Combined Defence Services Examination

Last updated

The Combined Defence Services Examination (abbreviated as CDS Exam) is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for recruitment of Commissioned Officers in the Indian Military Academy, Officers Training Academy, Indian Naval Academy and Indian Air Force Academy. The Notification for the examination is usually released in the months of December and May, and the examinations are conducted in April and September respectively. Only unmarried graduates are eligible to sit for the exam. Examination is conducted twice a year. Successful candidates are admitted into the respective Academies after an interview conducted by the Services Selection Board (SSB).

Contents

Officer jobs are available in the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force after passing the Combined Defense Services Exam (CDS). Any student can take this exam after graduation. This exam has 2 steps. First, there is a written test and after passing it there is the SSB interview. [1] [2]

Age Limit

Indian Military Academy19–24 years [3]
Air Force Academy20–24 years [3]
Indian Naval Academy19–24 years [3]
Officers Training Academy19–25 years [3]

Educational Qualifications

CDS Exam Educational Qualifications is given below.

For I.M.A. and Officers’ Training AcademyDegree from a recognized University or equivalent
For Indian Naval AcademyDegree in Engineering from a recognized University or equivalent
For Air Force AcademyDegree of a recognized University (with Physics and Mathematics at 10+2 level) or Bachelor of Engineering

Physical Standards

Candidates must be physically fit according to physical standards criteria given in the official advertisement by the UPSC.

Union Public Service Commission has set the eligibility criteria For Combined Defence Services. [4] Before applying to the CDS exam Candidate must check the eligibility criteria. The basic physical standard for a candidate is:

  1. The candidate should be physically as well as mentally fit.
  2. Permanent tattoos on the body are prohibited.
  3. No hernia anywhere on the body.
  4. No hearing impairment, deformities/disabilities in-ears vestibule-cochlear system.
  5. There is no active congenital venereal disease.

Here are the requirements for the Height and Weight standards to qualify for CDS exam:

Height and Weight Standards (Males)
Height in Centimetres (Without shoes)Weight in Kgs.
18 years20 years22 years24 years
15244*464748
15546484950
15747495051
16048505152
16250525354
16552535556
16853555758
17055575859
17357596061
17559616262
17861626364
18063646566
18365676768
18567697071
18870717274
19072737476
19374767778
19577787981

Scheme of Examination

CDS Exam Pattern

Stages of examWritten exam and SSB Interview
Mode of examOffline / Pen and paper based
Subjects1- English 120 questions

2- General Knowledge 120 questions

3- Elementary Mathematics 100 questions

Exam duration2 hours for each paper
Number of questions340 MCQs for – IMA, INA and AFA

240 MCQs for – OTA

Language of paperEnglish & Hindi

Indian Military Academy / Air Force Academy / Naval Academy

All the papers are of objective type.

SubjectMarks
English100
General Knowledge100
Elementary maths100
Total300

Officers' Training Academy

Each paper contains objective type questions.

SubjectMarks
English100
General Knowledge100
Total200

Intelligence and Personality Test

The SSB interview process consists of a two-stage Selection process – stage I and stage II. Only those candidates who successfully clear the stage I SSB interview are permitted to appear for stage II.

(a) Stage I comprises Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) tests are Picture Perception* Description Test (PP&DT). The candidates will be shortlisted based on the combination of performance in the OIR Test and PP&DT.

(b) Stage II Comprises Interview, Group Testing Officer Tasks, Psychology Tests, and the Conference. These tests are conducted over 4 days. The details of these tests are given on the Indian Army career portal. [5]

The personality of a candidate is assessed by three different assessors viz. The Interviewing Officer (IO), Group Testing Officer (GTO), and the Psychologist. There is no separate weightage for each test. The marks are allotted by assessors only after taking into consideration the performance of the candidate holistically in all the tests.

Test/ Interview by Air Force Selection Board

All candidates who apply for the Air Force through more than one source will be tested/interviewed at the Air Force Selection Boards only once for Air Force. Common candidates who fail in Computer Pilot Selection System (CPSS) and/ or Pilot Aptitude Battery tests as an NCC or Airmen candidate will be called again for OLQ testing for Army/Navy/OTA only if it is found that they have applied through CDS Exam.

CDS I 2024 Vacancy

CDS 1 Total number of vacancies [6] are given below.

AcademyTotal Vacancies
IMA100
AFA32
INA32
OTA (Men)275
OTA (Women)18
Total457

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Defence Academy (India)</span> Training institute of the Indian Armed Forces

The National Defence Academy (NDA) is the joint defence service training institute of the Indian Armed Forces, where cadets of the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force train together before they go on to their respective service academy for further pre-commission training. The NDA is located in Khadakwasla, Pune, Maharashtra. It is the first tri-service academy in the world.

The Indian Army, the land component of the Indian Armed Forces, follows a certain hierarchy of rank designations and insignia derived from the erstwhile British Indian Army (BIA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sainik School, Ghorakhal</span> Public school in India

Sainik School Ghorakhal is a Sainik School established by first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru under in 1966. It is located in Ghorakhal, at an altitude of about 6,000 feet (1,800 m) above sea level amidst the Kumaon Hills in Nainital district of the state of Uttarakhand, India.

The Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineering, abbreviated as IRSME, is one of the group 'A' central engineering services of the Indian railways. The officers of this service are responsible for managing the Mechanical Engineering Division of the Indian Railways. Till 2019, IRSME officers were drawn from the Combined Engineering Service Examination (ESE) and Special Class Railway Apprentice (SCRA) examination conducted by Union Public Service Commission. All appointments to the Group 'A' services are made by the president of India.

