Update: UPSC has published the CDS 2 2022 official notification today 18 May 2022. Check the notification PDF below. Check the complete details related to CDS 2 2022 notification, exam date, cut-off, application form, age limits, and more.
The Combined Defence Services Examination is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for the recruitment of Commissioned Officers in the Indian Military Academy, Officers Training Academy, Indian Naval Academy, and Indian Air force Academy.
The Combined Defence Services Exam is conducted twice a year. It can be attempted in Hindi or English. The second CDS 2022 2 Exam will be held on 4th September 2022. The application form will be available from 18th May 2022. The last day to register will be 7th June 2022.
The exam will be held in an offline mode. Candidates who are aspiring to join the armed forces and an officer can check the latest details related to CDS 2 2022 notification.
| CDS 2 2022 EVENTS | IMPORTANT DATES |
| Notification Release date | 18 May 2022 |
| CDS 2 2022 Application Start | 18 May 2022 |
| CDS 2 2022 Apply Last Date | 7 June 2022 |
| Release of Admit card | 2 Weeks before Exam |
| CDS 2 2022 Exam date | 04 September 2022 (SUNDAY) |
| Declaration of result | Nov– Dec 2022 |
| CDS Exam Online Coaching | Enroll Now |
| CDS 2 2022 Notification | Download |
Here is some important information regarding the CDS II 2022 Exam:
CDS 2 2022 Eligibility Criteria:
Nationality:
- A Citizen of India
- A subject of Bhutan or Nepal
- A Tibetan refugee who came over to India before January 1962, intending to permanently settle in India.
- A person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, and East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, and Ethiopia or Vietnam intending to permanently settle in India.
Candidates under points (2), (3), and (4), must have a certificate or proof issued by the Indian Government in favour of their statement. Candidates who are Gorkha subjects of Nepal are not required to show any kind of certificate of CDS eligibility.
A candidate in whose case a certificate of CDS eligibility 2022 is necessary may be admitted to the examination provisionally subject to the necessary certificate being given to him or her by the Government before the declaration of the results by the UPSC.
CDS 2 2022 Educational Qualification:
- For the Indian Military Academy and Officers’ Training Academy: Graduation from a recognized university.
- For the Indian Naval Academy: An engineering degree from a recognized university.
- For the Indian Air Force Academy: Bachelor of Engineering or a graduation with physics and mathematics in class 12.
Candidates who are appearing for their final year college exams are also eligible to attempt the CDS Exam. During the time of the SSB interview, an authentic graduation certificate must be provided to the board.
CDS 2 2022 Vacancies:
| Academy | Vacancies |
| IMA | 100 |
| INA | 22 |
| AFA | 32 |
| OTA Chennai Men | 169 |
| OTA Chennai Women | 16 |
CDS 2 2022 Age Limit and Marital Status:
- Indian Military Academy: Unmarried male candidates born not earlier than 2nd July, 1999 and not later than 1st July, 2004 only are eligible.
- Indian Naval Academy: Unmarried male candidates born not earlier than 2nd July, 1999 and not later than 1st July, 2004 only are eligible.
- Indian Air Force Academy: 20 to 24 years as on 1st July, 2023 i.e. born not earlier than 2nd July, 1999 and not later than 1st July, 2003 (Upper age limit for candidates holding valid and current Commercial Pilot Licence issued by DGCA (India) is relaxable upto 26 yrs. i.e. born not earlier than 2nd July, 1997 and not later than 1st July, 2003 only are eligible.
- Officers’ Training Academy:
- SSC Women Non-Technical Course: Unmarried women, issueless widows who have not remarried and issueless divorcees (in possession of divorce documents) who have not remarried are eligible. They should have been born not earlier than 2nd July, 1998 and not later than 1st July, 2004
- SSC Men Course: unmarried male candidates born not earlier than 2nd July, 1998 and not later than 1st July, 2004 only are eligible.
Undesired Health Issues:
- Wax in ears
- Deviated Nasal Septum
- Hydrocele/Varicocele/Phimosis
- Overweight/Underweight
- Piles
- Gynaecomastia
Permanent body tattoos are strictly prohibited anywhere on the body except for the inner face of the forearm i.e., inside of elbow to the wrist and on the reverse side of palm/back, dorsal, side of the hand.
In certain cases, candidates with tattoos of specific tribes on their faces or bodies as per their existing customs and traditions will be permitted.
CDS 2 2022 Exam Syllabus:
Entrance into the Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy and the Indian Air Force Academy requires you to clear three subject which are English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics.
Entrance into the Officers’ Training Academy requires clearance of only two subjects which are English and General Knowledge.
