The National Defence Academy is the joint defence service training institute of the Indian Armed Forces, where cadets of the three services i.e. the Indian Army, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force train together before they go on to respective service academy for further pre-commission training.
| Motto | sēvā paramō dharma |
|---|---|
| Motto in English | Service Before Self |
| Type | Defence Service training institute |
| Established | 7 December 1954 |
NDA Eligibility Criteria 2026: Age Limit
| The Army wing of NDA | Passed Class 12 or equivalent examination from a recognized board |
|---|---|
| The Air Force and Naval wings of NDA and 10+2 Cadet entry scheme at INA | Passed Class 12 or equivalent examination with Physics and Mathematics |
Academics
The NDA offers only a full-time, residential undergraduate programme. Cadets are awarded a Baccalaureate degree (a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science) and a BTECH degree for Naval Cadets after 3 years of study. Naval cadets complete their fourth year of BTECH from Indian Naval Academy. Further, the Cadets have a choice of two streams of study. The Science stream offers studies in Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Computer Science. The Humanities (Liberal Arts) stream offers studies in History, Economics, Political Science, Geography and Languages.
In both streams, academic studies are split into three categories.
- In the Compulsory Course, cadets study English, Foreign Languages (Arabic, Chinese, French or Russian), Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Computer Science, History, Political Science, Economics and Geography. Note that all cadets must take basic classes in all these subjects except Foreign Languages. Cadets then take advanced classes depending on their chosen stream.
- The Foundation Course is mandatory and comprises Military Studies and General Studies. Subjects such as Military History, Military Geography, Weapons systems and Armaments, etc. are covered in Military Studies. Subjects such as Geopolitics, Human Rights, Laws of Armed Conflict and Environmental Sciences are covered in General Studies.
- The Optional Course focuses on subjects specific to the cadet’s chosen Service.
Cadets spend the first four semesters on the Compulsory Course and the Foundation Course. They take the Optional Course during the fifth and sixth semesters. They may transfer to other Service academies for the optional courses.
Training
All the cadets joining the NDA after their 10+2 Examination are trained in the Academy for three years culminating in graduation with BA(or)BSc or BCs (Computer Science) degree of Jawaharlal Nehru University; the first course to be awarded degrees was the 46th course in 1974.[10][27] Apart from academic training they are also trained in outdoor skills, like Drill, PT and games; apart from one of the foreign languages up to the lower B1 level (according to the international standards). The emphasis in NDA is on character building, esprit-de-corps, mental and physical robustness, leadership and a sense of keen observation. Life in NDA is all about learning discipline and strive for self improvement.