The Engineering Services Examination (ESE) is an annual combined standardized exam conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to recruit officers to various engineering services under the Government of India. It is held in four categories: Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, and Electronics & Telecommunication. The exam has three stages comprising objective, subjective and personality tests. The various services are often informally known as Indian Engineering Services (IES).

The Civil Services Examination (CSE) is a national competitive examination in India conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for recruitment to higher Civil Services of the Government of India, including the Indian Administrative Service, Indian Foreign Service, and Indian Police Service. It is also colloquially referred to as the UPSC examination, and UPSC CSE. and is conducted in three phases: a preliminary examination consisting of two objective-type papers, and a main examination consisting of nine papers of conventional (essay) type, in which two papers are qualifying and only marks of seven are counted; finally followed by a personality test (interview). A successful candidate sits for 32 hours of examination during the complete process spanning around one year.

Sainik School Amaravathinagar is a Boys and Girls English medium, residential public school with a military bias up to +2 stage as per the CBSE board Syllabus. It is one of the 33 Government aided Sainik Schools in India, located in Udumalpet, Tiruppur district of Tamil Nadu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Services Selection Board</span> Indian Armed Forces organization

Services Selection Board (SSB) is an organization that assesses the candidates for becoming officers into the Indian Armed Forces. The board evaluates the suitability of the candidate for becoming an officer using a standardized protocol of evaluation system which constitutes personality, intelligence tests, and interviews. The tests are of both types i.e. written and practical task-based. An SSB comprises the panel of assessors, who are officers in the Indian Armed Forces and having their specialization as Psychologist, GTO, and Interviewing Officer. At times the psychologist may not be directly from the armed forces as well. In total there are thirteen Service Selection Boards across India, out of which four boards are for the Indian Army, four boards are for Indian Air Force, and five boards for the Indian Navy. (SSB) is a 5 days evaluation process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian Naval Academy</span> Indian Naval Academy

The Indian Naval Academy is the defence service training establishment for officer cadre of the Indian Naval Service and the Indian Coast Guard, located in Ezhimala, Kannur district, Kerala. Situated between Ezhimala hill and the Kavvayi backwaters, INA has a 7 kilometre beach front on the Laccadive Sea. It conducts basic training for all officers inducted into the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard. It is Asia's largest, and the world's third-largest, naval academy.

The State Police Services (SPS), also simply known as State Police, are the police services under the control of respective state governments of the states and union territories of India.

The Combined Medical Services Examination or the CMS Examination is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for recruitment as Medical Officer in various organizations such as the Indian Ordnance Factories, Indian Railways, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, New Delhi Municipal Council functioning under the Government of India. The Notification for the examination is usually released in the month of April and examination is conducted in the month of July. Successful candidates are admitted after an interview also known as Personality test (PT) conducted by the UPSC for those who have qualified the written examination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Services Preparatory Institute</span> Public military school in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India

Services Preparatory Institute is a public military school in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India. It was established in 1977 by the Government of Maharashtra to prepare students academically, mentally and physically for the written Union Public Service Commission examination for the National Defence Academy, Indian Naval Academy and for interview, psychological and other personality tests with the Services Selection Board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Armed Police Forces</span> Central police forces of India

In India, the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) is the collective name of central police organisations under the Ministry of Home Affairs of India. These are technically paramilitary forces formerly known as the Central Para-Military Forces. Since 2011, India adopted the term "central armed police forces" to drop the word "paramilitary". These forces are responsible for internal security and guarding the borders.

The Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) is a department of the government of Tamil Nadu that is responsible for governing the recruitment of personnel into the state's public service. It is the successor of the Madras Service Commission, which came into being under an Act of the Madras Legislature in 1929 and was the first Provincial Public Service Commission in India. It adopted its current name in 1970. TNPSC operates under Articles 315 to 323 of Part XIV of the Constitution of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bihar Public Service Commission</span> State government agency

The Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) is a body created by the Constitution of India to select applicants for civil services in the Indian state of Bihar according to the merits of the applicants.

Articles 315 to 323 in Part XIV of the Constitution of India provides for the establishment of Public Service Commission for the Union of India and a Public Service Commission for each State. The same set of Articles of the Constitution also deal with the composition, appointment and removal of members, power and functions and independence of a Public Service Commission. Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to conduct examinations for recruitment to the "All India Services" (AIS) and the "Higher Central Services" (HCS) and to advise the President on disciplinary matters. State Public Service Commission in every state to conduct examinations for recruitment to state services and to advise the governor on disciplinary matters.

Combined Graduated Level Examination is an examination conducted by the Staff Selection Commission to recruit Group B and C officers to various posts in top ministries, departments and organisations of the Government of India. The Staff Selection Commission was established in 1975.

Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The officers for this post are recruited by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission through an exam which is known as JKAS examination. The statewide combined competitive examination is conducted for recruitment of various state civil service cadres.

The Air Force Common Admission Test is conducted by the Air Force Selection Board for the recruitment of ground and flying staff of the Indian Air Force (IAF). The Air Force Selection Board is the recruitment wing of the Indian Air Force.

The NDA Exam is an entrance examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) of India. The exam is conducted twice a year for admission into the National Defence Academy (NDA) and Indian Naval Academy (INA). The NDA Exam serves as a gateway for candidates seeking a career in the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force.

References

  1. Shyam, Radhe (29 August 2023). "CDS-Combined Defence Services Examination, 2023". eduvala.com. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  2. Shyam, Radhe (29 August 2023). "CDS-Combined Defence Services Examination, 2023". Edu Vala.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Forthcoming Exams" (PDF). UPSC. 15 September 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  4. "CDS Eligibility 2023: Age Limit, Qualification & Physical Standards". 4 August 2022.
  5. "Join Indian Army official website".
  6. "UPSC CDS official notification".