DRDO Admin and Allied Syllabus: Tier I and Tier II Topics
The DRDO Admin and Allied syllabus covers a Tier I computer based test and a Tier II round that differs by post. CEPTAM names the Tier I areas and the Tier II tests in its notification but does not publish a topic-wise syllabus. The topic lists below are built from the CEPTAM-10/A&A notification and from areas that candidates commonly report, so use them as a working checklist and not as an official list.
This page lists the Tier I areas for every post, the separate Hindi and English paper for Junior Translation Officer (JTO), and the skill, driving and physical tests that sit in Tier II.
Table of Contents
Syllabus at a Glance
Stage | Posts | Areas | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tier I CBT | All except JTO | Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning, General Awareness, General English | 75 | 60 minutes |
Tier I CBT | JTO | General Hindi, General English | 80 | 60 minutes |
Tier II | JTO | Translation and essay (descriptive) | 200 | 120 minutes |
Tier II | Other posts | Skill, typing, driving or physical test | Qualifying | As per test |
Key Points to Know
One paper for most posts: Stenographer, Administrative Assistant, Store Assistant, Security Assistant, Vehicle Operator, Fire Engine Driver and Fireman candidates all take the same 75-question Tier I paper.
JTO is different: the JTO Tier I paper is only Hindi and English, and Tier II decides the final merit.
No negative marking: the notification states there is none in Tier I.
Medium: the paper is bilingual in Hindi and English.
Older pages may still show a different pattern from earlier cycles, so follow the official notification.
Tier I Syllabus for All Posts Except JTO
The notification lists four areas for 75 questions and does not state how many questions each area carries. Check the latest advertisement for any section-wise split.
Section | Topics to cover | Start with |
|---|---|---|
Quantitative Aptitude | Simplification, percentage, average, ages, ratio and proportion, time and work, pipes and cistern, speed time and distance, simple and compound interest, profit and loss, partnership, number series, HCF and LCM, data interpretation, basic probability and permutation | Simplification, percentage and ratio |
Reasoning | Direction sense, blood relations, syllogism, order and ranking, inequalities, alpha-numeric series, coding-decoding, analogy, logical reasoning | Series, coding-decoding and blood relations |
General Awareness | Indian history and national movement, geography, polity and Constitution, science and technology, culture and heritage, current affairs, awards, important days, sports | Static GK from standard school books, then monthly current affairs |
General English | Synonyms and antonyms, grammar, tenses, subject-verb agreement, error correction, fill in the blanks, sentence rearrangement, idioms and phrases, comprehension | Grammar rules and vocabulary |
With 75 marks in 60 minutes you have under a minute per question. Arithmetic and reasoning give the most predictable marks, while General Awareness rewards steady daily reading. Solve at least one comprehension passage a day to keep English speed up.
Tier I Syllabus for JTO
The JTO paper has 40 questions in General Hindi and 40 in General English, for 80 marks in 60 minutes.
General Hindi
Grammar: noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, case, compounds, sandhi, prefixes and suffixes, voice, tense and punctuation.
Vocabulary: synonyms, antonyms, idioms, proverbs, word meanings and correction of incorrect words.
Comprehension and translation: unseen passages, summarising, and translating text between Hindi and English.
General English
Grammar and usage: tenses, verbs, adverbs, subject-verb agreement and error correction.
Vocabulary: synonyms, antonyms, idioms and phrases.
Comprehension: unseen passages, fill in the blanks and sentence rearrangement.
Tier II Syllabus and Tests
JTO descriptive paper
The Tier II paper for JTO tests translation and essay writing, for 200 marks in 120 minutes. Practise translation both ways between Hindi and English, with attention to official and administrative vocabulary, and write essays on general, administrative and social topics. There is no fixed topic list for the essay.
Skill and physical tests for other posts
These tests are qualifying in nature and carry no syllabus in the usual sense. The CEPTAM-10/A&A notification set these standards.
Post | Tier II test |
|---|---|
Stenographer Grade-I | Dictation at 100 words per minute for 10 minutes, transcription in English within 40 minutes |
Stenographer Grade-II | Dictation at 80 words per minute for 10 minutes, transcription in English within 50 minutes |
Administrative Assistant 'A', Store Assistant 'A' | Typing at 35 words per minute in English or 30 words per minute in Hindi, 10 minutes |
Vehicle Operator 'A', Fire Engine Driver 'A' | Driving test |
Security Assistant 'A', Fire Engine Driver 'A', Fireman | Physical Fitness and Capability Test (height, chest, weight, vision, run, rope climb, sit-ups, long jump) |
Overlap Between Stages
Area | Tier I | Tier II | How to plan |
|---|---|---|---|
English grammar and vocabulary | All posts | JTO translation and essay | Build once, use in both stages |
Hindi language | JTO | JTO translation | Daily reading and weekly writing practice |
Typing and shorthand | Not tested | Steno, Admin and Store posts | Practise daily from the start, not after Tier I |
Fitness | Not tested | Security, Fire and Fireman posts | Build running and strength base alongside study |
How to Cover the Syllabus
Weeks 1 to 4: revise arithmetic basics, grammar rules and the standard school-level GK chapters.
Weeks 5 to 8: move to reasoning sets, data interpretation and monthly current affairs notes, and start topic-wise tests. Educators publish tests, courses and notes on Testkart, and the exam page shows what is currently available for DRDO Admin and Allied.
Weeks 9 to 12: take sectional tests and full papers, then revise from your error log.
Throughout: keep daily skill practice for typing, dictation, translation or fitness, depending on your post.
Always cross-check with the official CEPTAM-10/A&A notification.
Frequently Asked Questions
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