Is CDS and NDA are same?

NDA and CDS, both exam are conducted by UPSC. Both have different eligibility criteria. Check the detailed comparison in the article above.

Which exam is easy to crack NDA or CDS?

CDS is comparatively difficult when compared to NDA. NDA exam level is of senior secondary examination whereas CDS exam difficulty level if of graduation level.

NDA vs CDS, AFCAT, IIT, NEET, Which is Tougher and Better

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NDA vs CDS, AFCAT, IIT, NEET, Which is Tougher and Better

Among all the exams, NDA, CDS and AFCAT are the tests conducted to induct candidates into Indian Armed Forces.

IIT and NEET are prestigious entrance exams in India that pave the way for candidates to pursue careers in engineering and medical fields, respectively, by securing seats in top government institutes. However, comparing these exams requires considering several factors, including the syllabus, difficulty level, and exam pattern, as they differ significantly in nature. We will provide you with essential details about both exams, allowing you to make an informed decision based on your personal understanding and preferences.

So let’s begin –

NDA vs CDS Which is Tougher

The NDA exam is conducted by UPSC for admission to the Army, Navy and Air Force wings of the NDA. This exam is a gateway for candidates looking forward to joining Defence Forces including Army, Navy and Air Force.
The Combined Defence Services (CDS) exam is a nation-wide test held annually by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to select qualified and capable young individuals for diverse branches of the armed forces across India.
NDA is a national level exam conducted twice a year: NDA I and NDA II to help candidates make a career in Defence services. National Defence Academy & Naval Academy (NDA & NA) Examination will be a two-step process where candidates first need to take the exam and then qualify the personality test or interview conducted by the Service Selection Board (SSB). The UPSC is solely responsible for issuing guidelines for selection and the final conduct of the entrance examination.
CDS written exam is considered to be easier then NDA written exam. But in case of SSB the recommendation of candidates is tougher in CDS as compared to NDA.

Parameter	NDA	CDS
Age	16.5-19.5 Years	19-25 Years
Eligibility	Men and Women	Men are allowed to apply for IMA, INA, AFA and OTA Women are allowed to apply for OTA only
Educational Qualification	Class 12	Graduation
Scheme of Examination	Written and SSB	Written and SSB
Frequency of the Exam	Twice a year	Twice a year
Duration of Training	Three years at NDA and one year in the respective service academies for INA and IMA. Air Force cadets undergo training at NDA for three and 1 & ½ years at AFA	18 months for IMA Cadets 37-40 months for Navy Officers 74 months for Air Force Officers
Training Centres	National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune Indian Military Academy, Dehradun Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala Indian Air ForceAcademy, Hyderabad	Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun for Army Cadets Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala for Navy Cadets Indian Air ForceAcademy, 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
Rank assigned after training	Lieutenant	Lieutenant
Stipend during training	INR 56,100	INR 56,100

Check all the important details related to NDA 2023

NDA vs AFCAT, Which is Tougher and Better

AFCAT means Air Force Common Admission Test through this exam an aspirant can join Air Force’s flying branch, as a techie or in the ground duty branch as an officer. Here both male and female candidates can apply. The examination is conducted twice a year. Candidates are selected based on their performance in the online exam and Air Force Selection Board (AFSB) interview. Candidates opting for Ground Duty (Technical) branches are required to appear in both AFCAT and Engineering Knowledge Test (EKT).

NDA (National Defence Academy) In this exam only male candidates can apply. An aspirant can join any of the wing (Air Force, Army, Navy) as per choice, merit and vacancy. Here the candidate will get bachelor degree in arts, science (mathematics, chemistry, physics and computer science) and humanities arts.

If we consider the difficulty level, AFCAT is considered to be easier than NDA after taking all the parameters into account like eligibility, syllabus of the exam, exam pattern and level of questions.

