UPSC CDS 2020 – The result of UPSC CDS examination is now declared. The Combined Defence Service 2020 examintion was held on February 02, 2020. The commission conducts the CDS exam twice a year – CDS 1 and CDS 2. Candidates must have a degree to apply for the post of defence services at Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, Officers’ Training Academy. Selection of candidates is done on the basis of candidates performance in the CBT, and interview/Personality Test. Check more details on UPSC CDS 2020 from this page.
Latest: The result of CDS 1 2020 is now available. Check here
CDS 2020
UPSC focus and emphasise on gender equality, and striving hard to ensure that gender balance is reflected through our armed forces. Hence, female candidates are encouraged to apply for UPSC CDS. Important dates related to CDS 1 2020 exam is given below:
| CDS 2020 | Important Dates |
| Date of Exam Notification | 30 Oct 2019 |
| CDS 1 2020 Application Form releases on | 30 Oct 2019 |
| Last date to submit CDS application form | 19 Nov 2019 |
| Date of CDS 1 2020 Admit Card Release | 09 Jan – 02 Feb 2020 |
| UPSC CDS 1 2020 exam date | 02 Feb 2020 |
| Declaration of result | 23 Mar 2020 |
Quick Links
- Application Form
- Mock Test
- Syllabus
- Exam Preparation
- Admit Card
- Previous Year Question Papers
- Answer Key
- Result
CDS Result 2020
Union Public Service Commission prepare the list of the candidates who are able to get minimum qualifying score, as mentioned by the Commission, in the written test. Successful candidates then will go for the intelligence test and personality test, conducted at the Service Selection Board on the basis of the preference they have filled by the responsible serve head quarter. Two-stage selection procedure is set on the basis of Psychological Aptitude Test and Intelligence Test at the Service Selection Boards. Candidates who are able to qualify the first stage will be able to appear for the second stage. After clearing the second stage candidates will be asked to submit their,
- Matriculation pass certificate
- Bachelors Degree/Provisional Degree and the mark sheets of the semesters/years
What is the selection process of CDS?
Candidates have to clear written test and SSB to get selected for UPSC CDS 2020 recruitment. First there is the written test, which has to be taken by all candidates. Then those who clear it are sent for SSB.
1. Written Exam: Details of the written exam are explained under the exam pattern section.
2. SSB Procedure: Procedure of SSB comprises of two stages, candidates who are able to clear stage I will be send for stage II.
2 a. Stage I has Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) test and Picture Perception* Description Test. Selection of the candidate is done on the basis of their combined performance in PP&DT as well as OIR Test.
2 b. Stage II has Psychology Tests, Interview, Conference and Group Testing. All these tests are conducted in 4 days.
Assessment of the candidate’s personality is done by the three different assessors who are Psychologist, Group Testing Officer (GTO) and Interviewing Officer (IO). No separte weightage is given to each test. These tests enable the assessors to know qhat qualities does the candidate have and accordingly they recommend the candidates at SSB.
How to prepare for SSB?
SSB interview is the most lengthy and difficult of all interviews that are performed for government job exams. SSB Interview consists of a total of two rounds i.e. Psychological Aptitude Test and Intelligence Test. Here are some tips that toppers suggest for the preparation of SSB interview:
- Start reading current affairs and newspapers daily. The newspaper contains several articles through which you can practice your TAT and have ideas for stories.
- Practice 20-30 VAT and SRT questions as the time frame to solve this section are quite less.
- Improve your way of thinking by being more realistic. Consider every situation like Situation Reaction Test (SRT), and how you would react to it.
UPSC CDS 01/2020 Vacancies
Candidates can check below the vacancies for UPSC CDS 2020.
| Name of the Course | Approximate Vacancies |
| Indian Military Academy, Dehradun | 100 |
| Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala | 45 |
| Air Force Academy, Hyderabad | 32 |
| Officers’ Training Academy, Chennai (Madras) | 225 |
| Officers Training Academy, Chennai | 16 |
| Total Vacancies | 418 |
CDS Admit Card 2020
Click here to download detailed notice.
Candidates who are eligible will receive their UPSC CDS 2020 Admit Card before the commencement of exam. Last year it was assigned 3 weeks earlier, so candidate should refer the official website of UPSC to know the exact date of Admit Card release. Admit card of CDS 2020 will only be available online on the website of UPSC. and nobody will receive it through post. Step-wise procedure of downloading the admit card is given here.
CDS Exam Pattern
It is important that the candidates must prepare for the CDS exam as per the pattern provided below:
- Mode of exam: The CDS exam is conducted in offline mode, i.e. it is a pen-paper based test
- Duration of the exam: It is of 02 hours duration
- Type of Questions: There are objective type multiple choice questions (MCQs)
- Language of questions: The question papers of Elementary Mathematics and General Knowledge are bilingual and available in both Hindi and English.
- Marking Scheme: 0.33 marks are deducted in case of incorrect answer and if candidates give more than one answer.
Candidates can check the distribution of questions from the table below.
Exam Pattern for admission to Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy and Air Force Academy
| Subject | No. of Questions | Marks |
| English | 120 | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 120 | 100 |
| Mathematics | 100 | 100 |
Exam Pattern for admission to Officers’ Training Academy
| Subject | No. of Questions | Marks |
| English | 120 | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 120 | 100 |
CDS 2020 Answer key
Union Public Service Commission releases the answer key of UPSC Combined Defence Service examination. The answer releases in the pdf format at the official webiste, upsc.gov.in. The answer key releases sepearate for English, General Knowledge and Maths. Candidates can check all the correct answers of all the questions asked in the UPSC CDS examination. Candidates can also use this answer key to calculate the estimated scores.
About Combined Defence Service
Combined Defense Service (CDS) is conducted by Union Public Service Commission twice a year. This exam is basically held for the recruitment of Indian Air Force Academy, Indian Naval Academy, Officers Training Academy and Indian Military Academy. UPSC releases the notification of exam in the month of June and October and exam is conducted generally in November and February. Graduates those who are unmarried are allowed to appear in the exam.
Official Website: upsc.gov.in
For more information on UPSC CDS 2020, click here to read the notification.
CDS 2020 Exam Frequently Asked Questions
Ans : There are total 418 vacancies available for UPSC CDS 2020.
Ans : The CDS exam is conducted in offline mode i.e. pen-paper based.
Ans : For Indian Military Academy, candidates must have a degree from a recognized university or equivalent. For Indian Naval Academy, candidates should have a degree in Engineering from a recognized university For Air Force Academy, candidates should hold a degree in Bachelor of Engineering from a recognized university and studied Mathematics and Physics in 10+2.
Ans : The total time is given to complete the UPSC CDS exam is 2 hours.
Ans : The selection procedure of UPSC CDS exam consists of a written examination, Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) test, PP&DT, Psychology Tests, and Interview.
