Sat Shri Akal guys, I , JASHANDEEP SINGH got my name in AFCAT july course in ADM branch PERMANENT COMMISSION. My AFCAT score was 154 and I was recommended from 1 AFSB Dehradun on 15^th Nov. I am writing this blog to share my SSB experience. First of all, I appreciate SSBCRACK for giving me this platform and continuously motivating aspirants for joining defence forces.

Beginning with my story , I have given 4 attempts so far which include 3 screen out and 1 recommendation. But those screen outs evolved me and I learnt a lot from them. I gave AFCAT 2 2019 in September and I cleared it and got my ssb date on 11 nov. 218 candidates reported and 69 got screened in.

SCREENING

I would suggest the candidates to equally focus on screening as it’s the 1^st step towards your further evaluation. I would suggest to prepare your OIR really well as it is very important and coming to PPDT observe the picture very carefully. Don’t rush to write after seeing the picture, see it thoroughly , form an theme in the mind and then execute it on the paper. In group Discussion narration plays an important role be calm and narrate with confidence. Don’t force your ideas on the group instead put up your points and also listen what others are saying.  The main thing in screening is your thought which comes through your story, your confidence which reflect through your narration and how well you can perform in group which is seen in discussion.

PSYCHOLOGY

Coming to Psychology, I was very calm and composed at that time, giving one advice never come under pressure in psych tests as it will hamper your thinking ability . In my TAT I was able to write all my stories and read them twice, I observed picture carefully, formed theme in  my mind and wrote really quickly . Write stories which are realistic, which you can relate. In WAT I was able to complete all 60 and in SRT I did 49.  In WAT, what matters most is how good your knowledge is, the more you read you more easier the WAT becomes. Coming to SRT, read the situation very carefully and write your responses crisp and short but add your action which is important. Prepare your SD beforehand , sit with your parents talk to them ask them what they think of you , this way you will be able to know more about yourself. In SD write what you truly are not what you aspire to become.

GTO

Coming to GTO and my favourite part of SSB, as I was fresher never had GTO experience before, it was new to me but it was so so smooth that I didnt find any difficulty in doing any tasks. My group members were all very cooperating and were really good . In  GD try to give your points with some examples which can back your view ,this way you will be able to convince the group. In GPE listen to GTO when he explains the task, and read the task very carefully, keep in mind the time of things when they are happening and prioritize your solutions according to time of happening of events. The best part of GTO the fatta, balli tasks, enjoy them, give your ideas but let others also implement theirs, you have to work like a team , so help others when they dont have ideas,  this way they will listen you when you put yours thought. Command task and lecturette are very important, in CT execute the solution by taking the help of your subordinates, in lecturette speak with confidence and have eye contact, try to speak the topics in front of mirror, it will help you for sure.

INTERVIEW

The most important part of SSB is your personal interview, my interview went really smooth, IO was very polite and supportive. Be sure that you know everything about yourself, your friends and family because this is the main part around which our interview will revolve, be ready for counter questioning as IO will question you on your very answer until he find satisfactory answer. I was very much grilled by IO about my friends, but I gave true answers and it takes me through. Ohh here comes the main thing “ be your true self” this is what IO wants to see.

CONFERENCE

Last but not the least “THE CONFERENCE”, the hall  where your fate will be locked. Before my conference, it waited for 5-10 minutes outside the conference hall and then I was called in, the moment I entered I saw 13-15 officers in uniform all looking at me, I greeted them and I was asked to sit. I sat and smiled at once, then I was asked about my motivation to join forces, to which I gave true answer, that it was my mother’s dreams which I would like to pursue and make her proud. And that was it. I was asked to leave.

At last , the time came and results were to be announced, and the 1^st chest no. which was called was chest no. 5 which was me. I was extremely happy .

I would like to thank all my friends, family who always believed in me and would advice to all candidates who aspire to join forces that follow your dream and work hard to achieve it, untiring efforts and life experiences are the key to success. Thank you All!

If not you, then who, If not now, then when. Hello friends. I’m Ayushi Pradhan. I’m from Meerut, UP. I got recommended in my 5th attempt from 1 AFSB, Dehradun on 3 Jan  2020. And I got merit in for Aug 2020 course at Airforce Academy. Today, I’ll be sharing my defence journey which consists of lots of ups and downs.

I started preparing for AFCAT and CDS exams in my final year of B.tech. Meanwhile, I got my call up letter for Indian Navy at 33 SSB, Bhopal on 1 Dec 2018. I was very excited for my first SSB. I started collecting all information about the 5 days process through friends and internet. During my preparation, I observed a lot of change in my personality like I was becoming more confident in public speaking and dwelling into a routine for the first time in my life. I prepared a separate diary to write my observations after self introspection. Also, I was following up current affairs daily from newspaper and internet. I purchased SSBCrack booklet for OIR and practiced from it. I didn’t practice writing psychology and maybe that’s why I was conference out but I was not demotivated because it was worth a experience.

After a few days CDS 2 2018 results came and I was so happy that I cleared it in first attempt in my final year only. I selected my SSB date on 1 June 2019 at 34 SSB Allahabad. I had heard a lot about Allahabad being the rejection board.  So I was quite nervous also that what if I get screened out. Also since I was a repeater now, I had many doubts in my mind. Again, I got conference out in my second attempt. I was upset but then I was looking forward to AFCAT result.

Meanwhile I got a campus placement at Bharti Airtel and joined the company on 17 June 2019 at Gurgaon. After a few days AFCAT 1 2019  result came and I cleared it. I selected my SSB date on 1 July 2019 at  3 AFSB Gandhinagar. This time I was screened out. It came to me as a major set back. I came back to my job and started my preparation. I gave exams of Territorial Army , CDS 1 2019, and BSF but couldn’t clear any. This was the point in my life when I felt very much under confident and depressed. My father suggested me to give other exams as well. Half heartily, I appeared for several exams like IBPS PO, EPFO, etc but couldn’t crack even a single written.

