NDA Exam Pattern 2025: Marking Scheme, Question Distribution & Syllabus

NDA exam pattern comprises details such as mode of exam, total marks allotted, the duration of the exam, types of questions asked, etc. The exam pattern helps candidates prepare for the upcoming NDA  exam and secure a good rank. Understanding the NDA exam pattern is one of the first steps in ensuring success in the exam. By going through the exam pattern, candidates can understand the entire structure of the recruitment process. Watch the video given below for more details on NDA exam.

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NDA Exam Pattern Overview

Candidates can check below a few important highlights related to the NDA exam pattern.

Particulars	Details
Exam Mode	Offline
Number of papers	GAT and Mathematics
Duration of test	GAT: 2 ½ hours Mathematics: 2 ½ hours
Exam time	GAT: 10 am to 12.30 pm Mathematics: 2 pm to 4.30 pm
Number of questions	GAT: 150 Mathematics: 120
Language of question paper	English and Hindi
Total marks	Written Exam: 900 (600 for GAT and 300 for Mathematics) SSB Interview: 900

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The exam paper of NDA written exam is divided into two parts, GAT and Mathematics. All the questions in the exam will be objective type. There will be a total of 150 questions in GAT, while the Mathematics part will carry a total of 120 questions. Each section of the exam will be held for 2 ½ hours. The GAT section will be for 600 marks while the Mathematics section will carry 300 marks. The GAT section is divided into two parts. Part A comprises English while Part B consists of General Knowledge. The structure of the NDA exam pattern for the written exam is given below.

Papers	Subject	Maximum marks	Duration
Paper 1	Mathematics	300	2 ½
Paper 2	GAT	600	2 ½
Total		900	5 hours

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NDA Maths Exam Pattern

The Maths paper of NDA carries 120 questions. The Maths section carries a total of 300 marks. Questions are asked from Arithmetic, Mensuration, Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Statistics, Matrices and Determinants. 

NDA GAT Exam Pattern 

The GAT section carries 150 questions for 600 marks. The GAT section of NDA question paper carries questions from English and General Knowledge. For the English section, candidates must focus on Grammar, Comprehension, and Reading Abilities. In General Knowledge, candidates should focus on Current Affairs, Physics, Chemistry, General Science, History, etc.Candidates can check below the distribution of questions in the GAT paper.

Sections		Maximum marks
Part A - English		200
Part B - General Knowledge	Physics	100
	Chemistry	60
	General Science	40
	History, Freedom Movement, etc.	80
	Geography	80
	Current Events	40
	Total	600

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NDA Marking Scheme 

There are NDA negative markings for incorrect answers, 1/3 of the marks allotted to each question are deducted for the incorrect answer. There is no deduction in marks for unanswered questions.

Subject	NDA Negative Marking
GAT	-1.33
Maths	-0.83

NDA Exam Duration

NDA exam duration is 5 hours, each paper is held for 2 ½ hours. NDA shift timings are given below.

Shift	NDA Exam Timing
Morning	10.00 am to 12:30 pm
Afternoon	2.00 pm to 4:30 pm

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The SSB Interview is divided into two stages. Candidates qualifying the Stage 1 are called for the Stage 2 exam. Stage 1 of the SSB Interview comprises Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) tests and Picture Perception and Description Test (PP&DT). Stage 2 comprises Group Testing Officer Tasks, Psychology Tests, and the Conference. This stage carries 900 marks. Candidates can check the pattern of the SSB Interview.

Stages	Tests
Stage 1	Screening Test	Verbal and non-verbal tests. PPDT
Stage 2	Psychological Test	Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) Word Association Test (WAT) Situation Reaction Test (SRT) Self Description Test (SD)
	Group Testing Officers Test	GD GPE PGT HGT IOT Command Task Snake race/Group Obstacle Race Individual lecture FGT
	Personal Interview	-
	Conference	-

Candidates can check below the topics included in the NDA syllabus:

Subjects	Topics
Mathematics	Algebra, Calculus, Matrices and Determinants, Integral Calculus and Differential Equations, Trigonometry, Vector Algebra, Analytical Geometry Of Two and Three Dimension and Statistics and  Probability.
GAT	The GAT syllabus of NDA is divided into two parts. Part A comprises questions from English, while Part B carries questions from General Knowledge. Questions in English part are asked from Grammar and Usage, Vocabulary, Comprehension, and Cohesion. Questions in General Knowledge are asked from Physics, Chemistry, Social Studies, General Science, Geography, and Current Events.