CDS
Recruits graduates as officer cadets for the Indian Military Academy (Dehradun), Indian Naval Academy (Ezhimala) and Air Force Academy (Dundigal), all permanent commission, and the Officers' Training Academy (Chennai), which gives a Short Service Commission and is open to men and women.
Eligibility
Indian Military Academy (IMA) and Officers' Training Academy (OTA): any graduate. Indian Naval Academy (INA): BE/BTech. Air Force Academy (AFA): graduate with Physics and Maths at Class 12, or BE/BTech. Final-year students may apply. IMA, INA and AFA are for unmarried men only; OTA is open to men and to unmarried women. You must meet SSB and medical standards.
Age limit: IMA and INA: 19–24 years; AFA: 20–24 years (relaxation up to 26 for DGCA Commercial Pilot Licence holders); OTA: 19–25 years
Exam pattern
Offline OMR exam. IMA, INA and AFA candidates take three papers: English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics, each 100 marks and 2 hours (total 300). OTA candidates take only English and General Knowledge (total 200). One-third of a question's marks is deducted for each wrong answer. Shortlisted candidates take a five-day Services Selection Board (SSB) interview, worth 300 marks for IMA/INA/AFA and 200 for OTA.
Syllabus at a glance
English covers grammar, vocabulary, comprehension and sentence arrangement. General Knowledge covers current affairs, Indian history, geography, polity, economy, general science and defence-related news. Elementary Mathematics is at matriculation level: arithmetic, algebra, trigonometry, geometry, mensuration and statistics.
Upcoming dates
| Event | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| CDS (I) 2027 notification | 2 Dec 2026 | confirmed |
| CDS (I) 2027 online application closes | 22 Dec 2026 | confirmed |
| CDS (I) 2027 written exam | 11 Apr 2027 (Sunday) | confirmed |
| CDS (I) 2027 written result | May–Jun 2027 | expected |
| CDS (II) 2027 notification | 12 May 2027 (applications close 1 Jun 2027) | confirmed |
| CDS (II) 2027 written exam | 19 Sep 2027 (Sunday) | confirmed |
Expected dates follow the usual calendar; confirm on the official notification before planning.
Free prep material
Standard books
- Pathfinder CDS Combined Defence Services Entrance Examination – Arihant Experts
- Objective General English – S.P. Bakshi (Arihant)
- Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations – R.S. Aggarwal
- Lucent's General Knowledge – Lucent Publications
- A Brief History of Modern India – Rajiv Ahir (Spectrum)
- Indian Polity – M. Laxmikanth
How toppers play it
- English decides selection for OTA candidates and is the biggest differentiator for others; drill spotting errors, synonyms and antonyms, and ordering of sentences from past papers.
- Elementary Mathematics is Class 10 level but time-pressured: master shortcuts for percentages, time-speed-distance and mensuration, and skip lengthy trigonometry questions on the first pass.
- Note the sectional minimum (usually 20% in each paper) as well as the overall cut-off; a weak General Knowledge score can disqualify you even with a strong total.
- With a one-third penalty, attempt a General Knowledge question only if you can eliminate two options; blind guessing loses marks on average.
- Apply for all eligible academies with a sensible order of preference; OTA has the most vacancies and the lowest written cut-off.