NDA Exam Syllabus, Pattern and Books 2023

National Defence Academy is attracting thousand of youth every year. This institution has transformed so many youngsters into officers and gentlemen. Who could in this world be reluctant to leave the opportunity of being an officer? NDA exhibits a platform to those who have an extreme enthusiasm to do something great in their lives.

If you wish to walk down this path, and join NDA, then start working hard because without hard work, one can not get the prestige of being an officer. Start with your studies, NDA syllabus is same as that of CBSE, the only difference is the level of questions asked in written exam.

See also: NDA sample papers and previous year papers

NDA Exam Pattern

Cracking NDA is like a war, and no war can be won without a strategy. So, to make a good strategy for NDA, one should know the exam pattern and format. We can say that to know the pattern of the question paper is one of the key factors for success in NDA exam.

# Written Exam

Paper	Subject	Marks	Duration	No. of Q’s	Marks/Q
I	Maths	300	2.5 hours	120	2.5
II	General Ability Test	600	2.5 hours	150	4

There are two written exam on the same day for NDA. The first exam is for maths, in this part there are total 120 questions of 300 marks, the time limit is 2.5 hr. Questions based on maths of CBSE class 11th and 12th are going to be asked. Candidates should know that if the marks scored in this part are not enough, then the second paper (GAT) will not be checked.

Section	Subject	Marks	No. of Q’s
I	English	200	50
II	General Knowledge	400	100

After the completion of paper – 1, candidates get some free time (almost 1½ hr). After the break, the second paper takes place. In second paper or GAT (general ability test), 150 questions are asked for total 600 marks, and the time limit is 2.5 hr. This paper is further divided in two parts, i.e English and GK (general knowledge).

There are 50 questions in English section, whereas, in the GK part, Questions based on physics, chemistry, general science, history, geography and current affairs are asked.

Following table will give a clearer view :

Section	Subject	Marks
I	Physics	100
II	Chemistry	60
III	General Science	40
IV	History	80
V	Geography	80
VI	Current Events	40

Note:- One must try to secure more marks in written exam, as marks of written exams are counted while the final merit list is made.

Let’s have a look at the exam pattern of SSB

# SSB (Services Selection Board)

Getting through NDA written exam is difficult, but SSB is the real challenge to face. Interview at SSB is known for its difficulty standards. And to crack SSB it would definitely require something more than just hard work that is, dedication towards your goal.

See also : Crack NDA SSB in first attempt

Though, the pattern or format for SSB can not be defined very specifically, but following information is going to provide you the idea of the whole processor of SSB and an opportunity of cracking it.

The SSB goes on for 5 days and each day new and different kind of tests are presented before the candidates. The examiner or interviewer gives marks to the candidates on the basis of their performance in each test.

The SSB of NDA takes place in the following order :

Day 1 (screening test) 

Verbal and Non-Verbal Test
In this section, the candidate would be given some easy verbal and non-verbal questions to check his mental ability. There may be 55-60 and questions and one has to solve these questions within 15 minutes.

picture perception test – in this test candidates are shown a picture which can be blur or clear for 30 seconds. Later, one minute of time is given to answer the questions related to that picture, like no. of characters present in the picture, mood of character i.e positive or negative etc.

Afterwards, candidates have to write a story based on the picture in more than 70 words within 4 minutes. Then all candidates narrate their stories in 1 minute. At the end the whole group need to make a common story based on the picture.

Note:- candidates who will qualify this test will stay in the SSB centre for rest of the 4 days, and disqualified candidates have to go back home.

Day 2 (Psychology Tests)

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) –  this test is similar to PPDT, but instead of a blur or hazy picture, candidates are shown clear pictures for 30 seconds. Total 12 slides of images are show, and the overall test format is same as that of PPDT.

The 12th or final slide is set to be blank, candidates are free to write any story of their choice in this part.

Word Association Test (WAT) –  In this test instead of pictures, candidates are shown words for 15 seconds and they need to write the first thought that strikes to their mind for that word.  Total 60 such words are shown.

Situation Reaction Test [SRT] – This test is to determine the potential of a candidate to deal with different situations. He would be given a booklet comprising of 60 different situations and there are 30 minutes allotted to write down the responses.

Self Description Test [ SDT]
There will be 15 minutes given to the candidate to describe himself and to give his opinion for his family, school, friends, his surrounding, etc.
This test is to see how well one can express his thoughts, and his basic nature of thinking about the social part of his life.

Day 3  & 4 (group testing officers) –

Different group tasks like group discussion, group planning exercise, individual obstacles  common task, final group task etc. are conducted on day 3 and 4. In these testes candidates have to overcome obstacles and challenges with the help of group members. There is no fixed pattern in these tests.

Group Discussion (GD) – There are back to back two group discussions in this part. Generally, they choose a current event or topic to discuss.

Group Planing Exercise (GPE) – A problem is given to each aspirant of the group and he has to write down his planning to give the best possible solution. Later, they have to come up with a common plan and anyone of them will be ordered to discuss the planning with the help of pointer and map.
This shows your problem solving skills in tough and complicated situations.

Progressive Group Task (PGT) – Some physical task is given to a group and they are required to overcome the obstacles with the help of given stuff like rope, plank, wood log etc.

Half Group Test (HGT) – Half group task is conducted with only half batch members of SSB and thus one gets better opportunity to show his potential. 10-15 minutes are allotted and an individual is checked for his officers like qualities.

Individual Obstacle Task (IOT) – There are 10 outdoor obstacle tests given to each candidate and the minimum of each task should be completed in less than 3 minutes. These tests include long jump, high jump, zig zag balance, burma bridge, tarzan swing, monkey jump, etc.