CDS Exam Pattern for IMA, INA, AFA:
| Subject | Time | Marks |
| English | 2 hours | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 2 hours | 100 |
| Elementary Mathematics | 2 hours | 100 |
CDS 2 2022 Pattern for OTA:
| Subject | Time | Marks |
| English | 2 hours | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 2 hours | 100 |
CDS 2 2022 Exam Syllabus:
English
- Spotting Errors
- Sentence Arrangement
- Synonyms
- Antonyms
- Selecting Words
- Ordering of Sentence
- Comprehension Questions
- Ordering of words in a sentence
- Fill-in-the-blanks questions
- Idioms and Phrases
General Knowledge:
- Economics
- Physics
- Current Affairs
- Politics
- Chemistry
- History
- Defence Related Awards
- Geography
- Sport
- Biology
- Cultural Knowledge
Elementary Mathematics:
- Algebra
- Trigonometry
- Geometry
- Mensuration
- Statistics
- Arithmetic
CDS Exam Cut Off (Previous Years)
CDS 1 2022 Examination Pattern
UPSC follows a standard and very transparent manner to conduct the CDS 1 2022 examination. The written examination consists of the below subjects:
A) For Admission to Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy, and Air Force Academy:
| SUBJECT | DURATION | MAX. MARKS |
| ENGLISH | 2 HOURS | 100 M |
| GENERAL KNOWLEDGE | 2 HOURS | 100 M |
| ELEMENTARY MATHEMATICS | 2 HOURS | 100 M |
B) For Admission to Officers’ Training Academy:
| SUBJECT | DURATION | MAX. MARKS |
| ENGLISH | 2 HOURS | 100 M |
| GENERAL KNOWLEDGE | 2 HOURS | 100 M |
| CDS Paper | English | GK | Mathematics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum Marks | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Marks for Correct answer | +0.83 marks for each correct option | +0.83 marks for each correct option | +1 marks for each correct option |
| Negative marking | -0.27 marks for each wrong answer | -0.27 marks for each wrong answer | -0.33 marks for each wrong answer |
| For IMA, INA, AFA | ||
| Subject | Duration | Maximum Marks |
| English | 2 hrs | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 2 hrs | 100 |
| Elementary Mathematics | 2 hrs | 100 |
| For OTA | ||
| Subject | Duration | Maximum Marks |
| English | 2 hrs | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 2 hrs | 100 |
How many candidates apply for the CDS exam?
So, starting with the number of cadidates who apply for the UPSC CDS exam. CDS exam is conducted two times every year by the UPSC for the defence aspirants who want to join the Army, Airforce and Navy as an officer. Every time around 5 lakh+ candidates apply for CDS exam, so in one year around 10 lakh+ candidates apply for the CDS exam.
How many candidates clear the CDS exam?
Now coming to the curricula part, how many candidates actually clear the CDS exam? Looking at the previous CDS results, around 7000 to 9000 candidates only clear the CDS written exam. You can find the details on a number of candidates who cleared the CDS exam from previous years.
| Exam | No. of candidates clear CDS written exam |
| CDS 1 2022 | Exam Date: 10th April 2022 |
| CDS 2 2021 | 6845 |
| CDS 1 2021 | 6552 |
| CDS 2 2020 | 6727 |
| CDS 1 2020 | 7081 |
| CDS 2 2019 | 8120 |
| CDS 1 2019 | 7953 |
| CDS 2 2018 | 7650 |
| CDS 1 2018 | 8261 |
| CDS 2 2017 | 8692 |
| CDS 1 2017 | 8548 |
How many candidates clear the CDS SSB Interview?
Clearing the SSB interview is very challenging, not because of the tests conducted at the SSB but because of the low success rate. Out of 100 candidates only 5 – 6 candidates clear the SSB interview, not to forget the SSB Screening test i.e. OIR Test and PPDT, Stage-1 testing where 60% of candidates fail. Now coming to how many candidates clear the CDS SSB interview, you may find the details below:
| UPSC CDS Exam | No. of candidates clear CDS SSB interview |
| CDS 1 2022 | To Be Updated After Writtens Exams |
| CDS 2 2021 | SSB Interviews under process. |
| CDS 1 2021 | 154 (85 +58 +11) & 169 (*113 + ^56 ) OTA Men and Women |
| CDS 2 2020 | 129 (71 + 49 + 09) (IMA INA AFA) & 192 (*141 + ^51 ) OTA Men and Women |
| CDS 1 2020 | 95 (50+39+6) (IMA INA AFA) & 147 (*96 + ^51 ) OTA Men and Women |
| CDS 2 2019 | 196 (106+76+14) (IMA INA AFA) & 241 (*174 + ^67 ) OTA Men and Women |
| CDS 1 2019 | 129(IMA AFA INA) + 267 OTA |
| CDS 2 2018 | 295 |
| CDS 1 2018 | 272 |
| CDS 2 2017 | 419 |
| CDS 1 2017 | 441 |
How many candidates clear CDS Merit List?
As we are observing for a few years, no one gets merit out through UPSC entry, if you clear the SSB interview and medical examination, there are 100% chances of you getting the joining instructions for the respective training academy.
Hope this analysis will help the CDS aspirants to understand the competition level and they can prepare better for their upcoming examination.
