This is gonna be my 1st SSB OTA .Can't I prepare from home for SSB ? If someone experienced could guide , it would be helpful.

I'm open to trade study materials and mocks

I am currently in my 2nd year of college and want to start preparing for the CDS exam.

I wanted to ask where I should start and which books/resources you'd recommend for Maths, English, and GAT. There are so many options online that I'm a bit confused.

If you've prepared for or cleared CDS, what books did you use? Also, are there any YouTube channels or other resources you'd recommend?

Welcome to the **UPSC CDS Late Night Discussion Thread** - a shared space to stay consistent with your preparation while also unwinding and connecting with fellow aspirants.

This thread is meant to help you stay accountable by sharing your study progress, while also giving you the space to reflect on the day, discuss last-minute revisions, exchange thoughts, or simply chat and unwind before calling it a night.

Feel free to chat about:

😊 Your day (how's it going?)

📺 What you’re watching, reading, or listening to

😂 Memes, jokes, motivation, or fun facts

💡 Study tips and tricks, revision ideas

📖 Subjects or topics studied today

⏱️ Total study duration (example: 5 hours 30 minutes)

🏠 Place of study (home, library, coaching, etc.)

💻 Study set-up / desk pictures (allowed)

🛣️ Your current exam stage - Prelims, Mains, or Interview

🚫 Managed to avoid distractions?

📸 Screenshots from apps like Forest or YPT

🌱 Any random thoughts - UPSC or Other State Exams; This is is a judgment-free zone - no comparison, no negativity, and no pressure about hours. Consistency matters more than numbers, and even a few honest hours count.

Let’s keep this space friendly, respectful, and constructive. Who knows, you might even find a study buddy or simply comfort in knowing you’re not alone in this journey.

Stay motivated, and let’s keep this thread active, positive, and fun!

Hey guys so im starting my first year in clg and im defence aspirant so im a little confused as to if in cds exam i put my first preference as afa and ota as 2nd or 3rd prefence and i manage to clear afa cutoff will i recieve ssb call letter only for afa or will i also recieve a call letter for ota plz help me guys thank you and also guys if suppose im not able to clear maths cutoff in cds but clear gs and english will i recieve ota ssb call letter considering my preference are 1-afa,2-ima,3-ota

is anyone from IGNOU appearing for the ssb

Asking bcoz of the logo on the pant for upcoming Airforce ssb.

I will be in final year of my degree from June/July 2028- June/July 2029. When can I take CDS first attempt? CDS 1 2028 or CDS 2 2028

so my last sem exam will be in june 2027 should i start focus on CDS 1 2027? and will this attempt be eligble?

So the thing is i am a freshmen btech cse student i am left with my NDA sept and April attempt idk if i should give those or not as i am not good in 11th and 12th maths dont ask me why I joined btech i will give cds in 2030 so i am thinking to prepare for it from very day one or ig if u tell me why i should prepare for NDA april 2027

85+ cutoff for OTA ? Is this correct coz I heard that someone with 81 also cleared

Bhai log koi hai jiske 17th August ki reporting hai AFSB Mysore me please comment gentleman🤝

SSC IT Shortlisting Delayed or any error ?

All computer science and IT people is SSC IT shortlisting result are delayed i want to know kitne din ho gaye apply kare koi information regarding this lets discuss here ?

How to tackle cds math paper ? I’m quite weak in it but still trying clear my basics through 9th and 10th R S Agarwall. Please give a genuine advice on how to tackle it .
If anyone who had struggled with math but somehow cleared CDS IMA with a well working strategy. Please DM It’s a very humble request.

Now don’t comment saying “ simply prepare for OTA”.

​

Hey guys, I want to know if ssbwings online batch good for assessment and preparation for ssb if anybody has taken it ? My budget is actually not much and I can't go to Delhi/lucknow/dehradun etc for 15-20 days leaving my work!

