The PIQ, or Personal Information Questionnaire, is the form in which you give the board your background: family, education, activities and interests. The Air Force’s published AFSB schedule puts PIQ filling on Day 1, with the screening tests. The practical rule is simple: write only what is true and what you can talk about, because the interview is built on your life. This guide gives a section-by-section drill, and it says plainly what is official and what is our advice.
What we could and could not verify. The Indian Air Force’s AFCAT guidelines confirm PIQ filling on Day 1. We could not find the form itself on an official public page, and published sources differ on whether it is filled online before the call-up or on paper at the centre. Your call-up letter tells you which applies. The headings below follow what SSB guidance describes; the form you receive is the only layout that counts.
When and where the PIQ is filled
- Air Force Selection Boards: Day 1 includes the intelligence and picture tests, a document check, PIQ filling and psychological tests, according to the AFCAT portal.
- Army and Navy boards: the official pages we could read do not say when the form is filled, so follow your call-up letter.
- Online or paper: sources differ. Do not rely on a forum post; read the letter.
Why the PIQ matters
The Army’s description of the SSB says the Interviewing Officer talks with you about the opportunities you have had in life and what you gained from them, and that questions are generally based on everyday experience. It lists the ground covered: academics, competitive examinations, achievements, extra-curricular activities, interests, sports, your feelings for parents, friends, teachers and society, your general knowledge and awareness, and your physical and mental fortitude. The description is reproduced in a 2025 Supreme Court judgment. A form that records these things gives the interviewer his starting points. We say so as an inference: the sources describe what is covered, and they do not say line by line how the form is used.
Section by section: the know-what-you-write drill
For each part of the form, write the answer, then write down three questions you could be asked about it, and practise answering them aloud.
| Section | What to write | Questions to be ready for |
|---|---|---|
| Personal details | Name, date of birth, place, exactly as in your certificates | Why was your school or town chosen? What is special about your place? |
| Family | Parents’ occupations, siblings, family background | What does your father or mother do? What have you learned from them? Whom are you closest to? |
| Education | Schools, boards, subjects, marks, any change of school | Why this stream? Which subject do you like most and why? Why did your marks go up or down? |
| Sports and games | Only games you actually play, with level reached | Rules of the game, your position, a match you remember, injuries |
| Hobbies and interests | Real hobbies, not impressive ones | How did you start? What did you last do? What did you learn? |
| Positions of responsibility and activities | Posts you really held and what you did in them | What was your hardest decision? Whom did you lead? What went wrong? |
| NCC or similar | Certificates and camps, if any | What did the camps involve? What did you learn there? |
| Previous attempts | Honest record of earlier boards | What did you do after the last attempt? What changed? |
| Reasons for joining | Your own reasons in your own words | Why the forces, and why this service? What if you are not selected? |
Treat this table as a drill built from the interview areas in the Army’s description. It is not a copy of the official form.
Common mistakes
- Claiming what you cannot discuss. A hobby or post you cannot talk about for two minutes is a liability.
- Inconsistency. The psychologist’s tests, the interview and the group tasks are read together. What you write on the form should match how you behave and what you say elsewhere.
- Copying a model answer. Model answers on the internet make your form look like everybody else’s.
- Spelling and date errors. Your date of birth and your name must match your documents. UPSC notices stress that the date in the Matriculation certificate is the one accepted.
- Leaving gaps. If a section does not apply, say so plainly.
How to practise
- Fill a practice form from memory, in your own handwriting, with a time limit.
- Ask a friend or teacher to interview you for ten minutes using only what you wrote.
- Mark every question you struggled with, then fix the answer or change what you wrote.
- Repeat after a few days with a different interviewer.
Our SSB interview questions guide and SSB practice tool help with this. The tests after Day 1 are explained in SSB interview process, and the qualities the board looks for are in our 15 OLQs guide. For the last day of testing, see the SSB conference. If you would like a mock interview based on your own form, call or WhatsApp +91 70170 31757 for free counselling.
A practice sequence for the week before
- Day 1: write the form in full, from memory, and check every date, name and mark against your certificates.
- Day 2: pick three answers from each section and write two-minute spoken versions of each, then say them aloud.
- Day 3: ask a friend to find a contradiction in your form, such as a hobby you list but cannot explain, and remove or fix it.
- Day 4: practise answering the same question in two different ways and notice which feels like you.
- Day 5: a full mock interview of about 20 minutes, recorded, from the form only.
- Day 6: review the recording and note body language, pace and filler words.
- Day 7: rest, and keep the final form and your certificates ready in one folder.
For parents
Parents can help by asking about the form’s sections at home, in a relaxed way, and by confirming facts the candidate may not know, such as dates, family details and addresses. What parents should not do is draft the answers. The interview is relaxed and informal, as the Army’s description says, and the questions are generally based on everyday experience, so an answer in the candidate’s own words is the one that holds up.
FAQs
Questions parents ask us.
Can't find yours? Ask on WhatsApp; a counsellor usually replies within working hours.
Ask on WhatsAppWhat is the PIQ form in SSB?
The Personal Information Questionnaire, in which you give your background, family, education, activities and interests. The interview draws on it.
When is the PIQ filled?
The Air Force's AFSB schedule puts it on Day 1. For other boards, follow your call-up letter.
Is the PIQ online or on paper?
Published sources differ. Your call-up letter tells you which applies to your batch.
Can I change what I write in the PIQ?
Fill it carefully the first time. The interview is based on it, so do not write anything you cannot explain.
What if I do not have hobbies or positions of responsibility?
Say so honestly. A short true form is better than a long invented one.
Is there an official specimen PIQ?
We could not find one on an official public page, so we do not reproduce a form.
Sources
Getting your PIQ ready is part of the SSB training at GS India Defence Academy, which runs classroom SSB training in Dehradun with separate hostels for boys and girls and a mess. Current options are on the fee structure page.
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