UPSC Combined Defence Services – 2018 (CDS – 2018)

LATEST: 

• For checking the list of finally qualified candidates o CDS 2018 (II) , scroo down on link available under heading RESULT

• Union Public Service Commission has a Facilitation Counter near Examination Hall Building in UPSC Campus. Candidates can obtain any information/clarification regarding their examination on working days between 10.00 AM to 5.00 PM, in person or over telephone No.
  011-23385271, 011-23381125 and 011-23098543.

Introduction

Combined Defence Services (CDS) is a national-level entrance exam conducted by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). It is the entrance examination conducted for recruitment of officers in all the three forces of Indian Military. The examination is conducted twice a year, usually in February and November. The whole selection process involves 2 stages – The CDS written exam followed by SSB Interviews. Upon clearing both the stages, candidates will be sent for mandatory training at either of the following academies:

• Indian Military Academy (IMA).
• Indian Naval Academy (INA).
• Air Force Academy (AFA).
• Officers Training Academy (OTA).

CDS examination is the one of the two Indian Army officer cadre recruitment exam, the other being NDA exam 2018 at 12th level.

List of Contents

• Important Dates.
• Date of Examination.
• Medium of Exam.
• Mode of Answering.
• Eligibility Criteria.
• How to Apply?
  • Application Fee.
  • Photograph and Signature Specifications.
  • Registration Procedure.
• Admit Card.
• Exam Centers.
• CDS Syllabus.
• Examination Pattern.
  • For INA, IMA, AFA.
  • For OTA.
• SSB Interviews.
• Results.
• Important Links.

CDS 2018 Important Dates 

CDS 2018 Exam Date

CDS 2018 (I) will be held on 4th February 2018 while CDS 2018 (II) shall be conducted on 18th November 2018.

Mode of Answering

CDS 2018 (both I and II) will be objective type Pen/Paper Test (OFFLINE tests).

Medium of Examination

CDS 2018 (both I and II) can be taken in either ENGLISH or HINDI language. This is purely based on candidate’s choice.

CDS 2018 Eligibility

Nationality

A candidate should be from the countries given below in order to sit for the examination.

• The candidate should be a citizen of India.
• Or a subject of Bhutan or Nepal or,
• a Tibetan refugee who came to India before 1^st January 1962 with the intention of settling down in this country permanently.
• An Indian origin person who have migrated from countries like Burma, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and East African countries like United Kingdom of Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Malawi, Zaire, Vietnam or Ethiopia all having the intention settling down here permanently.

The people of Gorkha of Nepal does not require the certificate of eligibility.

Gender, Marital status, and Age Limits

• For IMA, INA: Only Unmarried male candidates with the date of birth falling in between 2^nd Jan 1995 and 1^st Jan 2000 (both inclusive).

• For Air Force Academy: For AFA, only unmarried males with the date of birth (DOB) falling in between 2^nd Jan 1995 and 1^st Jan 1999 aged between 20 and 24 years are eligible.

Two year age relaxation is given to candidates bearing valid & current commercial pilot license issued by DGCA (India). 

• For Officer Training Academy (SSC, Men): Can be either married or unmarried. It is necessary that their date of birth falls in between 2^nd Jan 1993 and 1^st Jan 1999.

• For Officer Training Academy (SSC Women, Non-Technical): Can be either unmarried or a divorcee/widow with the date of birth between 2^nd Jan 1993 and 1^st Jan 1999.

Male divorcee/widower candidates aren’t considered under the unmarried category.

Educational Qualification

Indian Military Academy (IMA): The candidates must have a degree in any discipline from a recognized university.

For Indian Naval Academy (INA): The aspiring candidates should have a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from a recognized university.

For Air Force Academy (AFA): The candidates should have subjects like maths and physics at the +2 level or BE.

For Officers Training Academy: The candidates must have a degree in any discipline from a recognized university.

Medical Standards

The applicants who successfully clear the written test have to go through a medical check-up as per the rules and regulations given on the website http://upsc.gov.in.

How to Apply for CDS 2018?

CDS 1 2018 application portal is closed now.

The application has to be made in the online mode only.

CDS 2018 Application Fee

For General/OBC category applicants, the application fee is ₹ 200/- and the SC/ST/Female students are exempted from application fees.

The Payment can be done either by:

1. depositing cash in any branch of SBI or,
2. Visa/Master Credit/Debit Card.

