WHAT IS THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR AFCAT?

As we already discussed in the previous session, AFCAT is one of the prestigious exams as it is for the aspirants who would be ready to serve the country by joining the Indian Air Force. 

Let us discuss each aspect of AFCAT Exam in detail. 

AFCAT Admit Card:

The admit card for AFCAT Exam was released on 2nd August 2018 by the Indian Air Force. Candidates can get AFCAT admit card online through the official website. 

Here is how you can download the AFCAT Admit card:

• Go to the official site of Indian Air Force
• Click the “Download Admit Card” link
• Enter the username & password 
• Select the releasing month of notification for AFCAT
• Click the ‘Proceed’ button
• Do NOT forget to take the printout of the Admit Card 

We will now look at the eligibility criteria for AFCAT 2018. 

Eligibility Criteria:

For each branch in IAF, the eligibility criteria are different. If you meet the requirements, you would be eligible to submit the application. 

Flying Branch:

So let’s first understand the eligibility criteria to be a flying branch officer in AFCAT

• The candidate must be an Indian citizen
• The Age should not be less than 20 years and not more than 24 years, for both men and women when the course begins.
• In the case of qualification, the aspirant should be graduate with Physics and Mathematics as the subjects,  OR

Should have completed B.E/B.Tech with at least 60% as aggregate 

• The aspirant in the final year/ semester would also be eligible, assuring that they pass the exam and would produce the certificate as requested. 
• The candidate must be single. 

Ground Duty (Non-Technical):

So let’s understand the eligibility criteria to be a ground duty branch officer (Nontechnical) in AFCAT

• Only Indian citizens can apply
• Age should not be less than 20 years and not more than 26 years. 
• The aspirant should have completed Bachelor’s degree with 60% marks
• Any candidate irrespective of the gender can apply
• Both married and unmarried candidates can apply; however, a candidate below 25 years must be unmarried

Ground Duty (Technical)/ Aeronautical Engineering Branch:

So let’s understand the eligibility criteria to be a ground duty branch officer (technical) in AFCAT

• Only Indian citizens can apply for this post
• As the course commences, the candidate should be at least 20 years, but should not be more than 26 years of age
• An applicant should be below 25 years and should be unmarried
• The candidate could be of any gender
• Aeronautical Engineering has two branches, namely Electronics and Mechanical. Based on the stream the criteria differ

Aeronautical Engineering Electronics

Candidate should have secured 60% marks each in Physics and Mathematics at 10+2 level and have completed the following educational qualification: A four-year Graduation or an integrated Post-Graduation in Engineering/technology OR Have passed section A and B examination of Associate Membership of Institutions of Engineers (India) or from the Aeronautical Society of India OR Have secured 60% marks in the Graduate membership exam of Institute of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering by actual studies in one of the Electronic or Engineering streams.

Aeronautical Engineering Mechanical

Candidate should have passed 10+2 with Physics and Mathematics having scored at least 60% marks and gone through one of following: Minimum four-year graduation degree or the Integrated Post-graduate qualification in Engineering/Technology from a recognized university OR Have passed section A and B exam of Associate Membership of Institution of Engineers (India) OR Aeronautical Society of India by actual studies with at least 60% marks or equivalent in the following streams:- Mechanical Engineering and Automation Aeronautical Engineering Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Mechanical Engineering Aerospace Engineering Mechanical Engineering (Production) Industrial Engineering Mechanical Engineering (Repair and Maintenance)

Besides the eligibility criteria, the aspirant must be physically and mentally fit. He must qualify the physical and medical standards of the Indian Air Force to be eligible to appear for AFCAT Exam. 

Let us look at the AFCAT preparation tips for 2018 exam.  

AFCAT Preparation tips:

Before you start preparing for AFCAT, it is very important that you know the exam pattern as well as the syllabus for the exam. Let us have a quick look at the exam pattern to make the preparation easier. 

Subjects	Number of Questions	Maximum marks	Time Duration (in Min.)
General Awareness	20	60	120 Minutes
Verbal Ability	20	60
Quantitative Ability	20	60
Logical Reasoning	20	60
Military Aptitude Test	20	60
	100	300
EKT Test (For Technical Ground Duty only)	50	150	45 Minutes

        Scoring high marks in AFCAT could be easy if you have a planned strategy. Here are the key tips to prepare for AFCAT:

1. Understand the significance of the exam:  It is important to know about the exam you would appear for. AFCAT is an exam conducted at National level by Indian Air Force to recruit officers for its respective branches (excluding the Medical & dental branches). Here, the entries excluding the NDA & CDSE and for all streams, aspirants have to take the AFCAT Exam. 

2. Self-Analysis: Once you are aware of the exam and its features, it is important to analyze yourself. Realise your strengths, areas you need to improve and areas which require more practice. 
3. Proper Planning: Planning a proper preparation strategy is very important. Without proper planning, you cannot prioritize the subjects and set the time. You will have to prepare notes on important points that would be quite helpful during the final revision. 

      It is recommended that you start with the subject you are strong in. For instance, 

• If you are strong in English and General Awareness, follow the pattern: 

General Awareness->English->Military Aptitude-> Quantitative Ability

• If you are strong in the QA section:

QA->Military Aptitude-> English-> General Awareness

1. Practice is the Secret of Success: For any exam, the key to success is Practice. Analyse the area where you need to work more and practice on a daily basis. You need to work on the strong sections as well. Do not ignore the strong areas as you could improve those areas too! 
2. Time Management: This is quite essential to clear AFCAT. Since there is no sectional time allotted, you need be alert on the time you spend on each question. There are 100 questions which have to be answered in 120 minutes. You should not waste time on questions for which you are not sure of the answers. There will be questions which would require 4-5minutes to solve. Quantitative Ability & Military Aptitude would take more time so there should be proper management of time. 
3. Speed & Accuracy: These aspects also have a prominent role in acing the exam. If you do not answer the questions accurately, there is no meaning in attempting them. 
4. Online test series: Regular practice with online test series will surely help you to answer the questions with full confidence. The mock test is also very helpful as it gives the feel of the Real-time exam. Refer the books as well as go online and solve the test series and mock test. 
5. Previous year question papers: Previous years’ question papers are also essential in answering the questions quickly. It also gives you a hint about the type of questions expected in the exam. 
6. Believing in oneself: If you are sure that you have prepared well, be confident and believe in yourself.

Preparing with a strong strategy and regular practice will surely give you great results. So make a habit of practicing with test series, previous years’ question papers and most importantly, the mock test.

Review:

In this session, we discussed, the AFCAT Admit Card, syllabus, eligibility criteria for AFCAT Exam. We also covered topics such as preparation tips for AFCAT and finally, the mock tests. 

Hope you find this session helpful. Crack the AFCAT exam with a high score. Believe in yourself.

So good luck to all the potential candidates who are dreaming to start a successful career in Indian Airforce to be an AFCAT officer. Trust me this is one the most dreamed opportunity that can make you're future beautiful than your level of imagination. The prestige of being an AFCAT or Naval officers in India is not a silly matter.

So put your whole heart into your AFCAT Exam preparation it is worth the time you spend now.

Read the AFCAT Syllabus 2018 and start your preparation timetable according to the latest syllabus. Attend live class sessions for AFCAT exam that can really serve you the best. Make use of all the online learning platform and their AFCAT Test series, AFCAT mock test to self-analysis of your preparation level.

Having the smartest preparation strategy for AFCAT 2018 exams alone won’t take you anywhere, you must definitely have a smart answering technique in order to crack the exam in this attempt.

ALL THE BEST!!!