Parameter	NDA	AFCAT
Age	16.5-19.5 Years	20 to 26 years (Ground Duty) 20 to 26 years (Flying)
Eligibility	Men and Women	Men and Women
Educational Qualification	Class 12	Graduation plus specific qualifications as per the branch.
Scheme of Examination	Written and SSB	Written and SSB
Frequency of the Exam	Twice a year	Twice a year
Duration of Training	Three years at NDA and one year in the respective service academies for INA and IMA. Air Force cadets undergo training at NDA for three and 1 & ½ years at AFA	The duration of training will be 74 weeks for the Flying & Technical Branch 52 weeks for the case of Non-Technical branches.
Training Centres	National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune Indian Military Academy, Dehradun Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala Indian Air ForceAcademy, Hyderabad	Indian Air ForceAcademy, Hyderabad for Air Force Officers

Check all the important details related to CDS 2023

NDA vs IIT Exam, Which is Tougher and Better

IIT JEE is a national-level engineering entrance exam consisting of two stages – JEE Main & JEE Advanced. JEE Main is a screening exam to select the candidates who will be eligible to appear for JEE Advanced, which will serve as the final exam to select candidates for admission into prestigious IITs. Every year, the IITs conduct a Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) to select candidates for the 4-year B.Tech, B.Pharm, 5-year B.Arch, Integrated M.Sc. and M.Tech courses whereas NDA (National Defence Academy) In this exam only male candidates can apply. An aspirant can join any of the wing (Air Force, Army, Navy) as per choice, merit and vacancy. Here the candidate will get bachelor degree in arts, science (maths, chemistry, physics and computer science) and humanities arts.

NEET and JEE both are conducted after school level.

Only 300–400 students are selected after the SSB for the NDA, while only 9–10 thousand students can pass the JEE exam out of 15 lakh students who apply.

Check here to read full details related to AFCAT 2023

National Defense Academy produces the best cadets, who devote their lives to serving their country, IIT produces the best engineers of all time. Both the NDA and the IIT are considered to be among India’s most difficult exams. The selection percentage for IIT is 0.71 percent, whereas the selection ratio for NDA is 0.15 percent, according to statistics.

Let’s understand the nature of both exams –

Parameters

NDA

IIT

Syllabus of the exam

The NDA syllabus is certainly extensive since it covers all of the topics that a candidate must have covered throughout schooling, including current events.

Read here in detail
Check NDA latest syllabus

Written examinations make sure that the candidate with the highest potential gets admission into the best of the colleges and the examination paper is formed accordingly.

Check IIT Syllabus here

Career Prospects

The candidate is inducted as a Lieutenant rank (officer rank) in the Indian Army after completing four years of training.
A provisional commission is provided in the rank of Flying Officer in the Indian Air Force, and Naval cadets will be picked for the Navy’s Executive, Engineering, and Electrical Branches.

Once the candidates complete the last semester they get mindblowing placements with outstanding annual packages.

Pattern of the IIT JEE Main and Advanced

JEE Main is an entry-level exam with a lower level of difficulty. It comprises of two papers. The Paper 1 is conducted for admission to Undergraduate Engineering Programs at NITs, IIITs, CFTIs and other prestigious institutions. It is also an eligibility test for JEE Advanced, which is conducted for admissions to IITs. The Paper 2 is conducted for admission to B. Arch. and B. Planning courses.
At present, the IIT JEE is a single-stage objective type examination consisting of two papers of three hours duration each to test the comprehension & analytical ability of candidates. Both papers, Paper-1 and Paper-2 will each have three separate sections on Physics, Chemistry & Mathematics.

NDA vs NEET, Which is Tougher and Better

Although exams like NDA and NEET are considered at a higher level than the normal student of class 12th can attempt but they still cannot be considered the toughest due to a limited syllabus and the kind of consequences of the exam- Getting admission in a college to become a doctor or an engineer. However, UPSC Exam has a different angle altogether. These land you into administrative services in an Indian city/ town or geographical location.

If you compare written papers only NEET exam is tougher in comparison to NDA examination. But NDA become more tougher overall as you have to clear Services Selection Board ( SSB) and Medical in addition to written test. Rejection ratio even on clearing written test is very high at SSB and Medical stage.

Parameter	NDA	NEET
Age	16.5-19.5 Years	17 to No Upper Age
Educational Qualification	Candidates who have completed class 12 or are currently enrolled in class 12	candidates must pass the 12th standard examination with Chemistry, Biology, Physics and English subjects.
Scheme of Examination	Written and SSB	Written (200 multiple-choice objective-type questions from three subjects – Physics, Chemistry and Biology (further divided into Botany and Zoology).)
Frequency of the Exam	Twice a year	twice a year