CDS Eligibility for Female: All about the UPSC CDS Exam & Physical Eligibility for Females
Combined Defence Services (CDS) Exam is conducted twice a year by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). Defence training academies recruit cadets through this exam. The academies are the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Indian Naval Academy (INA), Indian Air Force Academy (IAFA), and Officers Training Academy (OTA). Of the above academies, females are only allowed in Officers Training Academy.
In this article, we will discuss about the CDS eligibility for female aspirants. Read the article till the end to know CDS exam eligibility and also know the right age, weight and etc related to it.
CDS Exam Eligibility
For a candidate to be eligible for the CDS exam he or she must fulfil the limits of the following criteria:
- Nationality
- Age limit, sex, and marital status
- Educational qualification
- Physical standards
Let us understand each criterion in detail.
Nationality
A candidate must be a citizen of India to be eligible for the CDS exam or the subjects of the following countries are also eligible:
- Bhutan
- Nepal
Apart from this, a Tibetan refugee who migrated to India before 1st January 1962 with the intention of permanently living in India is also eligible.
A person migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, and East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire and Ethiopia or Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India are eligible provided that they have a certificate of eligibility issued by the Government of India.
Age Limit, Sex, and Marital Status
The aspiring candidate should be unmarried and be equal to or less than 25 years. The age limit for different academies are:
| Acadamy | Age limit | Marital Status |
| Indian Military Acadamy | 19 to 25 | Unmarried |
| Indian Naval Acadamy | 19 to 25 | Unmarried |
| Indian Air Force Acadamy | 19 to 24 | Unmarried |
| Officers Traning Academy ( For Male) | 19 to 25 | Unmarried |
| Officers Traning Academy ( For Female) | 19 to 25 | Unmarried |
For IAFA the upper limit can be relaxed up to 26 years if the candidate has a valid current Commercial Pilot License issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India.
A married candidate above the age of 25 years can apply but the married couple won’t be given any accommodation neither the candidate can live out with the spouse outside the premises during the training period.
For IMA/ INA/ IAFA/ OTA a male divorcee/ widower cannot be considered as unmarried and is not eligible for the exam.
For OTA women who are issueless widows who have not remarried and issueless divorcee women who are in the possession of divorce documents and are not remarried are eligible.
Also Read: What is OTA in CDS?: Know All About UPSC CDS exam for OTA
Education Qualification
A candidate with a valid Bachelors Degree from a recognized university or equivalent is eligible for admission in IMA, INA, IAFA, and Officers Training Academy (OTA)
Aspiring candidates who are in their final year can also apply provided the candidate doesn’t have any backlogs in the last semester or final year.
Physical Standards
As the job profile of the CDS exam is to work in the defence. An officer will be working in extreme conditions without any mental support. The training will basically prepare cadets for war. Thus it is important that the candidate is physically fit to work in such a condition. The physical standards for females and males are different.
CDS Physical Eligibility for Female
The physical fitness of candidates is calculated through the Body Mass Index (BMI). CDS eligibility for female height are:
| Height of female without shoes (cm) | Weight (Kgs) | ||
| – | 18 years | 20 years | 30 years |
| 148 | 39 | 41 | 43 |
| 150 | 40 | 42 | 43.5 |
| 153 | 42 | 43.5 | 45 |
| 155 | 43 | 44 | 46 |
| 158 | 45 | 46 | 48 |
| 160 | 46 | 47 | 49 |
| 163 | 47 | 48 | 51 |
| 165 | 49 | 51 | 53 |
| 168 | 50 | 52 | 54 |
Visual Standards for Female
- Vision(corrected) better eye 6/6, worse eye 6/12
- Myopia of not more than minus 5.5 D
- Manifest hypermetropia should be less than plus 3.5 D including Astigmatism
Also Read: CDS OTA Training Period: All you Need to Know about OTA
Conclusion
From the above criteria, it should be noticed that women are only eligible for Officers Training Academy (OTA), Chennai, and not for any other defence academy. Women who are issueless divorcees who have divorce documents in hand and are not remarried are eligible. Issueless widow women who are not remarried can also apply. Minimum Bachelor’s degree is a must. A female aspiring candidate in her final year of degree can also apply. For unmarried females, the age limit is from 19 years to 25 years.
