With the CDS 2, 2020 exam admit card released and the exam is less than one month away, many candidates would like to know the cutoff for CDS exam.
Previously, students had to score at least 20% in all the three sections of the exam, that is the Maths, English and the General Knowledge section of the CDS paper, but that changed for the 2019 paper onwards.
The UPSC declared that candidates now needed to score only 10% in the GK section, whereas the other sections remained 20% only. So out of 100 marks, students needed to score only 10 marks.
CDS 2019 Cut Off
The cut off for the CDS Exam 209 is :
| Academy | Written exam | Final exam |
| Aggregate marks of last qualified candidate* | Mark of last recommended candidate | |
| IMA | 116 | 242 |
| INA | 105 | 233 |
| AFA | 129 | 264 |
| OTA (MEN) | 78 | 160 |
| OTA (WOmen | 78 | 162 |
*Subject to a minimum of 20% in paper 1 and 10% marks in paper 2 and 20% in paper 3.
Importance of Previous Years
The reason for knowing the previous year cut off is that it can influence the next year’s cut off.
There are other factors too:
- Total vacancy available for the course
- Total number of candidates writing the exam
- The difficulty of paper and questions
- Previous year cut off marks
If you go through the 2019 CDS exam cut off, you may be able to get an idea of the cut off for 2020.
The cut off is an indication, not a factor to base your preparation around, please remember that!
Preparing for CDS
The CDS exam is required if you want to enter the Indian Navy, the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force or get an OTA job.
Preparing for the exam is a little easier than preparing for the IAS exam.
There are three papers for the exam. Maths, English and General Knowledge. This does not mean the paper is easy but in comparison, it is a little easier as the syllabus is much narrower.
GK paper has a wider base of questioning, which makes it tougher but also can be the highest scoring subject. Read current affairs regularly and work on the CDS GK topics.
Also Read: GK Questioning to Prepare You for CDS
Know Your Exam
Knowing about your exam in detail will help you!
Know the syllabus in detail. Always make sure you cover all the topics in the syllabus, whether you find them important or no. the exam cannot be predicted so do not lose out on marks unnecessarily.
Know the rules and regulations of the exam. With the pandemic going on, rules and regulations have been changed to adapt. Make sure you read the latest guidelines that are released by the UPSC.
Conclusion
If you are preparing for the CDS exam, then this article will help you to understand the cut off marks.
The previous year’s CDS cut off marks can help you to understand the cut off marks for the next exam.
This should not mean that candidates base their preparation around cut off marks. Word hard as regular and aim to score the highest marks always.
All the best to all students appearing for the CDS 2 2020 exam!
Also Read : What is CSAT in UPSC? Check-out the CSAT Syllabus for UPSC Examinations
