What is the APPSC Group 2 exam pattern for prelims and mains?
APPSC Group 2 is a three-stage exam: a 150-mark objective screening test (prelims), a Mains made of two objective papers worth 150 marks each, and a qualifying Computer Proficiency Test (CPT). Every wrong answer in the written stages costs you 1/3 of a mark, so guessing is risky.
This is the pattern APPSC printed in its Group-II brief notification No. 37/2026, dated 13 October 2026, for 686 posts.
The three stages at a glance
| Stage | Papers | Questions | Time | Marks | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screening test (prelims) | General Studies & Mental Ability | 150 | 150 minutes | 150 | Objective, OMR, offline |
| Mains Paper-I | Social history of AP + Indian Constitution | 150 | 150 minutes | 150 | Objective |
| Mains Paper-II | Indian & AP economy + Science and technology | 150 | 150 minutes | 150 | Objective |
| Computer Proficiency Test | Office automation (practical) | — | 60 minutes | 100 | Qualifying only |
Both written stages are “Degree Standard”, so the questions are pitched at graduate level.
Screening test: one paper, five equal blocks
The screening test is a single paper called General Studies & Mental Ability. APPSC will hold it offline on OMR sheets, and the date comes in the detailed notification.
The syllabus splits the paper into five blocks of 30 marks each:
- Indian History (30M): ancient, medieval and modern India, from the Indus Valley to the national movement.
- Geography (30M): physical geography plus the economic and human geography of India and Andhra Pradesh.
- Indian Society (30M): family, caste, tribe and religion, social issues such as crime against women and child labour, and welfare provisions for SCs, STs, BCs, minorities, women and children.
- Current Affairs (30M): major events at the international, national and Andhra Pradesh level.
- Mental Ability (30M): reasoning (statements and assumptions, arguments, conclusions), series, coding-decoding, basic numeracy (percentages, interest, time and work, time and distance) and data analysis from tables, bar diagrams, line graphs and pie charts.
Skip mental ability because you’re strong in history, and you’ve given away a fifth of the paper.
Mains: two objective papers, four 75-mark sections
Many students assume Group 2 Mains is a descriptive, essay-style exam. It isn’t. Both papers are objective-type, with 150 questions in 150 minutes, and the same 1/3 penalty applies.
Paper-I (150 marks)
- Section A, Social and Cultural History of Andhra Pradesh (75M): pre-historic cultures, the Satavahanas, Ikshvakus, Vishnukundins and Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi, the dynasties of Andhradesa between the 11th and 16th centuries, and the period from the arrival of the Europeans to the 1857 revolt and after.
- Section B, Indian Constitution (75M): a general overview of the Constitution.
Paper-II (150 marks)
- Section A, Indian and AP Economy (75M).
- Section B, Science and Technology (75M).
300 marks in all. AP history alone is worth 75, more than any block in the screening test.
Computer Proficiency Test: pass it, don’t chase marks
The CPT tests office automation in practice: a word processor, a spreadsheet, a presentation tool. It runs 60 minutes for 100 marks, but only the pass mark counts:
| Community | Minimum qualifying marks |
|---|---|
| SC / ST / PBD | 30 |
| BC | 35 |
| OC | 40 |
If you already make documents and spreadsheets, a few practice sessions will do. If you’ve never used office software, start early. You can clear both written exams and still lose the job here.
How negative marking changes your strategy
The notification says each wrong answer is “penalized with 1/3rd of the marks prescribed for the question”. A correct answer gives 1 mark, a wrong one takes away 1/3, and a blank gives zero.
Rule out two of the four options and a guess between the last two is usually worth it. A blind guess across all four is not.
My take: mark every mock test with the penalty from week one. Students who only track their raw score find out what the deductions cost on exam day, when it’s too late to change habits.
Planning your preparation
- Mains topics first. AP social and cultural history, the Constitution and the economy all feed the screening test too.
- Mental ability, daily and timed. It’s a full 30-mark block in prelims, and it only improves with regular timed practice.
- Current affairs with an AP lens. The syllabus names Andhra Pradesh events alongside national and international news.
- A computer refresher before the CPT. Don’t leave it until the hall ticket arrives.
For more posts on this exam, see the APPSC page.
What this pattern doesn’t tell you yet
The brief notification fixes the pattern and syllabus, but not the screening test date or the post-wise age and qualification details. APPSC says those come in the detailed notification, due on or before 10 November 2026, with online applications open from 10 to 30 November 2026. Read it before you apply. A post-specific condition there overrides anything in a summary like this one. It will be on APPSC’s recruitment notifications page.
FAQ
Is there negative marking in APPSC Group 2?
Yes. Each wrong answer costs 1/3 of the marks for that question, in both the screening test and the Mains papers.
Is APPSC Group 2 Mains descriptive or objective?
Objective. Both Mains papers are objective-type, degree-standard tests with 150 questions each.
How many marks is the APPSC Group 2 Mains?
300 marks in total: Paper-I and Paper-II carry 150 marks each, and each paper runs for 150 minutes.
How is the Computer Proficiency Test marked?
It is a 60-minute practical test on office automation for 100 marks. It is qualifying: you need 30 (SC/ST/PBD), 35 (BC) or 40 (OC).