The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is inviting online applications for the UPSC Combined Defence Services Examination (1), 2023. The official Notification PDF for UPSC CDS 2023 has been released for 341 vacancies. Candidates applying for the CDS 2023 Examination should ensure their eligibility for admission to Indian Military Academy (IMA), Officers Training Academy (OTA), Indian Naval Academy (INA), and Air Force Academy (AFA).
Candidates can check the UPSC CDS 1 2023 Selection Process, SSB Interview Details here.
UPSC CDS 1 2023 Important Dates
Candidates going to appear in the UPSC CDS 1 examination should go through the table below to know about the important dates corresponding to different events.
| UPSC CDS Events | Important Dates |
| UPSC CDS 1 2023 Notification Release Date | 21st December 2022 |
| Online Registration Commences on | 21st December 2022 |
| Online Registration Ends on | 10th January 2023 |
| Last date to withdraw the online application | 18th to 24th January 2023 |
| UPSC CDS 1 Admit Card | March 2023 |
| UPSC CDS 1 Exam Date 2023 | 16th April 2023 |
| UPSC CDS 1 Answer Key 2023 (Unofficial) | 16th April 2023 |
| UPSC CDS 1 Result 2023 | May 2023 |
| UPSC CDS 1 Interview Dates | To be notified |
| UPSC CDS 1 Final Result | To be notified |
UPSC CDS 1 2023 Selection Process
UPSC CDS 1 2023 Selection Process comprises two stages:
- Written Examination
- Interview for Intelligence and Personality Test
Admission to the Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy, Air Force Academy and Officers’ Training Academy will be made on the results of the written examination followed by intelligence and personality test by the Services Selection Board of candidates who qualify in the written examination.
Two-stage selection procedure based on Psychological Aptitude Test and intelligence Test has been introduced at Service Selection Boards. All the candidates will be put to stage one test on first day of reporting at Selection Centres. Only those candidates who qualify at stage one will be admitted to the second stage/remaining tests.
CDS Full Form with All Details
CDS Written Exam
The Written Exam in the UPSC CDS 1 2023 consists of subjects including English, General Knowledge, Elementary Mathematics as per the Institutions. The UPSC will prepare a list of candidates who will obtain the minimum qualifying marks in the Written Exam as decided by the Commission. These candidates will be called for the Intelligence and Personality Test.
For admission to OTA, the exam pattern will include questions from General Knowledge and English. For admission to INA, IMA, AFA, the exam pattern will include questions from Mathematics, General Knowledge, and English.
Check here detailed syllabus and latest exam pattern for UPSC CDS 1 2023.
SSB Interview
SSB Test procedure in the UPSC CDS 1 2023 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 and 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.
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.
These tests are conducted over 4 days. The day-wise details of these tests are given below:
| Day Number | Activity |
| Day 1 | Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) tests and Picture Perception Description Test (PP&DT) |
| Day 2 | Self Description Test (SD), Situation Reaction Test (SRT), Word Association Test (WAT), Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) |
| Day 3 | Group Testing Officer Tasks (GTO), Group Discussion (GD), Group Planning Exercise (GPE), Progressive Group Task (PGT), Individual Obstacle Task (IOT), Half Group Task (HGT) |
| Day 4 | Command Task, Final Group Task (FGT), Individual Obstacle Task (IOT), Personal Interview, Individual Lecturette |
| Day 5 | Conference and Document Verification |
CDS Medical Examination
Medical examination is the last stage of the UPSC CDS 1 selection possess and is conducted by the Special Medical Board. Candidates who fail to qualify for this round are disqualified from the selection process. The medical exam will be completed in a duration of four to five days. Candidates while going for the UPSC CDS 1 medical exam have to present the following certificates.
- Passport Size Photographs
- Proof of Residence
- Qualification Certificates
- Birth Certificate
- Identity Proof (Pan Card, Aadhar Card, Voter ID, etc.)
- Category Certificate for the Reserved Category Candidates
UPSC CDS 2023 Notification PDF