NDA 2 Exam Analysis 2026; Check Difficulty Level of Maths and GAT
NDA 2 Exam Analysis 2026 will cover the difficulty level, subject-wise questions, good attempts, important topics, and an overall paper review of UPSC NDA 2 2026 exam. The exam is scheduled for Sep 13, 2026 (Sunday), in offline pen-and-paper mode. Mathematics will be conducted from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM, followed by the General Ability Test (GAT) from 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM. Based on previous NDA exam trends, the Mathematics paper is expected to be Moderate to difficult, while GAT is expected to remain moderate. The actual difficulty level, questions asked, and good attempts will be updated after the exam based on candidate feedback and detailed paper analysis.
NDA 2 Exam Analysis 2026 Overall Difficulty Level
NDA 2 2026 will consist of the Mathematics and General Ability Test (GAT). Mathematics is generally more calculation-intensive, while GAT includes English, Physics, Chemistry, General Science, History, Geography, and Current Affairs.
| Section | Expected Difficulty Level |
|---|---|
| Mathematics | To be updated |
| GAT | To be updated |
| Overall Paper | To be updated |
NDA 2 2026 Mathematics Analysis
NDA 2 Mathematics paper consists of 120 objective questions carrying 300 marks. Questions are asked from Algebra, Matrices and Determinants, Trigonometry, Analytical Geometry, Differential Calculus, Integral Calculus, Vector Algebra, Statistics, Probability and other prescribed topics.
Based on previous NDA papers, Algebra, Trigonometry, Coordinate Geometry and Calculus are expected to remain important areas in NDA 2 2026.
Check Detailed:- NDA 2 Maths Analysis 2026
NDA 2 2026 GAT Analysis
NDA 2 GAT (General Ability Test) paper consists of 150 objective questions carrying 600 marks, divided into English (50 questions, 200 marks) and General Knowledge (100 questions, 400 marks) sections. Questions are asked from English comprehension, vocabulary and grammar, along with Physics, Chemistry, General Science, History, Geography and Current Affairs.
Based on previous NDA papers, Current Affairs, Physics, General Science and English Comprehension are expected to remain important areas in NDA 2 2026.
Check Detailed:- NDA 2 GAT Analysis 2026
NDA 2 2026 Expected Cutoff
NDA 2 2026 is scheduled to be conducted on September 13, 2026. Since the examination has not yet been held, the cutoff can only be estimated from recent NDA cutoff trends, vacancies, and the expected difficulty level of the paper. UPSC will release the official cutoff after completion of the selection process.
| Stage | NDA 2 2026 Expected Cutoff |
|---|---|
| Written Examination | 325–345 marks out of 900 |
| Safe Score | 350+ marks |
| Final Cutoff – Written + SSB | 680–710 marks out of 1800 |
The expected written cutoff may rise or fall depending on the actual difficulty level of Mathematics and GAT. For reference, the official NDA 2 2024 written cutoff was 305 marks, while NDA 2 2025 had a written cutoff of 304.90 for male candidates and 358.84 for female candidates, with at least 25% marks required in each subject.
NDA 1 2026 Exam Analysis
NDA 1 2026 was conducted by UPSC on April 12, 2026. Overall, the examination was Moderate, with Mathematics emerging as the comparatively tougher and more time-consuming paper, while GAT was moderate and relatively balanced.
| Paper/Section | Difficulty Level | Good Attempts | Major Topics/Areas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | Moderate to Difficult | 55–70 | Algebra, Calculus, Trigonometry, Coordinate Geometry, Matrices & Determinants, Probability |
| English | Easy to Moderate | 38–42 | Grammar, Vocabulary, Error Detection, Sentence Improvement, Comprehension |
| General Knowledge | Moderate | 32–36 | Physics, Chemistry, Biology, History, Geography, Polity, Current Affairs |
| GAT Overall | Moderate | 70–78 | English + General Knowledge |
| Overall NDA 1 2026 | Moderate | 140–160 with good accuracy | Mathematics was lengthy; English was comparatively scoring |
NDA 1 2026 Subject-wise Analysis
| Subject | Analysis |
|---|---|
| Mathematics | Mathematics was the toughest part of NDA 1 2026. The paper was calculation-heavy and included several multi-step questions. Algebra and Calculus had noticeable weightage, while Trigonometry, Coordinate Geometry, Matrices, Determinants and Probability were also important. |
| English | The English portion of GAT was Easy to Moderate and comparatively scoring. Questions mainly tested grammar, vocabulary, sentence improvement, error detection and comprehension. |
| General Knowledge | GK was Moderate and covered a broad mix of Science, History, Geography, Polity and Current Affairs. Science had significant representation, while several questions required conceptual rather than purely factual knowledge. |
| Overall | NDA 1 2026 was Moderate overall. Mathematics demanded greater calculation speed and time management, whereas GAT offered better scoring opportunities, particularly through English. |
The NDA 1 2026 written examination consisted of 120 Mathematics questions for 300 marks and 150 GAT questions for 600 marks, giving a total of 900 marks. Each paper had a duration of 2 hours 30 minutes.