Previous Years CDS Official Cut Off Marks
CDS 1 2019 Cut Off Marks [Official]
CDS 2 2018 Cut Off Marks [Official]
CDS 1 2018 Cut Off Marks [Official]
CDS 2 2017 Cut Off Marks: The cutoff of CDS 2 2017 exam has not been released by UPSC yet. Aspirants who appeared for CDS 2 2017 written exam can check the expected cut off below:
CDS 1 2017 Cut Off Marks: The cutoff of CDS 1 2017 exam has not been released by UPSC yet. Aspirants who appeared for CDS 1 2017 written exam can check the expected cut off below:
CDS 2 2016 Cutoff Official: These are the official cut off marks of CDS 2 2016 exam published by UPSC
Now Look at how many aspirants applied for CDS 2016 and 2017 and cleared it based on the official data
CDS 1 2016
- Number of candidates applied: 2,50,000+
- Roll number of last written qualified candidate: 0239701
- Total number of candidates cleared CDS 1 2016 written exam: 8411
- Total number of candidates cleared SSB interview: 325
- IMA: 92
- INA: 31
- AFA: 3
- OTA: (153 Men + 46 Women)
CDS 2 2016
- Number of candidates applied: 2,80,000+
- Roll number of last written qualified candidate: 0279910
- Total number of candidates cleared CDS 1 2016 written exam: 8563
- Total number of candidates cleared SSB interview: 593
- IMA: 168
- INA: 81
- AFA: 16
- OTA: (258 Men + 70 Women)
CDS 1 2017
- Number of candidates applied: 1,85,000+
- Roll number of last written qualified candidate: 0183972
- Total number of candidates cleared CDS 1 2016 written exam: 8548
- Total number of candidates cleared SSB interview: 300 +
- IMA: 124
- INA: 75
- AFA: 10
- OTA: 181 Male (including IMA candidates) + 51 Female
How To Apply for CDS 2 2022:
- Click on upsconline.nic.in.
- Click on ONLINE APPLICATION FOR VARIOUS EXAMINATIONS OF UPSC.
- Click on Part-I Registration of CDS II 2022 Examination.
- Read all the instructions carefully.
- Click on YES once you have read the instructions.
- Fill in your details EXACTLY as per given in your Matriculation/SSC/10th Class Secondary School Certificate.
- Give proper educational qualification.
- Give proper address and communication details. Give only a workable e-mail ID and phone number and do give an alternate e-mail ID.
- Recheck the information that you have written / filled-up until now. Once you find all is okay, click on CONTINUE.
- Fill up your genuine and authentic details of Photo-identity card, its number and give your choice of preference in numbers for the various vacancies in Army, Navy, Air Force and Naval Academy.
- Give your details about CPSS/PABT test, your choice of consideration as a ground duty officer in the Indian Air Force, whether a student of a Sainik or Military School, etc. with care and attention.
- Recheck your details and click on CONTINUE.
- Recheck the application format provided. Write the captcha provided and click on “I AGREE” and make sure that you will not be able to change any part of the application.
- Observe that you get a message to your registered mobile number and the registered e-mail that you have successfully finished Part-I of the application.
- Save and download the Part-I successful registration slip.
- Click and directly go to Part-II of the application.
- Type the Registration ID that you got in your mail (or message in your registered mobile) from the UPSC. Enter your Date of Birth and rewrite the fresh captcha.
- Do the necessary payment of ₹ 200 (offline mode has to be done through downloading e-challan and paying it at the nearest SBI bank branch, online would be easier by Credit/Debit Cards, net-banking is also available).
- Save the Payment Slip and download it since it contains Transaction ID and Payment status, something particularly important.
- Click on CONTINUE.
- Upload the scanned photograph, scanned signature, and scanned Photo identity card as per the instructions given.
- Write your Aadhar ID Number that is automatically verified by the UPSC website.
- Select your exam city.
- Click on I HAVE READ THE DECLARATION – FINALLY SUBMIT.
- Rewrite the registration ID and date of birth and captcha in the new tab opened.
- Download the completed Application and note that you get the notification that Part II of this application has been successful in your mobile and your e-mail too.
- Preserve this application and note that admit cards will be available on the UPSC website three weeks before the commencement of the examination.
- Download the SSBCrack Exams Learning App and start preparing for CDS. If in case you are already a part of the family, keep up the progress high.
In the above article, we gone through the Combined Defence Services Examinations’ eligibility, educational qualification requirements, age limit, marital status and the exam syllabus.
Aspiring candidates must be up-to-date with any news released about the applications opening and should have relevant documents ready before hand to avoid delay in registration.
The exam is a not an easy one, especially for the candidates appearing for three papers as all three subjects are given on the same day.
Adequate practice with sample papers and previous years’ papers is a must.
Hard work, determination and good time management will aid in finishing your portion on time as well as leave ample time for revision.
I wish all the candidates appearing for the CDS 2 Exam good luck!
Keep reading SSBCrackExams blog post for more such information.
