Stage 1 · Screening (OIR + PPDT)
The Day-1 gate that sends half the candidates home
Everything you'll learn about the GTO, the psychology tests and the interview only matters if you survive Day 1. The Screening Test happens within hours of reporting, and roughly half of every batch is screened out and sent home the same evening. It has two parts — the OIR reasoning test and the PPDT. This lesson shows you exactly what each one measures and how to clear it.
Why Day 1 is brutal — and fair
The board can't run the full five-day assessment on a hundred candidates, so it filters first. Screening is that filter: a quick, objective read of raw intelligence and a fast read of personality, combined into one screen-in / screen-out call.
It feels harsh because it's fast and you get no feedback. But it's fair — it rewards exactly what the rest of the SSB rewards: clear reasoning under time pressure, and a constructive, active mind.
Screened out means you go home before the real testing starts. Treat Day 1 as the most important day, not the warm-up.
Part 1 — the OIR test
Officer Intelligence Rating is a timed multiple-choice test in two booklets: verbal reasoning (series, analogies, coding–decoding, blood relations, directions, odd-one-out) and non-verbal reasoning (figures, patterns, series). It is not maths-heavy — it's pattern recognition at speed.
You're rated on a scale; that rating sits alongside your PPDT to decide screening. A strong OIR gives you a cushion; a weak one means your PPDT has to carry you.
- Speed AND accuracy — attempt as many as you can without guessing blindly.
- Don't get stuck. If a question is slow, mark your best guess and move on.
- The only real preparation is reps: the more reasoning sets you've seen, the faster you spot the pattern.
Practise against the clock, not at leisure. The test measures how you think when the timer is running.
Part 2 — the PPDT
Picture Perception & Description Test. A hazy picture is shown for 30 seconds. You note the number of characters and, for the main character, their age, sex and mood; then you write what led to the situation, what is happening, and the outcome. You then write a story — about four minutes — and finally narrate it to your group, after which the group discusses to agree a common story.
So the PPDT is really three skills in one: perception (what you see), projection (the story you build), and group behaviour (the narration and discussion).
What a good PPDT story looks like
- A positive, constructive theme — something is improved or resolved.
- One clear main character (the hero) who NOTICES a problem, DECIDES, and ACTS — at a realistic human scale, not as a superhero.
- A simple structure: cause → action → result.
- Realistic and grounded — no violence, no fantasy, no waiting to be rescued.
The assessors aren't grading your imagination. They're reading whether your instinct, under pressure, is to take responsibility and act.
The narration and group discussion
After writing, you narrate your story aloud in under a minute. Then the group talks to reach a single agreed story. This is your first chance to show officer-like behaviour in front of an assessor.
Speak clearly and confidently; listen to others; build on a good idea rather than fighting for your own; help the group converge. Quiet, helpful leadership beats loud domination here just as it does in the GTO ground.
If you barely spoke in the discussion, you've given the assessor nothing to screen you in on. Make at least one clear, constructive contribution.
How the screen-in decision is made
Your OIR rating and your PPDT performance (story + narration + discussion) are combined. Borderline OIR can be saved by a confident PPDT and a good discussion; a weak showing in both is what sends people home.
The numbers of the screened-in candidates are read out, they're given chest numbers, and the five-day assessment begins. Everyone else leaves.
Strong vs. weak — side by side
Hero (a college student) notices the village pump is broken before a festival, rallies three friends, organises repair by nightfall, and the festival goes ahead. Cause, action, result — calm and constructive.
A vague description of the picture with no clear hero, or a dramatic story about an accident and rescue with the main character as a bystander or victim.
A crisp 40-second telling: who, the problem, what the hero did, the result — delivered looking at the group.
Reading the answer sheet word-for-word, mumbling, or retelling every detail so the point is lost.
Common mistakes to avoid
- ✗Treating Day 1 casually because 'the real tests are later'.
- ✗Freezing on hard OIR questions and running out of time.
- ✗A PPDT story with no clear hero, or a negative/violent/fantasy theme.
- ✗Staying silent in the discussion, or trying to dominate it.
- ✗Describing the picture instead of building a story with an action.
Now practise it — free
Reading is step one. Create a free WishWas account to practise Stage 1 · Screening (OIR + PPDT) in a realistic simulator, get question banks and model answers, and study in your own language — all free.
Frequently asked questions
What is SSB Stage 1 screening?
Day 1 of the SSB: an Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) test followed by the Picture Perception & Discussion Test (PPDT). Only screened-in candidates stay for the remaining days.
Why do so many candidates get screened out?
Weak OIR speed, unclear PPDT stories, and poor group discussion behaviour. Consistent practice on all three is the fastest way to clear it.