NDA vs CDS: Know difference between CDS and NDA here

NDA vs CDS 

There are many similarities and differences between the two exams and opportunities they provide. If you are a defence aspirant, you should know about all the similarities and differences between the two exams to make an informed choice. Here we have explained all the details about NDA vs CDS under different parameters.  

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NDA vs CDS Eligibility

Both the entries have a two-stage process. A written exam followed by an SSB interview conducted by the respective Selection Board of the forces.

Exam	Age Limit	Marital Status	Educational Qualification	Nationality
NDA	16 ½ -19 ½ Years	Unmarried	-Class 12 th pass, from a recognized board. Appearing Candidates are eligible to apply.	A citizen of India A subject of Nepal or Bhutan A Tibetan refugee who moved to India, before January 1, 1962, with the intention of settling here permanently A PIO (Person of Indian origin) is someone who has migrated from the countries specified below, with the intention of permanently settling in India. The nationals from the following countries would fall under this category such as Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania (Formerly Tanganyika and Zanzibar ), Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia, Vietnam.
CDS	21 to 26 years  24 for IMA  25 for OTA	Unmarried	Graduation from a recognized university	A citizen of India A subject of Nepal or Bhutan A Tibetan refugee who moved to India, before January 1, 1962, with the intention of settling here permanently A PIO (Person of Indian origin) is someone who has migrated from the countries specified below, with the intention of permanently settling in India. The nationals from the following countries would fall under this category such as Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania (Formerly Tanganyika and Zanzibar ), Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia, Vietnam.

Read in detail about UPSC CDS Eligibility.

Candidates must note NDA vs CDS debate is now relevant for female candidates too as with NDA Examination 2021 held in the month of November girl candidates are allowed to sit for the NDA Examination too. -Read here the landmark NDA Notification For Women.
 

NDA vs CDS Training 

Both the entries differ significantly with respect to institutions and training period. The finer details are covered below.
 

Parameter	NDA	CDS
Duration of training	Four to Four and half years-  Initial three years Training is done at  National Defence Academy Army cadets-one at IMA Naval cadets-one Year at Naval Academy For Air Force cadets-  One and a half years at AFA Hyderabad	18 months for IMA Cadets 37-40 months for Navy Officers 74 months for Air Force Officers
Academies	National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune Indian Military Academy, Dehradun Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala Indian Air Force Academy, Hyderabad	Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun for Army Cadets Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala for Navy Cadets Indian Air Force Academy, Hyderabad for Air Force Officers Officers Training Academy (OTA), Chennai
Degrees awarded	Army Cadets: BSc/BSc (Computer)/BA /BTech degree Naval Cadets: BTech degree Air Force Cadets: BTech degree	Army Cadets in IMA: PG Diploma in ‘Military and Defense Management OTA Chennai: Post Graduate Diploma in Defence Management and Strategic Studies
Nature of Commission	Permanent	Permanent and Short Services

 

NDA Vs CDS: Exam Pattern

The differences in the exam pattern of NDA and CDS are given in the table below.

Parameters	NDA	CDS
Number of papers	Two	IMA, AFA, and INA: Three OTA: Two
Name of the subjects	General Ability Test (GAT) and Mathematics GAT includes  1- Sciences  2- History  3- Polity  4-Current affairs  5- English	IMA, AFA and INA: English, General Knowledge and Elementary Mathematics OTA: English and General Knowledge General Knowledge includes 1- Sciences  2- History  3- Polity  4-Current affairs
Exam duration	2 ½ hours for each paper.	2 hours for each paper.
Number of questions	GAT: 150 Mathematics: 120	Maths: 100 English: 120 General Knowledge: 120
Total marks	Written Exam: 900 SSB Interview: 900	For IMA, INA, and AFA:- 300 OTA: -200 The SSB Interview for IMA, INA, AFA is for 300 marks each while for OTA it is 200

Note- There is no difference in what so over in the nature of training, hence NDA vs CDS does factor in terms of competence of cadets and quality of training. Due to the shorter-duration training of CDS cadets is relatively difficult. But the standards are the same.

Get to know  Daily Routine Of A NDA Cadet
 

NDA Vs CDS: Pay, Allowances and Promotional Avenues

Pay and allowances offered to the officers selected through the NDA and CDS are the same. There is no difference after commission. The difference is in the age of gaining a commission as NDA cadets are relatively young.

Promotional Avenues

Rank	Min.Time of  Commissioned Service for Promotion
NDA Officer	CDS Officer
Lieutenant	On Commission	On Commission
Captain	02 Years	02 Years
Major	06 years	06 years
Lieutenant Colonel	13 years	13 years
Colonel(Selection)	15 years	15 years
Colonel (Time Scale)	26 years	26 years
Brigadier	On Selection	On Selection
Major General	On Selection	On Selection
Lieutenant General	On Selection	On Selection
General	On Selection	No restrictions

  


 

Salary

Rank	NDA Officer Pay (in Rupees)	CDS Officer Rank Pay	Salary  in
Rank Pay	Grade Pay	Rupees
Lieutenant	15,600-39,100	5,400	15,600-39,100	56,100-1,77,500
Captain	15,600-39,100	6,100	15,600-39,100	6,13,00-1,93,900
Major	15,600-39,100	6,600	15,600-39,100	6,94,00-2,07,200
Lieutenant Colonel	37,400-67,000	8,000	37,400-67,000	1,21,200-2,12400
Colonel	37,400-67,000	8,700	37,400-67,000	1,30,600-2, 15,900
Brigadier	37,400-67,000	8,900	37,400-67,000	1,39,600-2,17,600
Major General	37,400-67,000	10,000	37,400-67,000	1,44,200-2,18,200
Lieutenant General HAG Scale	67,000-79,000	-	1, 82, 200-2,24,100	1, 82, 200-2,24,100
HAG+Scale	75,500-80,000	-	2,05,400-2,24,400	2,05,400-2,24,400
Lieutenant General (NFSG)	80,000	-	80,000	2,25,000 (fixed)

 
Allowances benefits and pensions are the same for all the officers depending upon the rank.