After the UPSC written examination for NDA and CDSE or after the scrutiny and short listing of applicants by the respective headquarters all candidates are put through relevant tests before being sent for medical examination. What are these tests? Here is a description of the selection procedure of the Service Selection Board (SSB).
Personality tests - These tests are as follows :Situation Reaction Test (SRT) - Sixty situations (familiar/unfamiliar) are given and the candidate is required to give reactions on an answer book in 30 minutes.Word Association Test (WAT) - Sixty words are projected and the candidate is required to make a sentence, in 15 seconds for each word.
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) - A set of 12 pictures are shown (each for 30 secs) and the candidate is required to write a story in 3 minute for each picture.
Group tests - Group Test is conducted on batches of 8-10 candidates. The test comprises of indoor and outdoor activities e.g. group planning, group discussion and lectures.
Interview - This is to test the personality of the candidate. This includes general awareness. Finally the selection board interviews the candidate.
Special Selection Tests
Pilot aptitude test
Pilots have to undergo a pilot aptitude test which includes Instrument battery tests - This test requires annotation of the correct answers in an answer sheet for each problem which is given in a booklet. Those qualifying in this test have to take the machine test comprising of control velocity and SMA.
Intelligence test
Pilot, Engineers and other ground duty applicants also go through the officers intelligence rating test. This test is designed to find out the basic intelligence level of the candidates. Only those who achieve a minimum acceptable level and grade are required to undergo the Personality Test which is common to all candidates.
Engineering knowledge test
Engineers take the engineering knowledge Test which is a test of basic knowledge in various fields of Engineering. This test has to be cleared before taking the personality test.