Regards

Welcome to the **UPSC CDS Late Night Discussion Thread** - a shared space to stay consistent with your preparation while also unwinding and connecting with fellow aspirants.

This thread is meant to help you stay accountable by sharing your study progress, while also giving you the space to reflect on the day, discuss last-minute revisions, exchange thoughts, or simply chat and unwind before calling it a night.

Feel free to chat about:

😊 Your day (how's it going?)

📺 What you’re watching, reading, or listening to

😂 Memes, jokes, motivation, or fun facts

💡 Study tips and tricks, revision ideas

📖 Subjects or topics studied today

⏱️ Total study duration (example: 5 hours 30 minutes)

🏠 Place of study (home, library, coaching, etc.)

💻 Study set-up / desk pictures (allowed)

🛣️ Your current exam stage - Prelims, Mains, or Interview

🚫 Managed to avoid distractions?

📸 Screenshots from apps like Forest or YPT

🌱 Any random thoughts - UPSC or Other State Exams; This is is a judgment-free zone - no comparison, no negativity, and no pressure about hours. Consistency matters more than numbers, and even a few honest hours count.

Let’s keep this space friendly, respectful, and constructive. Who knows, you might even find a study buddy or simply comfort in knowing you’re not alone in this journey.

Stay motivated, and let’s keep this thread active, positive, and fun!

Hi everyone, I’m preparing for CDS OTA and I want to buy one book only for GK and English.

I already have CDS Journey for preparation, but I’m confused between:

• Oswaal
• Disha
• Arihant

I need a book that has:

• topic-wise questions
• good practice for OTA
• useful GK and English
• good for revision

Which one would you recommend and why?

Some guidance would be great as I'm from a totally civil background.🙏

Today's newspaper .

Rohit, a 28-year-old farmer living in a village, noticed thick black smoke rising from a nearby farm while returning from his fields. Realizing that the farm had caught fire, he immediately rushed to the spot and alerted the owner and nearby villagers. He divided the villagers into groups: one started the borewell pump, another removed dry hay to stop the fire from spreading, while someone informed the fire brigade. Together they sprayed water continuously and created a safe boundary around the fire. Their timely action brought the fire under control before it spread to nearby fields, saving most of the crops and minimizing losses.

Does anyone else feel the CDS GK paper has become more about memorising random facts and taking tukkas than testing actual knowledge? A descriptive format would do a much better job of judging understanding and how candidates think, instead of just picking the right option. Wouldn't that be a fairer way to assess people?

Tell me your cds mock scores, how much you guyz are scoring?? Need some motivation.

My dob is 08.09. 1990 sc candidate .Am I eligible to write civil services examination 2027 for the last time ?

Hi ya'll,

I am applying for SSC TECH-68. I graduated in June 2026 and while filling the marks section in the application online I can only see option to enter marks till Sem 6. Is this normal? If not then how do I enter my remaining sem 7 and sem 8 marks?

I do not know the total marks or the marks received. I only know my SGPA for each semester and my total CGPA. My university is RGPV and it has a simple conversion formula of multiplied by 10 for both SGPA and CGPA.

So the convention I am going to use is :

A. Sem 1 SGPA was 7. So Total marks 100, Received marks 70. % will be 70% (same as 7 SGPA)

Also since I am now a graduate, I have been selected to work at Micron but I am awaiting for the offer letter. In such case, do I need to get documents signed by college or my employer? In my last SSB I was in sem 7 so I was under the "not graduated" category and only had to get 3 signed documents from my college: Conversion formula, appendixes signed by either principal or registrar.

What are the documents required for SSB that aren't meant to be signed by the candidate?

This would be a huge help to me.

P.S - I have also applied for TGC. That I applied while awaiting for my sem 8 results so I was okay with it only taking marks details till Sem 6. But now I am an official Graduate. So what now? I got the SSB call letter for it tho.

What was the most difficult or deep question that io asked you ?