Defence Exams 2022: Check Upcoming Defence Exam Dates For NDA, CDS, AFCAT & Others

Upcoming Defence Exams 2022: Dreaming for a job in Indian Defence Services? Why not, the career in the armed forces is undoubtedly highly revered in India. The defence services offer dignified, prestigious and lucrative career opportunities. As a part of the defence services, one can serve in the Army, Navy or Air Force on combat duty, on administrative assignments, in the medical services, engineering services, in the JAG’s Department, or in the Education Corps.

The nature of job responsibilities varies with the diverse range of activities in the defence services. Every citizen of India, irrespective of class, caste, religion and community is eligible to appear for defence exams provided they meet the criteria such as physical standard, age and educational qualification.

Every year, lakhs of candidates appear in defence exams to fulfil their dream of being a part of these elite forces. Candidates get the opportunity to join the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard through the defence exams in India such as CDS, NDA, AFCAT and Indian Coast Guard. Most of the defence exams are conducted by Union Public Service Commission. Besides, the individual organisations also conduct their own exams to fill up various vacancies. In this article, we have discussed in detail regarding defence exams in India.

Organisations Conducting Upcoming Defence Exams 

There are several organisations that conduct various defence exams. The list of some of the organisations is given below:

• Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) 
• Indian Air Force
• Indian Navy
• Cantonment Board
• Indo-Tibetan Border Police
• Railway Protection Force (RPF)
• Bureau of Police Research and Development
• State Police Subordinate Selection Commission 
• Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB)
• Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) 
• Border Defence Organisation (BDO)

Which is the Next Upcoming Defence Exam?

Candidates can check below defence exam 2022 calendar. This will help candidates to track events such as the release of notification, application, exam dates, etc. 

Defence Exams	Exam Dates	Application Dates
NDA	NDA I: 10-Apr-2022 NDA II: 04-Sept-2022	NDA 1: 22-Dec-2021 to 11-Jan-2022  NDA 2: 18-May-2022 to 14-Jun-2022
CDS	CDS 1: 10-Apr-2022 CDS 2: 04-Sept-2022	CDS 1: 22-Dec-2021 to 11-Jan-2022 CDS 2: 18-May-2022 to 14-Jun-2022
AFCAT	AFCAT 1 12-Feb-2022 13-Feb-2022 14-Feb-2022 AFCAT 2: August 2022 (Tentative)	AFCAT 1: 01-Dec-2021 to 30-Dec-2021 AFCAT 2: June 2022 (Tentative)
CAPF	07-Aug-2022	20-Apr-2022 to 10-May-2022
Indian Coast Guard	Assistant Commandant: End of March 2022 (Tentative) (Stage I)	Assistant Commandant: 18-Feb-2022 to 28-Feb-2022
Territorial Army	To be announced	To be announced
INET exam	To be announced	To be announced

Which Exam is Best for Defence?

Some of the most popular defence exams in India are given below:

• UPSC NDA/NA
• UPSC CDS
• AFCAT
• SSB
• Indian Coast Guard
• Indian Airforce Group X, Y

Popular Defence Exams 2022 in India

Candidates check below the details regarding the popular defence exams:

NDA: NDA is conducted for admission to the army, navy and air force wings of NDA and Indian Naval Academy Course (INAC). The exam is conducted offline twice a year. The exam comprises two stages: written exam and SSB Interview. Click the links below to know regarding application form, admit card, result, dates, cut off and selection process.

NDA Dates	NDA Application Form
NDA Admit Card	NDA Vacancies
NDA Answer Key	NDA Result
NDA Cutoff	NDA Exam Pattern
NDA Syllabus	-

CDS: Combined Defence Services (CDS) Examination is conducted by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) twice a year for admission to Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala, Air Force Academy, Hyderabad, Officers’ Training Academy, Chennai (Madras). Selection of candidates is done based on written exam and SSB Interview.

