NDA Recruitment 2025: Check Vacancies, Eligibility, Selection Process & Result

NDA 1 2025 exam will be conducted on April 13, 2025. The official notification for NDA 1 2025 exam along with the application form will be released on December 11, 2024. The last date to apply for the exam is December 31, 2024.

NDA 2 2025 exam will be conducted on September 14, 2025. NDA 2 2025 notification will be released on May 28, 2025. The application form will be available till June 17, 2025. NDA 2 notification 2025 will be released to select candidates for admission to the Army, Navy and Air Force wings of NDA and Indian Naval Academy Courses beginning in July 2025.

NDA stands for National Defence Academy. NDA is situated at Khadakwasla, Pune, Maharashtra and it is one of the most prestigious military training institutions in the world. NDA trains cadets for Indian Army, Navy and Air Force. The cadets are trained to become officers in the Indian Armed Forces upon graduation. Cadets are received a Bachelor's degree in the field of engineering or technology or any other field. NDA exam is conducted for two courses every year, one starting in January and the other starting in July. The courses are of three years duration and cadets are trained in various aspects of military and academic education. NDA exam comprises written exam and SSB interview.

Yes, women candidates can now apply for NDA exam. In 2021, Supreme Court of India has allowed women candidates to appear for NDA exam. The eligibility criteria of women candidates are same as male candidates. Women candidates aged between 16.5 years to 19.5 years can apply for NDA exam. They must have passed Class 12 or equivalent from a recognised board. Candidates who are appearing in Class 12 exam can also apply for NDA. Now women candidates are also eligible for applying to the Indian Naval Academy course. Earlier, they were not allowed to apply for Indian Naval Academy. The eligibility for the women candidates are same as their male counterparts. However, there is a difference in the medical standards of women candidates.

You can abbreviate your name within 30 characters and fill it in the name column of NDA application form. You need to send a signed written request to Joint Secretary (Examination), UPSC Dholpur House, Shahjahan Road, New Delhi 110069 by speed-post or fax by giving details of the full name and reasons for abbreviation in this regard. Applicants need to fill NDA application form online. Candidates are not required to sent the hard copy of the NDA application form. The application form can be filled in two parts. In Part 1 of NDA application form, candidates need to fill register for the exam, choose the preferred branch, verify the details and generate the registration ID. In Part 2, candidates need to select the exam centre, upload scanned images of photograph and signature. Before filling the application form, candidates need to complete the one time registration.

NDA admit card is released online only. The hard copy of the admit card is not sent to candidates by post. The admit card can be downloaded by logging with registration number or roll number. The steps to download the admit card are given below:

• Visit the official website
• On the home page, find ‘E-admit card National Defence Academy Examination, ’ link
• The login page opens in a new tab
• Read the instructions carefully before downloading the admit card
• Agree to the terms and conditions
• Select any of the options-registration number or roll number
• If candidates select the registration number option, they need to enter the registration number, date of birth, and random image
• If candidates select the roll number option, they need to enter the roll number, date of birth, and random image
• Click the ‘Submit’ button
• NDA admit card appears on the screen
• Download the admit card and take its printout

NDA admit card is released online by the Union Public Service Commission. The admit card is released on the official website-upsc.gov.in. To download the admit card, candidates need to enter registration number or roll number, date of birth and captcha code. The hard copy of the admit card is not sent to candidates by post. Candidates need to carry the printed copy of the admit card along with one photo-identity proof to the exam centre. The following details are printed on the admit card:

• Candidate’s Name
• Date of birth
• Roll number
• Photograph and signature
• Exam Date
• Exam time
• Reporting time
• Name of exam centre
• Address of exam centre
• City
• Centre code (if any)

NDA admit card for the written exam is released online by UPSC. The admit card can be downloaded by entering the required credentials. The hard copy of the admit card is not sent to candidates by post. NDA admit card can be downloaded by following the steps given below:

1) Visit the official website of UPSC

 2) Click the NDA admit card download link'

3) Candidates can download their admit cards by either logging with registration number or roll number

4) After submitting the details, NDA admit card appears on the screen

5) Download the admit card and take its printout

After downloading the admit card, candidates should take printout of it. Candidates need to carry the printout of the admit card to the exam centre.

