Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) released the admit card of NDA 2 2019 exam yesterday, at upsc.gov.in. Candidates can download the same either by registration number or roll number. The exam is on November 17, 2019. With a little over three weeks to go for exam, it is most important now than ever, to implement all critical tips to crack the exam.
To download admit card, go to upsc.gov.in, click on admit cards. Then click e-admit cards for various examinations of UPSC. There you will see NDA admit card download link. Then on next page, again click link under download e-admit card. Go through instructions that appear next. And on page after that, login to get your admit card.
One of the few ways to join the Indian defence forces, army, navy, air force, straight after class 12th, the UPSC NDA exam is a highly coveted one. There is fierce competition to clear cut offs in one go. The exam will lead to entry to the Army, Navy and Air Force wings of the NDA for the 144th Course, and for the 106th Indian Naval Academy Course (INAC) commencing in July 2020.
The first and most important tip now is to practice past year papers. Solving previous year UPSC NDA question papers are a sure shot way of knowing exactly what type of questions will be asked, and knowing your strengths and weaknesses straight away.
Second preparation tip is that knowing your shortcomings, it is recommended to revise from your short notes. Refer a different book if the previous one did not help you understand the topic best. Or get help from a teacher or friend to explain you the topic more quickly.
Then third thing is to be aware of the exam pattern and syllabus. NDA exam consists of two papers – general ability test (GAT), and mathematics. GAT will have 150 questions of 600 marks. Mathematics will have 120 questions of 300 marks. So marking scheme will be +4, -4/3 in GAT, and +2.5, -2.5/3 for mathematics. Detailed syllabus is in the NDA 2 2019 notification.
Which brings us to the next, fourth tip, that is to stay away from negative marking. Try to avoid marking answers to such questions where you are unsure of the answer. Also, avoid silly mistakes in calculations.
Fifth important thing to realize is that time management is essential. In GAT, you will get 1 minute per question, and you will get 1.25 minutes per question in mathematics. Focus on how to quickly read a question, understand it, solve it, and mark it in a paper. Try to keep a little time as extra, as some questions will take more time than others.
Also, your sixth tip being, other than past year papers, solving mock tests will also boost your time management skills, strategy of gaining most marks in least time, and other aspects of the preparation.
Last but not the least, is to stay calm and focused. Take proper rest before the exam and have a good sleeping schedule in the last few weeks. Your body should be used to staying awake and alert in the examination timings.
UPSC NDA and NA is a national level exam conducted twice a year. NDA 2 is being conducted for a total of 415 vacancies. The exam will be conducted in offline mode i.e – pen and paper mode. In the previous UPSC NDA 2 exam, the cut off marks out of 900 was 325, with at least 25% in each subject. Overall cut off was 688 out of 1800.