Command Task – In this task, one is appointed as a commander over some of his batch mates(whom he have to chosen himself) and complete a task with their help. Here, they checks your leadership quality.

Snake Race/Group Obstacle Race – In this task, your group have to compete with the members of the other group, but there is a twist, each group is going to hold a snake which is a long sac like structure in their hand till the last moment. You have to complete a race with number of obstacles by keep holding it.

The main purpose of these tasks is to see if the candidates can work as team players or not.

Day 5 (conference) 

On the final day of SSB, candidates are called one by one in the conference hall where all the SSB officials are present. Simple questions like how have your experience been in SSB? etc. are asked in this conference.

This completes with the SSB interview. Beside all the above mentioned test, a personal interview (PI) test is also conducted. The day for PI test is not fixed as it can be conducted on any day between day 2 to day 4.

Name of tests	Day	Marks
Psychology	2	225
GTO	3 and 4	225
Interview	any day b/w 2 to 4	225
Conference	5	225
Total	5 days	900

Please note that the given marking scheme is not 100% accurate.

In order to get recommended by SSB, a candidate should score at least 370 marks out of 900 (depends on several factors).

NDA Syllabus

The syllabus of NDA written exam is titanic, even 1 year looks too short to complete the syllabus. Unlike other competitive exams like JEE, AIPMT etc. questions from almost all the subjects are asked in the written exam. This concludes that without prior knowledge and preparation, cracking NDA written exam is equal to impossible.

So, all those who are planing to apply for NDA in near future should start with their preparations from right now. Following is the syllabus for written exam.

# Paper 1 – Maths

Algebra

Sets, De Morgan laws, relation, Representation of real numbers, Complex numbers, Binary system of numbers, Arithmetic, Geometric and Harmonic progressions, Quadratic equations, Permutation and Combination, Binomial theorem, Logarithms.

Matrices and Determinants

Types of matrices, operations on matrices, Determinant, Adjoint and inverse of a square matrix, Applications, Cramer’s rule.

Trigonometry

Angles and their measures. Trigonometrical ratios. Trigonometric identities, Multiple and Sub-multiple angles, Inverse trigonometric functions, Application – Height and distance, properties of triangles.

Analytical 2-dimension and 3-dimension Geometry

Rectangular Cartesian Coordinate system, Distance formula, Equation of a line, Angle between two lines, Distance of a point from a line, Equation of a circle, Standard forms of parabola, ellipse and hyperbola, eccentricity and axis of a conic, Direction Cosines and direction ratios, Equation of a plane, angle between two planes, Equation of a sphere.

Differential Calculus

Concept of a real valued function, Composite functions, one to one, onto and inverse functions, Notion of limit, Standard limits, Continuity of functions, algebraic operations, Derivative of function, Derivatives of sum, product and quotient of functions, Second order derivatives, Application of derivatives.

Integral Calculus

Integration, standard integrals involving algebraic expressions, trigonometric, exponential and hyperbolic functions, Definition of order and degree, formation of a differential equation, solution of first order and first degree equations.

Vector Algebra

Vectors in two and three dimensions, Unit and null vectors, addition of vectors, scalar product or dot product of two-vectors, Application.

Statistics and Probability

Classification of data, Frequency distribution, Graphical representation, Measures of Central tendency, Variance and standard deviation, Random experiment, mutually exclusive and exhaustive events, impossible and certain events, Union and Intersection of events, Definition of probability, Elementary theorems on probability, Conditional probability, Bayes’ theorem, Binomial distribution.

# Paper 2 – General Ability Test (GAT)

English

Grammar and usage, vocabulary, comprehension and cohesion in extended text to test the skill of a candidate in English.

Physics

States of Matter, Motion of objects, heat, light, magnet, current, General Principles in the working of different appliances

Chemistry

Physical and Chemical changes, Preparation and Properties of Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen and Carbondioxide, Acids, bases and salts, Carbon, Fertilizers, Material used in the preparation of different chemical substances, Structure of Atom.

General Science

Difference between the living and non-living, Basis of Life – Cells, Growth and Reproduction in Plants and Animals, human body, Common Epidemics, Food, The Solar System, Achievements of Eminent Scientists.

History

Indian History, Freedom Movement in India, Indian Constitution, knowledge of Five Year Plans of India, Panchayati Raj, Co-operatives and Community Development, Teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, Renaissance, Exploration and Discovery, War of American Independence. French Revolution, Industrial Revolution and Russian Revolution, Socialism and Communism.

Geography

The Earth, Origin of Earth, Ocean Currents and Tides, Atmosphere and its composition, Temperature and Atmospheric Pressure, Planetary Winds, cyclones and Anti-cyclones, Humidity, Condensation and Precipitation, Types of Climate, Regional Geography of India, Important Sea ports and main sea, land and air routes of India.

Current Events

Knowledge of Important events (Recent), Current important world events, Prominent personalities – both Indian and International.

Best books for NDA

Books plays a significant role in how a candidates is preparing for the exam. and it is difficult to pick a right book before practicing. Here is a list of some of the renowned books for the preparation of written exam and SSB as reviewed by team 4ono.

To save you sometime, the links to buy the books online are also given, just click on the respective links.

# For Written Exam

Pathfinder for NDA NA Entrance Examination

NDA/NA Examination Guide

Chapter wise-Section wise Solved Papers NDA

# SSB

SSB Interviews and Personality Development

Let’s Crack SSB Interview

SSB Interview: The Complete Guide

We try our best to give the most accurate information to our readers, and help them in some way. Though, almost all the details about NDA exam pattern, syllabus and books is covered in this article, but if you still have something to ask, then we are always open for any query any time.

NDA Answer Key NDA Online Test NDA result NDA previous year Papers