NDA syllabus is prescribed by UPSC. The syllabus is mentioned on the notification. NDA syllabus is divided into Maths and GAT. The standard of NDA syllabus is of Class 10, 11 and 12 levels. The total marks allotted to the written exam are 900. NDA Maths syllabus comprises topics such as Algebra, Calculus, Matrices and Determinants, Integral Calculus and Differential Equations, Trigonometry, Vector Algebra, Analytical Geometry Of Two and Three Dimension and Statistics and  Probability. NDA GAT syllabus comprises topics such as Grammar and Usage, Vocabulary, Comprehension, and Cohesion, Physics, Chemistry, Social Studies, General Science, Geography, and Current Events.

Every year thousands of candidates appear for NDA exam. With so much competition, candidates need to have a proper preparation strategy for the exam. Candidates need to be consistent with their study plans. They should devote few hours every day to study. Candidates need to be thorough with the syllabus. Candidates must revise their notes and important formulae every day. Candidates must practise mock tests and previous years' question papers to get familiar with the exam pattern and syllabus. Candidates must clear their basic concepts of each and every topic given in the syllabus. This will help candidates to solve the questions easily in the exam.

UPSC  announced 395 vacancies for NDA 1 2023. A total of 208 (including 10 for female candidates) were announced for Army, 42 (including 03 for female candidates) for Navy and 120 for Air Force (two vacancies each were earmarked for Flying and Ground Duty (Technical & Non-Technical Branches). NDA exam is conducted for admission of candidates to the Army, Navy and Air Force wings of NDA and Indian Naval Academy courses.

A total of 404 vacancies were announced for NDA 2 2024 exam. The vacancy break-up is given below.

A total of 395 vacancies were announced for NDA 2 2023 exam. Out of total vacancies, 208 vacancies were announced for Army, 42 for Navy, 120 for Air Force and 25 for Indian Naval Academy (10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme). A total of 35 vacancies were announced for women candidates.

The SSB procedure consists of two stage Selection process- stage I and stage II. Only those candidates who clear the stage I are permitted to appear for stage II. The details are:
(a) Stage I comprises of Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) tests are Picture Perception Description Test (PP&DT). The candidates will be shortlisted based on combination of performance in OIR Test and PP&DT
(b) Stage II Comprises of Interview, Group Testing Officer Tasks, Psychology Tests and the Conference. These tests are conducted
over four days. 
The personality of a candidate is assessed by three different assessors viz. The Interviewing Officer (IO), Group Testing Officer (GTO) and the Psychologist. There are no separate weightage for each test. The mks are allotted by assessors only after taking into consideration the performance of the candidate holistically in all the test. In addition, marks for Conference are also allotted based on the initial performance of the Candidate in the three techniques and decision of the Board. All these have equal weightage.
The various tests of IO, GTO and Psych are designed to bring out the presence/absence of Officer Like Qualities and their trainability in a candidate. Accordingly candidates are recommended or not recommended at the SSB.

NDA selection process comprises written exam and SSB interview. Candidates need to secure qualifying marks separately in the written exam and SSB interview. Qualified candidates will be placed in a single combined list on the basis of total marks secure in the written exam and SSB interview. Final allocation is done based on the number of vacancies, eligibility, medical fitness and merit-cum-preference of the candidates. The written exam of NDA is conducted for 900 marks. The sectional cutoff marks for the written exam is 25 per cent. The SSB interview carries 900 marks. The SSB interview is conducted in two stages. Stage 1 comprises Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) tests and Picture Perception and Description Test (PP&DT) whereas Stage 2 comprises Group Testing Officer Tasks, Psychology Tests, and the Conference.