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NDA Recruitment Exam
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This avenue is open to relatively younger
candidates with 10+2 qualifications. NDA and Naval Academy (Executive
Branch) provides assured career at young age with no financial burden
of four-year training in the various training academies. The training
at NDA culminates with a graduation degree from the Jawahar Lal Nehru
University. Three-year training at NDA is followed up by one-year
professional training at Indian Military Academy (IMA) for the Army,
Naval Academy for the Indian Navy and Air Force Academy for the Air
Force.
All these wings of Defence Forces offer very good
career opportunities blended with adventure. Besides offering one of
the best pay structure in the government service, the forces also offer
facilities like free rations, free medical facilities,
free/concessional travel by rail during leave, provident fund, group
insurance and concessional residential accommodation. Besides, defence
forces also offer a good social and regimented life. Time-bound
promotions, upto a particular level, for all officers and selective top
promotions to the meritorious and bright officers is the hallmark of a
career in the defence forces.
The Selection Process
The
UPSC conducts the NDA and Naval Academy (Executive Branch) Examination
twice every year usually in the months of April and September. Each
examination is conducted to select 350 candidates, with 214 seats for
the Army, 43 for the Navy 73 for the Air Force and 20 seats for the
Executive Branch of Naval Academy. At the time of submitting the
applications, the candidates are required to give their preferences for
particular wings of the forces. The advertisement for September
Examination usually apperars in April, every year, in all major
national and regional newspapers. Similarly, the advertisement for
April examination usually appears in September/October. Simultaneously
the detailed advertisement also appears in the "Employment News" of the
concerned week.
(a) Eligibility: Only unmarried male
candidates of the age group of 161/2 years to 19 years are eligible to
take the examination for NDA/Naval Academy (Executive Branch).
Educational qualification for Army and Air Force wing at NDA is 12th
pass of 10+2 pattern or equivalent. For Naval wing of NDA and Naval
Academy (Executive Branch), the educational qualification is 12th pass
of 10+2 pattern with Physics and Mathematics or equivalent. The
candidates appearing for the final examination of 10+2 standard are
also eligible to appear.
For being eligible to appear in the
examination, a candidate must be a citizen of India or a subject of
Bhutan or Nepal. Tibetan refugees or persons of Indian Origin migrated
from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia,
Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam, with the intention of permanently
settling in India, are also eligible. However, candidates belonging to
these categories shall need to obtain a certificate of eligibility from
the Government of India.
A candidate seeking admission to the
examination must send his application form to the UPSC on the proforma
given in the advertisement for this examination. The admission to the
examination is purely provisional as no certificates are required to be
attached with the application.
(b) Written Examination: The
candidates are tested in two papers of 21/2 hours duration each. First
paper is of "Mathematics" and carries a maximum of 600 marks. The
question papers consist of objective type questions and are set in
English only. There is no fixed pass percentage of marks and depending
on the number of candidates appearing in the examination and their
overall performance, the qualifying marks are determined.
The
paper-I on Mathematics is of Matriculation Examination standard and
consists questions on Arithmetic, Mensuration, Algebra, Geometry,
Trigonometry and Statistics. Paper-II on General Ability consists of
two parts. Part-A comprises of the test of English Language to judge
the general understanding of English Language by the candidates and
carries 200 marks. Part-B of Paper-II consists of General Knowledge
carrying 400 marks and has six sections. The weightage given to these
six sections of General Knowledge is: Physics 25% Chemistry 15%,
General Science 10%, History, Freedom Movement etc 20%, Geography 20%
and current Affairs 10%.
There are 40 centres of examination.
The names of these centres are: Agartala, Ahmedabad, Aizawl, Allahabad,
Bangalore, Bareilly, Bhopal, Bombay, Calcutta, Chandigarh, Cochin,
Cuttack, Delhi, Dharwar, Dispur, Gangtok, Hyderabad, Imphal, Itanagar,
Jaipur, Jammu, Jorhat, Kavaratti, Kohima, Lucknow, Madras, Madurai,
Nagpur, Panaji, Patna, Port Blair, Raipur, Sambalpur, Shillong, Shimla,
Srinagar, Tirupati, Trivandrum, Udaipur and Vishakhapatnam.
(c)
Intelligence and Personality Test: Just like the CDS Examination, all
the candidates declared successful in the written examination are
required to qualify an intelligence and personality test conducted by
the Services Selection Board (SSB). The intelligence tests at SSB are
both oral as well as written and are designed to judge the basic
intelligence of the candidates. During the four-day-personality test,
the candidates are also put to Group Tests such as group discussion,
group planning, outdoor group tasks etc. All these tests are aimed at
judging the behaviour of the candidate in a group. In addition the
personality test also requires a candidate to deliver an impromptu
lecturette on the subjects of general interest as well as to clear ten
obstacles in 30 seconds. This way mental calibre as well as physical
robustness of the candidates is judged. The SSB interview is also
blended with a series of psychological tests like Situation REaction
Test (SRT) and pictures story writing. These psychological tests are
aimed at judging the trait of positive outlook of the candidate. In
broad terms, the intelligence and personality test is not only the test
of intellectual faculties of the candidates but is also directed at
judging their social traits, interest in current affairs and physical
and psychological toughness which finally helps to judge their
suitability for the services.
The candidates declared
successful after the SSB interview are then required to undergo a
comprehensive medical examination by a medical board in a local
Military Hospital. To avoid the last minute disappointment the
candidates are advised to get themselves medically examined as per the
prescribed standards. Prescribed standards of medical fitness are given
in the detailed advertisement given in the Employment News.
The Training Academies
On
the basis of performance of the candidates in the written examination
and the personality test, final merit list is prepared and published in
all leading newspapers. The candidates, on the basis of their rank in
the final merit list and preference, are asked to join at the NDA or
Naval Academy (Executive Branch).
The three-year training at
NDA includes the qualifying of certain physical standards, basic
knowledge of three wings of the armed forces and study of academics
leading to a graduation degree. In addition, basic etiquettes of the
forces, discipline in the armed forces and basics of drill etc are also
taught. After successful training spreading over six terms of six
months each at NDA, the candidates, as per their choice, go to the
Indian Military Academy for Army or to the Naval Academy for Navy or to
the Air-Force Academy for Air Force for two terms of six months each.
On successful completion of training at these academies, the cadets are
Commissioned into the defence forces as Second Lieutenant (Army) or
Acting sub-Lieutenant (Navy) or Pilot Officer (Air-Force). During the
last six months of training the cadets are also entitled to the salary
which is given to them in lump-sum, on commissioning.
Coaching and Preparations
Preparations
for the written examination needs special attention, Mathematics paper,
being theoretical in nature is comparatively easy to prepare. Paper-II
(General Ability) needs special attention and preparation which
consists of English and General Knowledge. Regular reading of "The
Competition Master" is particularly useful for Paper-II as it
effectively helps the candidates to prepare for English Language and
General Knowledge. Similarly, SSB interview being different from
routine interviews needs special preparations. There are certain
academies, particularly those run by former officers of the defence
forces, which provide useful coaching to the candidates preparing for
the interview. The candidates may choose genuine academies and undergo
coaching for the interview.
Further details about the
examination are available in the detailed advertisment which appears in
the Employment News. Information about the examination is also given in
the "Candidates Information Manual" which gives details about
objective-type tests. This booklet is supplied by the UPSC to all the
candidates alongwith the admission certificate.
To read the complete notification visit www.upsc.gov.in
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