CDS Dates	CDS Application Form
CDS Answer Key	CDS Result
CDS Exam Pattern	CDS Syllabus

AFCAT: The Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT) is conducted by the Indian Air Force. The exam is held twice a year in February and August/September respectively, to select Class-I Gazetted Officers in Flying and Ground Duties (Technical and Non-Technical). Candidates are selected based on their performance in online exam and Air Force Selection Board (AFSB) Interview. Candidates opting for Ground Duty (Technical) branch are required to appear in both AFCAT and Engineering Knowledge Test (EKT).

AFCAT Dates	AFCAT Application Form
AFCAT Exam Pattern	AFCAT Syllabus
AFCAT Result	AFCAT Cut off

UPSC CAPF: The Central Armed Police Forces (Assistant Commandants) Examination is conducted by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The exam is held for recruitment of Assistant Commandants (Group A) in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) such as Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Central Industrial Security Force(CISF), Indo‐Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB). The selection process includes written exam, Physical Standards/Physical Efficiency Tests and Medical Standards Tests and Interview/Personality Test.

UPSC CAPF Dates	UPSC CAPF Application Form
UPSC CAPF Result	-

Indian Coast Guard: Indian Coast Guard is conducted for recruitment of Navik, Yantrik and Assistant Commandant. The selection process of Yantrik and Navik includes a written exam, physical fitness test and medical exam. The selection process of Assistant Commandant includes preliminary selection (PSB), final selection board and medical examination.

Indian Coast Guard Dates	Indian Coast Guard Application Form
Indian Coast Guard Notification	-

Territorial Army: The Territorial Army (TA) selects candidates as Jawan and Officers. The recruitment of the Officers is done for Civilians and Ex-Servicemen. The selection process differs as per the posts.

List of Defence Exams in India for Females

 Women candidates can join the defence services in India by cracking the following exams:

• Combined Defence Services Examination, CDS
• Short Service Commission (Technical)
• National Defence Academy (NDA)
• NCC (SPL) Entry Women
• Joint Advocate General (JAG) SCWW

Eligibility Criteria for Defence Exams

The eligibility criteria for defence exams in India is different for CDS, NDA, AFCAT, Territorial Army, INET and many more. To be eligible for the defence exams in India, candidates need to fulfil the eligibility parameters laid down in terms of age, educational qualification, physical standards, etc. The eligibility criteria for defence exams is given below:

Exam	Eligibility Criteria
AFCAT Eligibility Criteria	Age Limit 20 and 24 years for flying branch 20 and 26 for Ground Duty (Technical & Non-Technical) Branch Educational qualification is graduation (Differs as per the branches)
CDS Eligibility Criteria	For IMA and Officers’ Training Academy, the required educational qualification is Graduation in any discipline from a recognised university For Indian Naval Academy, candidates must have a degree in Engineering from a recognised university For Air Force Academy, candidates must have a degree in Engineering from a recognised university. They must have studied Physics and Mathematics in Class 12
NDA Eligibility Criteria	For Army Wing of National Defence Academy, candidates must have passed Class 12/HSC or equivalent from a recognised board or university For Air Force, Navy, and Naval Academy of National Defence Academy, candidates must have passed Class 12/HSC with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics
CAPF Eligibility Criteria	Age Limit: 20 to 25 years Educational qualification: Graduation

Defence Exams 2022 FAQs

Q: How many defence exams are there in India?

Q: What is the qualification required for defence exams in India?

Q: Can girls apply for defence exams?

Q: When is NDA 1 and 2 exams?

Q: When CDS 1 and 2 exams will be conducted?

Q: How is the selection done for various defence exams?

Q: How can I apply for various defence exams?

Q: Are the defence exams conducted online or offline?

Q: Where can I find the notifications for various defence exams in India?

Q: Is NDA exam tough to crack?

Q: Is Mathematics necessary to apply for NDA exam?