An optional paper in the main Civil Services Examination (CSE) allows everyone to choose a humanities subject – and that’s what engineering graduates have been making a beeline for despite their science background.

This has raised concerns that the optional subject system may be creating an uneven playing field. Lawmakers and former civil servants are now seeking a review of the existing examination framework.

Official data submitted by the UPSC to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice shows that nearly 84% of engineering graduates appearing in the Civil Services Main examination chose humanities subjects as their optional subject. 

Engineering Graduates Still Dominate

The issue gained attention after the parliamentary panel examined changes in the educational profile of candidates over the past seven years. 

While the share of humanities graduates among successful candidates has steadily increased, engineering graduates continue to remain the single largest group selected for the country's premier civil services.

According to the data, the proportion of humanities graduates among candidates shortlisted for the Personality Test (Interview) rose from 20.59% in 2019 to 34.41% in 2025. During the same period, the share of candidates from science, engineering, and medical backgrounds declined from 79.41% to 65.59%.

A similar trend was reflected in the final selection list. Humanities graduates accounted for 24.19% of successful candidates in 2019, increasing to 35.28% in 2025. Candidates from science and technology backgrounds saw their share decline from 75.81% to 64.72% over the same period.

Despite the shift, engineering graduates continue to outperform other academic groups. In the Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2025, engineers accounted for 47% of all finally selected candidates. However, their preference for humanities optional subjects remains striking.

In the UPSC Main examination, the General Studies papers are designed to provide a substantial overlap with humanities disciplines, making subjects like History, Geography, Political Science, Public Administration, Sociology, and Economics attractive as one of the optional papers, as it directly supports the preparation for the General Studies paper. 

The UPSC Mains Examination comprises General Studies (GS) Paper-I, General Studies (GS) Paper-II, the Economy portion of GS-III and Ethics (GS-IV), and one Optional subject that can be either from science or from humanities. 

The Humanities Option

Among the top 50 rank holders in 2025, 16 were engineering graduates, but only one opted for an engineering subject as the optional paper. The remaining 15 chose humanities disciplines such as Sociology, Political Science, Anthropology, Public Administration, and Geography.

The pattern is not new. In the 2016 examination, engineers secured 36 of the top 50 ranks, yet only five selected engineering subjects as their optional papers, while the majority preferred humanities disciplines.

The trend has renewed discussion over whether the optional subject framework continues to fulfil its intended objective. Members of Parliament and several former civil servants have reportedly urged the UPSC to examine whether reforms are needed in view of the growing preference for humanities subjects among engineering graduates.

Experts say the choice is largely driven by the structure of the Civil Services Examination (CSE) rather than academic background alone.

Rajeev Chaudhary, a senior faculty member at Drishti IAS Coaching Centre, said humanities subjects offer significant overlap with the General Studies syllabus, enabling candidates to prepare simultaneously for multiple papers.

“Subjects such as History, Geography, Political Science, Public Administration, Sociology and Economics directly support the preparation for General Studies papers. Candidates, therefore, often choose optional subjects that complement the broader UPSC syllabus rather than their graduation discipline,” he said.

He added that humanities graduates begin their preparation with an advantage because many General Studies topics are already covered during their undergraduate studies. 

But engineering graduates continue to perform strongly due to their analytical ability, logical reasoning, quantitative aptitude, structured problem-solving and effective answer-writing skills. 

These strengths, he said, prove particularly valuable in the Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT) and the analytical demands of the Main examination.

UPSC Toppers

Recent UPSC toppers also reflect the diversity of academic backgrounds among successful candidates. 

Aditya Srivastava, who topped the 2023 examination, is an Electrical Engineering graduate, while 2022 topper Ishita Kishore studied Economics. Shruti Sharma, the 2021 topper, graduated in History, while Shubham Kumar (2020) studied Civil Engineering and Kanishak Kataria (2018) is a Computer Science engineer.

With engineering graduates continuing to dominate selections while increasingly opting for humanities subjects, the debate over the future of the optional paper system is expected to remain central to discussions on possible reforms to the UPSC Civil Services Examination.