“The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.”- Ronald Reagan
From time immemorial, all over the world, various types of methods have been used in the selection of military leaders. In the ancient past, warriors became rulers without a test of their ability while some others had to prove their worth through tasks measuring their physical might and agility. Most of the times their ability to save the kingdom or the damsel in distress was the key to their success. From those times, we moved to the scientific way of selecting officers and soldiers for the Armies during the post World War era. After many unsuccessful experiments, the present system of selecting officers through a nodal agency and one universal method evolved in India.
What is the existing process?
Specific Services Selection Boards (SSBs) work under the aegis of Directorate of Recruitment under the Adjutant General’s branch in Indian Army, the Directorate of Manpower Planning and Recruitment in Indian Navy, and the Directorate of Personnel in Indian Air Force, Air Headquarters respectively. Defence Institute of Psychological Research provides the technical guidance to all the SSBs and also conducts training for the assessors employed on assessment duties. For the NDA entry, aspirants undergo the following process:
- Written entrance exam: conducted twice in an year by UPSC
- five -day SSB interview for selected aspirants
- Medical examination for recommended aspirants
- National merit listed aspirants called for three years initial military training at NDA
For all the other entries, Services Selection Board interview, medical examination and National merit list are obligatory steps with/without a written entrance exam.
The five day stay at Services Selection Board includes assessment in two Stages:
Screening: Day I– PIQ filling, Officer’s Intelligence Rating Test (OIR) and Picture Perception and Description Test (PPDT)
Screening: Day II-V– PIQ filling, Psychological tests, Outdoor Group and Individual Tasks and Personal Interview, Conference
While Screening I is attended by all the candidates in a batch, Screening II is attended by only a selected few who are screened in after OIR and PPDT. The SSB selection process, unlike selection process for any other job is unique and gives appropriate weightage to both intelligence as well as personality of the aspirant. While the OIR assesses the basic intelligence, the Psychological tests, individual and group outdoor tasks as well the personal interview assesses the personality of the aspirant. The SSBs apply a three-pronged assessment system where the following three assessors assess the aspirants independently:
- Psychologist (civilian or uniformed)
- GTO
- Interviewing Officer
The Conference again gives an opportunity to the aspirant to prove his worth to all the assessors and also gives the complete board members to assess the aspirant and match their independent opinion about the aspirant.
So, for all the aspirants who have met some repeaters and heard them updating their status as “Screened in” “Recommended/Not recommended“, it will be clear that Screening would refer to the Stage I screening in, while Recommended would refer to clearing the Stage II Screening. Some would have also heard the term : ‘Conference out‘ and wondered what it meant in the life of an SSB aspirant. It would again be the same as not recommended by the SSB in the Conference.
One might wonder what are the advantages and disadvantages of the current SSB process! And the answer is not as simple as the question. These tests have been designed in such a manner that they test the ‘functional ability’ required for being a military leader. The qualities (popular as OLQs among aspirants), temperament and aptitude required for being a military leader is all measured with the help of different types of tasks. This type of assessment not only differentiates the ‘very good’ (aspirants) from the ‘very bad’, but also has the ability to classify those aspirants who fall in between the two extremes. Constant investigations, experimentation and studies have helped the SSB to evolve into a robust system of selection. Although with time, every system needs an overhaul if it means to be updated.
The present system may be the best but it does take the toll on the evaluators. Assessing so many human beings in short span of time and then maintaining the records for the same, will be susceptible to erroneous judgement. And that is where the new system comes in.
What will be the new process?
With the onset of digitalisation and AI, the system plans to benefit form computerised evaluation and assessment. There will be following changes that are planned to be implemented in near future:
- OIR will be conducted online. through Computerised Stage-I Selection System (CSSS).
- PPDT will be replaced by similar personality based tests administered online.
This means there will be no physical shifting of aspirants from hall to hall for OIR and PPDT. The complete Screening for Stage I will be conducted in a single sitting. The Stage I screening will include computerised OIR and Personality test (CSSS). There will be no PPDT and the group discussion that followed the PPDT. Aspirants will be evaluated on computer and informed about the Stage II qualification on computer.
What remains the same is the Stage II screening process. There will be no change at all in the Stage II assessments. All the three assessors will conduct their assessments in the same manner as earlier.
How to prepare?
Aspirants will need to gear for Computerised Stage I Selection System where OIR and personality based tests will be conducted on computer. For OIR, the pattern of questions will remain the same as earlier: verbal and non-verbal reasoning-based questions need to be practiced. For the personality test, the key is to be honest about one’s self. Aspirants need to know themselves: their strengths and limitations, and implement strategies to overcome these limitations.
Finally, one needs to remember, SSBs are selection boards and not Rejection boards. They are only looking for reasons to select you ; the more the merrier. Remember, the five-days stay at a SSB center is just a trailer of how life would be after you wear the uniform… Preparation for this job begins the day you are born. In war, it will be your natural instinct: your natural style of decision-making that will help you and your soldiers.
“Soldiers watch what their leaders do….It is your personal example they will follow.” General Colin Powell
More about the Psychology of SSB in my next blog,
until then,
keep reading
keep living
