifying examination on the Common Application Form (CAF) Module, failing which such candidates will not be allowed to appear in the Personality Test/Interview and his/her candidature will be liable to be cancelled.
• N.B.: In this period, all the candidates qualified for Personality Test shall also be provided an option to update Correspondence/Postal Address, Higher Qualification, Achievement in different field, Employment Details/Service Experience, Service Preferences. The details updated in this window will be treated as final and no request for any change in these fields received through any other mode will be entertained.
  •    Candidates who have uploaded the required documents/information earlier and have no information to update/fill in, are also required to login and finally submit after verifying the details so as to generate the e-Summon letter for the Personality Test/Interview.
  • The candidates are advised to regularly visit the Commission’s website with regard to further updates.
• NOTE IV : A candidate shall be required to mandatorily indicate order of preference only for those Services which are participating in the Combined Geo-Scientist Examination, 2027 and for which the candidate is interested to be allocated to in case of eventual selection. In case of recommendation of candidature by UPSC for Service Allocation, the candidate shall be considered by the Government for allocation to one of those Services for which the preference has been indicated by the candidate in the Online Application Form subject to fulfillment of other conditions. The candidate will not be considered for any such Service(s) allocation, which is/are not mentioned in the order of preferences submitted by the candidate, irrespective of 
• his/her merit. The candidate has to mandatorily opt for at least one service failing which the candidate will not be considered for Service Allocation.
• Note V : A candidate who is otherwise qualified but who possesses the Master's degree from a foreign University approved by the Government may also be admitted to the Examination by the Commission.
• Note VI : Candidate possessing common qualifications in sub-para (i) can apply for both the posts.
• NOTE VII : In exceptional cases, the Commission may treat a candidate who does not possess any of the qualifications prescribed in this rule, as educationally qualified provided that he/she has passed examinations conducted by other institutions, the standard of which in the opinion of the Commission, justifies his/ her admission to the Examination.
• NOTE VIII : A candidate possessing the educational qualification of a Master's Degree/Master of Science (M.Sc.)/Master of Science (Tech.)/Integrated Master of Science in Geo-Exploration or Applied Geology shall be eligible for the posts under the Stream/Discipline of (i) Geophysics and (ii) Geology or Hydrogeology. However, at the time of filling the online application, the candidate shall be required to opt for the Stream/Discipline, namely (i) Geophysics or (ii) Geology or Hydrogeology, under which he/she wishes to apply for the various posts. A candidate shall be permitted to apply for various posts under one Stream/Discipline only.

How to Apply?

• Online Portal Visit : Go to the official UPSC online application website at upsconline.nic.in.

• Universal Registration (OTR) : Create an account or log in to complete the One-Time Registration to generate your permanent Universal Registration Number (URN).

• Common Application Form (CAF) : Fill out the shared profile details, personal data, and educational qualifications required across all UPSC exams.

• Examination Module Selection : Navigate to the specific Combined Geo-Scientist Examination module, select your precise stream, and choose your preferred preliminary exam center.

• Document Uploading : Upload your recent passport-sized photograph, live photo capture, scanned signature, and valid photo identity proof following the exact formatting guidelines.

• Fee Payment : Pay the application fee of ₹200 using net banking, UPI, or credit/debit card, noting that female, SC, ST, and PwBD candidates are fully exempted.

• Final Submission : Review all entered data carefully, submit the form before the deadline, and save/print a copy of the final confirmation page.

Selection Process

• Step 1 : Online Application Submission – Candidates must register and submit their applications through the official UPSC online portal before the specified deadline.

• Step 2 : Stage-I Preliminary Examination – Compete in the objective-type screening test consisting of two papers (General Studies and Stream-Specific) carrying 400 marks.

• Step 3 : Stage-II Main Examination – Shortlisted candidates from the prelims appear for the descriptive-type written test comprising three stream-specific papers worth 600 marks.

• Step 4 : Stage-III Personality Test / Interview – Qualify for the final face-to-face evaluation process carrying 200 marks to assess overall suitability and aptitude.

• Step 5 : Document Verification and Medical Examination – Submit original academic, category, and identity certificates for validation alongside mandatory fitness and medical standard checks.

• Step 6 : Final Merit Ranking & Allocation – Secure a position on the final merit list compiled from aggregate scores across all stages for allocation to the Geological Survey of India (GSI) or Central Ground Water Board (CGWB).