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PathwayLast checked 11 October 20262 official sources
Defence after Class 12
I want to join the Army, Navy or Air Force as an officer straight after Class 12. Which exam do I take, which stream and age does each wing need, and what happens after selection?
Quick answer
The officer route straight after Class 12 runs through UPSC's National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination, held twice a year. For the September 2026 sitting, the Army wing took Class 12 in any stream, while the Navy and Air Force wings and the Naval Academy's 10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme needed Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics. Candidates had to be unmarried and born between 1 January 2008 and 1 January 2011. After the written test comes the Services Selection Board, then a medical. NDA cadets train for three years and earn a JNU degree before further training at their service academy. If you finish a degree first, UPSC's Combined Defence Services exam is the route after graduation.
Cycle closedApplies to 2027-28Last checked 11 October 2026
This page may be out of date. It was due for a re-check on 31 January 2027. Confirm every rule with the official source before acting on it.
Facts are from the NDA and NA (II), 2026 notice (forms closed 9 June 2026, exam held 13 September 2026, courses from 1 July 2027). Check the next NDA and NA notice on upsc.gov.in for the new age window and dates.
The National Defence Academy is an inter-service academy where cadets of the Army, Navy and Air Force train together for three years, both academic and physical. UPSC selects them through a written exam, and the Services Selection Board then tests their intelligence and personality.
The same exam also fills the Indian Naval Academy's 10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme, a four-year B.Tech at Ezhimala.[1]
Who it suits, and who struggles
It tends to suit you if
You want a service career that starts straight after school, with the degree earned inside the academy.
You are fine with years of residential training before you are commissioned, three at NDA and about one more at your service academy.
You do well in group tasks and interviews. The SSB looks for officer-like qualities and carries as many marks as the written exam.
You may struggle if
You want to marry soon. Candidates must stay unmarried until training ends.
You dislike long Mathematics papers without a calculator. Mathematics is 300 of the 900 written marks, and calculators are not allowed.
Your Class 10 certificate shows a wrong date of birth that you can't get corrected. UPSC goes by that certificate only.
This is a guide to the work the route asks of you, not a test of ability.[1]
The road
1
Pass Class 12Stage
Any stream for the NDA Army wing. Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics for the Navy and Air Force wings and the Naval Academy. You can apply while still in Class 12, but not from Class 11.
2
UPSC written examEntrance
Mathematics (300 marks) and the General Ability Test (600 marks), 2½ hours each, objective questions with negative marking. You apply on upsconline.nic.in.
3
Services Selection BoardEntrance
Stage I (intelligence rating and a picture test), then Stage II over 4 days: interview, group tasks, psychology tests and the conference. Air Force choices also sit the pilot aptitude test.
4
Medical examinationStage
You must meet the physical standards in Appendix III of the notice.
5
Three years at NDA (or four at the Naval Academy)Course
NDA cadets of all three wings train together and pass out with a JNU degree. Naval Academy cadets study a four-year B.Tech at Ezhimala.
6
Service academyCourse
Army cadets go to IMA Dehradun for a year, Navy cadets to INA Ezhimala, and Air Force cadets to the Air Force Academy, Hyderabad, or the Air Force Technical College, Bengaluru.
7
Commissioned officerWork
Army: Permanent Commission as a Lieutenant. Navy: Sub-Lieutenant. Air Force: Flying Officer, on probation first.
Routes from here
NDA, Army wing
This wing has the most places: 208 in the II, 2026 notice (198 male, 10 female). After three years at NDA, Army cadets spend a year at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun.
What it requires: Class 12 pass in any stream, unmarried, and the age window in the notice.
The II, 2026 notice listed 42 Navy places and 120 Air Force places (92 flying, 18 ground duties technical, 10 ground duties non-technical). Navy cadets finish at INA Ezhimala; Air Force cadets at the Air Force Academy or the Air Force Technical College.
What it requires: Class 12 pass with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics. The flying branch also needs a pass in the Computerised Pilot Selection System.
Cadets come through the same written exam but train at the Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala, not at NDA, on a four-year B.Tech awarded by JNU. The II, 2026 notice listed 24 places, all in the Executive Branch.
What it requires: Class 12 pass with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics.
UPSC's CDS exam admits graduates to IMA, INA, the Air Force Academy and the Officers' Training Academy, Chennai. For CDS (II), 2026, women were considered only for Short Service Commission at OTA.
What it requires: A degree. IMA: age 19 to 24. OTA: 19 to 25. INA: engineering, or B.Sc. with Physics. AFA: a degree with Physics and Mathematics at the 10+2 level, or a B.E.
