Inter Services Selection Board
Encyclopedia
The Inter Services Selection Board (ISSB) is a selection committee for candidates for officer commissions in the armed forces of Pakistan, the Army
, Navy
and Air Force
. Selection is made on the basis of three days of psychological screening to test ability, aptitude and personality. The tests are held in Kohat
, Gujranwala
, Malir and Quetta
.
Candidates who pass the selection procedure qualify, provided that they pass a medical test, to undergo officer training at military academies, primarily the Pakistan Military Academy
in Kakul
, the Pakistan Naval Academy
in Manora
and the Pakistan Air Force Academy
in Risalpur
.
Coaching for the tests is not officially allowed, but nevertheless many academies do exist for this purpose, often run by retired army and ISSB officers.
The first Sikh
passed the board's selection procedure in 2005, the first Hindu
in 2006 and the first women also in 2006.
Air Vice Marshall Tubrez Asif is a former president of the ISSB.
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
, Navy
Pakistan Navy
The Pakistan Navy is the naval warfare/service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. Pakistan's Navy is responsible for Pakistan's coastline along the Arabian Sea and the defense of important civilian harbors and military bases...
and Air Force
Pakistan Air Force
The Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
. Selection is made on the basis of three days of psychological screening to test ability, aptitude and personality. The tests are held in Kohat
Kohat
Kohat is a medium sized town in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is located at 33°35'13N 71°26'29E with an altitude of 489 metres and is the capital of Kohat District. The town centres around a British-era fort, various bazaars, and a military cantonment. A British-built narrow gauge...
, Gujranwala
Gujranwala
Gujranwala is a industrial city in the north-east of the Punjab province. It is the sixth largest city in Pakistan with a population of approximately 2,661,360 as on 24 June 2011...
, Malir and Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
.
Candidates who pass the selection procedure qualify, provided that they pass a medical test, to undergo officer training at military academies, primarily the Pakistan Military Academy
Pakistan Military Academy
The Pakistan Military Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service military academy. It is located at Kakul near Abbottabad in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan....
in Kakul
Kakul
Kakul is a town situated in the Kakul Valley at an elevation of 1300 metres, 5 km northeast of Abbottabad city near the Thandiani Hills, in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The population is around 30,000.-History:...
, the Pakistan Naval Academy
Pakistan Naval Academy
The Pakistan Naval Academy The Pakistan Naval Academy The Pakistan Naval Academy (formerly known as Pakistan Naval Station Rahbar (PNS Rahbar) is a four-year coeducational federal military academy located in Manora Island, Sindh Province, Pakistan...
in Manora
Manora
Manora may refer to:* Manora, Karachi, a peninsula near Karachi, Pakistan* Manora Fort, Thanjavur, India* Manora, Washim, a taulka in Washim district of Maharashtra, India...
and the Pakistan Air Force Academy
Pakistan Air Force Academy
"RAF Risalpur", "Risalpur Airbase/Airfield" & "Pakistan Air Force/PAF Base Risalpur" redirects here.The Pakistan Air Force Academy also known as PAFA, is an accredited co-educational four-year college for the undergraduate education of officer candidates for the Pakistan Air Force...
in Risalpur
Risalpur
Risalpur is a city in Nowshera District, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, on the Nowshera-Mardan Road. It is nearly 45 km from Peshawar and 15 km from Mardan and is located at 34°4'52N 71°58'21E. In a basin some 1014 feet above sea level, it is bounded on the south and west by the Kabul and...
.
Coaching for the tests is not officially allowed, but nevertheless many academies do exist for this purpose, often run by retired army and ISSB officers.
The first Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
passed the board's selection procedure in 2005, the first Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
in 2006 and the first women also in 2006.
Air Vice Marshall Tubrez Asif is a former president of the ISSB.