Combined Defence Services – 2017 (CDS – 2017 (II))

CDS (II) 2017 written results were declared on 1st Jan 2018.

CDS 2017 (II) application portal is closed now. Click here to know the Important Dates.

What is CDS?

CDS or Combined Defence Services is a recruitment exam, conducted by the UPSC on behalf of the defence ministry for choosing officer into the Indian armed forces. The CDS exam is conducted twice a year, usually in the months of February and November. Only unmarried men/women who have graduated are eligible to take this test.

Suggested: Learn in detail about the Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT 2 2017).

Candidates, who have cleared both their written exam and the SSB interviews, get an opportunity for training in the following academies (before finally being recruited):

• Indian Military Academy (IMA) located in Dehradun.
• Indian Naval Academy (INA), Ezhimala (Kerala).
• Indian Air Force Academy (IAF), 40 km from Hyderabad (Deccan).
• Officers Training Academy (OTA), Chennai.

Also Read: Learn in detail about the National Defence Academy (NDA 2017 (II))

List of Contents

1. Date of Examination.
2. Medium of Examination.
3. Mode of Examination.
4. Eligibility Criteria.
5. How to apply?
   1. Application fee.
   2. Documents required.
   3. Procedure.
6. Admit Cards.
7. Examination Pattern.
8. Staff Selection Board (SSB).
9. Results.
10. Important Dates.
11. Important Links.

CDS 2017 Exam Date

The CDS exam is conducted twice a year. The CDS 2017 (I) written test was held on 05^th February 2017.

The CDS 2017 (II) is to be held on 19^th November 2017.

Medium of Examination

The CDS 2017 (II) will have both ENGLISH and HINDI as its medium of the exam.

Type of Examination

CDS 2017 (II) written exam shall be an objective type OFFLINE test.

CDS 2017 Eligibility Criteria

Nationality

An applicant of CDS 2017 (II) must hold either of the following nationalities:

• Be an Indian citizen.
• A subject of Bhutan.
• A subject of Nepal.
• A Tibetan refugee who came over to India before Jan 1^st, 1962 with the intention of permanently settling over here.

• A person of Indian origin who has migrated over from Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, East African countries like Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Zambia, Zaire, Malawi, Ethiopia with the intention of permanently settling in India.

Note: In the case of candidates hailing from Gorkha region of Nepal, certificate of eligibility is not required. 

Age Limits, Gender, and Marital Status

Women candidates are only considered for Officer Training Academy (OTA) under Short Service Commission (SSC).

• For IMA, INA: Only Unmarried male candidates with the date of birth falling in between 2^nd Jan 1994 and 1^st Jan 1999 (both inclusive).

• For Air Force Academy: For AFA, only unmarried males with the date of birth (DOB) falling in between 2^nd Jan 1994 and 1^st Jan 1998 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 Background

For Indian Military Academy & Officer Training Academy – Any degree in any discipline will be sufficient for IMA & OTA.

For Indian Naval Academy (INA): Aspiring applicants must bear a degree in Engineering from a recognized university.

For Air Force Academy

Physical Standards

Those who clear the written test are also to be examined medically as per the procedure mentioned in their website http://upsc.gov.in
Only those candidates who are medically fit are further eligible to attend the interviews.

Suggested Read: Learn about the CDS 2018 Exam.

How to apply for CDS 2017 (II)?

Application Fee

The application fee of CDS 2017 (II) will be Rs. 200 for General category male candidates.

No application charges are, however, levied on SC/ST/Female candidates.

Following modes of payment are present for CDS 2017 (II):

1. Cash deposit at SBI Branches.
2. Net banking facility of SBI & associate banks.
3. Visa/Master Credit/Debit Cards.

Applicants paying via “Cash deposits” have to deposit the pay-in slip on next working day only. Also, “Pay by cash” method will be closed one day before the last day of applying.

Photograph and Signature Specifications

1. Scanned photograph – 140 X 110 pixels – JPG format – 3-40 Kb in size.
2. Scanned Signature – 110 X 140 pixels in JPG format, occupying 1-40 kb in size.

Procedure

CDS 2017 (II) application form has been released on 9^th August 2017, along with the official notification. The last date of applying is going to be 8^th September 2017. Follow the link https://upsconline.nic.in/. 

The application form for CDS 2017 (II) shall be available only in ONLINE format.

Similar to other UPSC applications such as Civil services and ESE 2017, the procedure for CDS 2017 (II) will also have two Phases/parts.

Phase 1

The phase I of CDS 2017 (II) application shall, like other UPSC forms, collect all the personal details of the applicant.

Phase 2

Further part II of the application will ask the candidate to complete 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.

Candidates shall not send the printed application form or any other form of document to UPSC office as a part of the application.

CDS 2017 Admit Card

CDS 2017 (II) admit cards are to be downloaded from the official site, 3 weeks before the exam date i.e., from 29^th October 2017.

CDS 2017 Examination Pattern

CDS 2017 (II) will be an objective- type offline test.

For IMA, INA, and AFA

Candidates will be tested for their proficiency in following three subjects:

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

Each of these 3 papers will be 2 hours long with 120 questions each, taking the total to 300 marks.

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.

Suggested: Learn in detail about the AFCAT preparation books.

Staff Selection Board (SSB) Interviews

These determine the personality, intelligence, compatibility and potential of the aspiring candidates into the Armed forces.

Basically held in 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

Those who get recommended by the board to get into the armed forces after the above-mentioned tests are for once and for all to be further medically examined.
After the completion of medicals, the respective forces release their final merit list.

CDS 2017 Results

The tentative date of announcement of the written test for CDS II 2017 was 1st January 2018. Download the UPSC Results PDF to check the results.

CDS 2017 Important Dates

Important Links

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