National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination (II), 2026, held by UPSC on 13 September 2026[1]
🎂Age (NDA and NA II, 2026)
Unmarried, born between 1 January 2008 and 1 January 2011[1]
📌Stream
Army wing: Class 12 in any stream. Navy and Air Force wings and the Naval Academy: Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics[1]
🎯Marks
Written 900 (Mathematics 300 + General Ability Test 600) and SSB 900[1]
📌Places in the II, 2026 notice
394 in all (370 male, 24 female), for courses starting 1 July 2027[1]
💳Application fee
₹100; nil for SC, ST and female candidates and for some wards of JCOs, NCOs and ORs[1]
Places in the NDA and NA Examination (II), 2026 notice
Academy and service
Male
Female
Total
NDA, Army
198 places
10 places
208 places
NDA, Navy (Executive)
37 places
5 places
42 places
NDA, Air Force: flying
90 places
2 places
92 places
NDA, Air Force: ground duties (technical)
16 places
2 places
18 places
NDA, Air Force: ground duties (non-technical)
8 places
2 places
10 places
Naval Academy, 10+2 Cadet Entry (Executive)
21 places
3 places
24 places
All
370 places
24 places
394 places
The three Air Force rows add up to 120 places. UPSC calls these numbers provisional; they can change with training capacity. Men and women are ranked on separate merit lists.[1]
Places by wing, NDA and NA (II), 2026
The Army wing takes more than half the places, and it is also the only wing open to Class 12 students without PCM. Source[1]
How one NDA cycle ran: II, 2026
About thirteen months pass between the notice and the first day of training. Source[1]
₹100 per application; nil for SC, ST and female candidates[1]
Fees: The notice also lists an amount each cadet deposits with the Commandant on arrival at NDA. Read the current notice for it rather than an old figure.
A day in the work
At the Indian Military Academy, the notice says, cadets get a year of hard military training meant to make them officers who can lead infantry sub-units. Naval cadets from NDA are selected for the Navy's Executive Branch, and all 24 Naval Academy places in the II, 2026 notice were Executive Branch places too.[1]
Growth
Army cadets are commissioned as Lieutenants, with equivalent ranks in the Navy and Air Force. The notice prints the pay level for each rank up to the top of the service, and Military Service Pay of ₹15,500 a month from Lieutenant to Brigadier.[1]
Government post
Pay level (7th CPC)
Cadet in training (stipend, as printed for training at IMA)
You can no longer apply for the flying branch, but you can still be considered for Air Force ground duties, the Navy or the Army, according to the choices you made.[1]
The age window is narrow
Each NDA notice fixes a window of birth dates. For the II, 2026 exam it ran from 1 January 2008 to 1 January 2011. UPSC takes the date of birth only from your Class 10 (matriculation) certificate or an equivalent, and it won't accept an affidavit or a municipal birth extract. Once you submit a date of birth, it can't be changed at any later exam.[1]
Women can apply
Unmarried women can sit the NDA and NA exam. The II, 2026 notice listed 24 of its 394 places for women, and men and women are ranked on separate lists. Women also pay no application fee.[1]
Stay unmarried through training
The notice asks candidates to promise not to marry until they finish training. A candidate who marries after applying is not selected for training, and a cadet who marries during training is discharged and must repay what the Government spent on them.[1]
For parents
Check the date of birth on your child's Class 10 certificate before anything else, because that is the date UPSC uses. If your child studies at a Military School or a Sainik School and you are a serving or retired JCO, NCO or OR, the application fee is waived; the school principal issues the certificate, and your child shows it at the SSB.[1]
Learn for free first
Try the subject before you commit to it. These are free platforms run by government education bodies.
NCERT textbooksFree Class 11 and 12 Mathematics and Physics books. The NDA Mathematics paper covers algebra, trigonometry, coordinate geometry, calculus and vectors at this level.Link checked 11 October 2026
DIKSHADigital textbooks and practice for school subjects, useful for the general knowledge part of the General Ability Test.Link checked 11 October 2026
NIOSThe National Institute of Open Schooling, if you need to complete Class 12 through open schooling.Link checked 11 October 2026
Tips and tricks
List every service you would accept in your preference order. UPSC considers you only for the services you list, and no preference can be added or changed after you submit the form.[1]
If you are in Class 11, wait: Class 11 students can't sit the exam. You can apply from Class 12, as long as you show proof of passing by the date in the notice (10 June 2027 for the II, 2026 exam).[1]
Practise Mathematics without a calculator. Calculators and log tables are banned in the hall, and the Mathematics paper carries 300 of the 900 written marks.[1]
Keep your original Class 10 and Class 12 certificates ready for the SSB. Candidates who clear Stage II hand in the originals there.[1]
Get your photo and signature ready before the form opens. The notice asks for an uploaded photo, a live photo taken during the form, and your signature written three times on white paper.[1]
Questions people ask
Can a Commerce or Arts student join NDA?
Yes, for the Army wing. It accepts a Class 12 pass in any stream. The Navy and Air Force wings and the Naval Academy's 10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme need Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics.[1]
What is the age limit for NDA?
Each notice sets its own window. For the NDA and NA (II), 2026 exam, candidates had to be unmarried and born between 1 January 2008 and 1 January 2011.[1]
Can girls apply for NDA?
Yes. Unmarried women can apply, and the II, 2026 notice listed 24 places for women across the Army, Navy, Air Force and the Naval Academy. Men and women are ranked separately.[1]
Can I apply for NDA while I am in Class 12?
Yes. Students appearing in Class 12 can apply, but they must send proof of passing by the date in the notice. Class 11 students are not eligible.[1]
Which degree do NDA cadets get?
JNU awards it. Army cadets get a B.Sc., B.Sc. (Computer) or B.A.; Naval cadets a B.Tech; Air Force cadets a B.Tech, B.Sc. or B.Sc. (Computer). B.Tech cadets receive the degree after their later training at the service academy.[1]
How many marks are the NDA exam and SSB?
The written exam carries 900 marks (Mathematics 300, General Ability Test 600) and the SSB another 900. You must clear the written cut-off and the SSB separately.[1]