The sole reason was I wasn’t able to manage studies along with the job. I was highly disappointed to see my performance getting poorer because I have always been one of the toppers in my school and college. So, I had high expectations from myself.

Then I gathered my thoughts and started to make a balanced routine again. I cleared INET which was held for the first time. Then I went to 33 SSB, Bhopal on 4 Dec, 2019. To my shock, I got screened out once again. This time I felt completely broke. It took me a lot to gather myself earlier and again here I was. After these two continuous screen outs, my morale was sinking down. I had absolutely no idea what am I going to do next because it was already an year since I appeared for my first SSB.

Then AFCAT 2 2019 results were out. I selected my SSB date as 30 Dec 2019 at 1 AFSB, Dehradun. I had selected the dates but to be honest I had no heart to go for it. Because after two continuous screen outs, I was afraid to face  one more. But my father who has always been there with me in all of my SSBs, he pushed me to go for it. He believed that I’ll surely make it this time. So I applied 15 days  leaves at office and came back home for preparation. This time I made a lot of changes in writing psychology. I practiced TAT, WAT, SRT daily. And I felt the progress I was making. Things were getting more clear to me. I worked on my weak areas, practiced speaking in front of mirror, read news daily, wrote down my personal observations and maintained a physical exercise routine.

On 29 Dec, I packed my stuff and reached Dehradun  along with my father and stayed at a guest room near the SSB centre. I got up early in the morning and got ready for screening. Around 300  girls reported in morning at 1 AFSB, Dehradun. After documentation, we were divided in the groups of 15 each. I was very much nervous inside. So, I was motivating myself that I’ll forget everything and give my best.

My OIR went excellent. In PPDT, there was a village scene in which a group of people were standing by road side. I made a story around bringing in the concept of e-rikshaw in the village so that students could go to their schools and colleges  without waiting for local buses which get delayed often. I recited my story clearly and confidently and maintained eye contact with everyone in the group. Group discussion was a big fish market but other candidates appreciated my story and chose it to take as a common theme. I got a chance to speak 3 times in which I tried to touch the points which no one had mentioned. I was satisfied with my performance. Then in the afternoon results were announced. The moment I heard  my chest number, I was so elated. I went up running and joined the group of screened in candidates. I was given chest number 68. Total 80 girls got screened in. We were then divided into groups of 10 each.  Then we went to our respective rooms. Our room was ‘Chetak’. We all introduced ourselves and  settled. After a little rest, we got ready for the psychology test that was to be held in the evening.

Most of the TAT pictures were female oriented. I wrote all good TAT stories based on my own experiences. I was able to complete all 60 WAT, 60 SRT and Self Description on time. I was quite happy with my psych performance as this was the first time when I was able to complete the entire test on time. Also, I reflected all dimensions of my personality in my psych. The next day was free for us so we went out to visit Dehradun. We went to Paltan Bazar, Buddhist Monastery and explored the markets. This visit had united our group so well and we all became good friends. We brought  cake, chocolates and many snacks to celebrate New years Eve. It was the best group of girls I had met and I was so thankful for it.

Our interviews were scheduled on third day. My interview went for 50 min in which interviewer grilled me a lot. I was able to answer all personal questions confidently. But when it came to Gk part, I wasn’t able to answer most of his questions. To which he grilled me a lot and maintained a pressure throughout. I was not setting back because of this grilling but I was simply denying the questions which I didn’t know. Since I was eligible for technical branch, he asked me many typical technical questions which I simply denied to know. He even said that, “why have you come for SSB when you know nothing, go back”. After I came back to room, I analysed my interview with my group. And came to the conclusion that he was putting pressure to test me.

The next day was GTO 1st day which started with GD. Whenever I got the chance to speak, I put my opinion clearly stating facts as explanation. I was able to solve Group Planning Exercise on time and discussion was again a fish market. In Group Obstacle Race, I along with my group maintained high josh and helped each other. In PGT, I was going with the flow and helping my group. But I couldn’t get a chance to execute my ideas as everyone was hustling. So  I grabbed the opportunity in HGT and presented the idea. GTO asked me to execute the same in various other ways. At the end of day, I was satisfied with my performance. In nights we used to chatter and discuss almost everything from world and around. It was fun to be a part of this group.

Next day we had our GTO 2nd day followed by the conference. My lecturette topic was – CPEC(China Pakistan Economic Corridor). I spoke confidently about it and explained the inter relationship between countries along with China’s aggressive policies. I have been very much into literary events in my school and college, so, this served as a benefit to me. In Individual Obstacles, I could complete 7 out of 8 in the time frame given. In Command Task, I was called thrice by my group mates. GTO asked me about my previous attempts before CT. My command task was quite difficult one. So I took time in understanding it and then commanding subordinates. GTO raised the difficulty level by removing the material twice. And I was able to complete it somehow.

Now the final milestone was left- Conference. I was asked a personal question in my conference and other formal questions about stay and food. Around 4PM, we were ready to listen to results. One by one chest numbers were being called. When I heard my chest number, I wanted to shout loud but I maintained my calm and went ahead. It was a beautiful moment. From our group I and my friend Chetna got recommended. We both were so happy and congratulated each other.

It was not  the preparation of just 15 days which helped me to achieve recommendation but the entire journey of 5 attempts which improved me gradually. Now after getting into the merit, I can say it with proof that efforts pay off. If I can make it, you can also. Just don’t give up on your dreams. Even if failures throw you back, come back stronger. Jai Hind.