Photograph and Signature Specifications

• Scanned photograph – 140 X 110 pixels – JPG format – 3-40 Kb in size.

• Scanned Signature – 110 X 140 pixels in JPG format, occupying 1-40 kb in size.

Registration Procedure

Much like other UPSC applications i.e. ESE or Civil Services, UPSC CDS 2018 application form also has two parts.

Part 1

The phase I of CDS 2018 (both I & II) application is meant for collecting the personal details of the applicant.

Part 2

Further, part II of the CDS 2018 application comprises the following 3 steps:

1. Fee payment.
2. Choosing of examination center from about 40 locations across the country.
3. Printing the complete application form for future references.

CDS 2018 Exam Centers

The CDS 2018 examination will be held in 41 cities/towns all around India.

1. Aizawl,
2. Agartala,
3. Ahmedabad,
4. Allahabad,
5. Hyderabad,
6. Patna,
7. Mumbai,
8. Udaipur,
9. Gangtok,
10. Shimla,
11. Panaji,
12. Ranchi,
13. Bareilly,
14. Jammu,
15. Sambalpur,
16. Bhopal,
17. Shillong,
18. Chandigarh,
19. Kochi,
20. Chennai,
21. Kolkata,
22. Thiruvananthapuram,
23. Dehradun,
24. Lucknow,
25. Delhi,
26. Vishakhapatnam,
27. Tirupati,
28. Port Blair,
29. Madurai,
30. Imphal,
31. Itanagar,
32. Raipur,
33. Bangalore,
34. Jaipur,
35. Jorhat,
36. Srinagar,
37. Dharwar,
38. Goa,
39. Kohima
40. Cuttack.

The above list is based on CDS 2017 center list. 

The distribution of the candidates in their preferred examination centers will be done on the first-come-first-serve basis. So, it is recommended that the applicants should fill up the application forms and submit it early so as to make sure about their seats in their preferred places.

CDS 2018 Syllabus

The syllabus of the CDS 2018 examination will be set by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The syllabus includes subjects like English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics.

Detailed Syllabus will be hosted soon.

CDS 2018 Exam Pattern

CDS 2018 (both I and II) shall be OFFLINE papers.

For IMA, INA, and AFA

Candidates applying for IMA, INA and AFA academies, will face 3 written tests of 2-hour each. Each test will have 120 questions carrying a total of 100 marks.

The three subjects include the following:

1. English.
2. Elementary Mathematics.
3. General Knowledge/Current Affairs.

There is a negative marking of 1/3 rd (0.33) of the allotted marks for each question for each incorrect response.

For Officer Training Academy

Similar to INA/IMA/AFA exam pattern except for the exclusion of Elementary Mathematics.

Candidates who qualify the CDS 2017 (II) written exam will have to register themselves on http://joinindianarmy.nic.in/ for SSB call-ups.

CDS 2018 Admit Card

CDS 2018 admit cards have been uploaded on the UPSC exam portal. Follow the link https://upsconline.nic.in/eadmitcard/admitcard_cdsi_2018/ to download your card.

CDS 2018 (I) admit cards will be published in January 2018.

CDS 2018 (II) admit cards will be published in October 2018.

CDS 2018 Answer Key

The answers of the CDS 2018 examination will be published on the official website in about a week after the commencement of the exam.

CDS 2018 Result

The CDS 2018 (I) examination result have been declared on 27th March 2018. Check your results through CDS (1) 2018 results file.

CDS 2018 (II) written results will be out in January 2019.

Candidates who clear the written exam are called for SSB Interviews.

UPSC has released the list of finally qualified candidates in CDS 2018 (II). For checking result go on following link: 

https://www.upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/FR-CDS-II-2018-OTA-Engl.pdf

Staff Selection Board (SSB) Interviews

SSB Interviews are meant for determining the personality, intelligence, compatibility, and potential of the aspiring candidates.

It holds 2 stages, only those who successfully clear stage 1 are eligible to attend the stage 2 interviews.

Stage 1

Candidates are tested in the following spheres –

• Intelligence Rating.
• Picture Perception.
• Description Test.

Stage 2

Stage 2 comprises of following three steps:

• Group testing of officers.
• Psychology tests.
• Conferences

The applicants finally clearing the interviews are called for a medical check-up before joining in their academies.

Important Links

Visit EduPadhai for more updates on CDS 2018 in near future. Also, comment down below if you have any queries or suggestions for us.