Previous Year NDA Exam Analysis
NDA 2 2026 Candidates can refer to the previous years' NDA exam analysis to understand the difficulty level and topic-wise question distribution.
NDA 2 GAT Exam Analysis 2025
NDA 2 GAT paper was moderate in difficulty. The section-wise question distribution is given below.
| Subject | No. of Questions |
|---|---|
| English | 50 |
| History | 15 |
| Polity | 3 |
| Geography | 20 |
| Current Affairs | 10 |
| Static GK | 3 |
| Economy | 2 |
| Physics | 23 |
| Chemistry | 16 |
| Biology | 8 |
NDA 2 Maths Exam Analysis 2025
NDA 2 Maths paper was conducted from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM. The topic-wise question distribution is given below.
| Topic | Questions |
|---|---|
| Trigonometry | 4 |
| Height & Distance | 2 |
| Sequence & Series | 4 |
| Complex Number | 3 |
| Inequality & Logarithms | 2 |
| Permutation & Combination | 6 |
| Quadratic Equation & Cube Roots | 5 |
| Binomial Theorem | 3 |
| Matrices & Determinants | 8 |
| Probability | 4 |
| Binary | 2 |
| Sets, Relations & Functions | 8 |
| Limits, Continuity & Differentiability | 5 |
| Integration & Its Application | 6 |
| Vector | 5 |
| Conic Section | 3 |
| 3D Geometry | 5 |
| Statistics & DI | 6 |
| Circle | 3 |
NDA 2 2026 Exam Pattern
NDA 2 2026 consists of two objective-type papers: Mathematics and General Ability Test. Mathematics carries 300 marks, while GAT carries 600 marks.
| Paper | Questions | Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 120 | 300 | 2½ Hours |
| GAT | 150 | 600 | 2½ Hours |
| Total | 270 | 900 | 5 Hours |
The question papers are objective type. Mathematics and Part B of GAT are set bilingually in Hindi and English. There is negative marking for incorrect answers.
NDA 2 2026 Mathematics and GAT Comparison
Mathematics and GAT differ considerably in their syllabus, marks and question pattern. Mathematics contains 120 questions for 300 marks, while GAT contains 150 questions for 600 marks.
| Particular | Mathematics | GAT |
|---|---|---|
| Questions | 120 | 150 |
| Marks | 300 | 600 |
| Duration | 2½ Hours | 2½ Hours |
| Major Areas | Mathematics | English + General Knowledge |
| Expected Difficulty | Moderate to Difficult | Moderate |
| Expected Attempts | 55-65 | 85-100 |
The final difficulty and good-attempt ranges will be updated after the exam.
NDA 2 Exam Analysis 2026 FAQs
Ques: What is considered a good score in NDA 2 2026?
Ans: A good score will depend on the difficulty of the paper, accuracy, negative marking and the cut-off for the written exam. The score range can be assessed more accurately after the actual paper analysis.
Ques: Does UPSC normalize NDA marks since candidates appear on the same day?
Ans: No. Normalisation is used by exams that hold multiple shifts across days to adjust for difficulty differences between shifts. Since NDA 2 2026 is a single sitting nationwide with one Mathematics session and one GAT session for every candidate, no normalisation is applied to the written scores.
Ques: How do mathematics and GAT marks count toward NDA merit?
Ans: The written exam score out of 900, combining Mathematics and GAT, is added to the SSB interview score out of 900 to form the final merit score out of 1800. A candidate must clear the written cut-off before the SSB score is considered.
Ques: How can candidates verify their responses after NDA 2 2026?
Ans: UPSC releases the recorded responses and the provisional answer key on its official website after the exam. Candidates can check their submitted answers using their roll number and can raise objections during the window UPSC specifies, before the final answer key is issued.
Ques: Does UPSC publish an official difficulty rating for NDA papers?
Ans: No. UPSC does not release a difficulty rating for Mathematics or GAT at any point. Difficulty levels reported in exam analysis content come from candidate feedback and coaching review, not from an official UPSC statement.
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