Reality of Cds Journey Alpha Batch.
I never enrolled in any batch casually. Like most defence aspirants, I also went to seniors and experienced candidates asking which teachers or platforms were good for CDS preparation. Most of them suggested CDS Journey. I started studying from their YouTube videos, which were genuinely engaging, and eventually enrolled in the Alpha batch.
Along with English, they started Biology, Chemistry, Physical Geography, Physics, and Indian Geography. But Polity and Economics were started very late. In fact, Economics was completed just 6 days before the exam. At the same time, students were constantly overloaded with endless material: Op Surprise, Breakfast sessions, tests, PDFs, YouTube videos, current affairs and much more. Practically, it becomes impossible for anyone to properly absorb and revise everything.
The initial phase of the course moved extremely slowly, but near the exam it became complete chaos. It felt like the syllabus pace suddenly shifted from calm preparation to Operation Sindoor mode.
No hate towards any teacher, but I genuinely feel that now the platform has grown to such an extent that emotional marketing is being heavily used to attract students into buying batches. Their YouTube classes honestly feel more effective than the paid batch itself. Repeated messages like “everything is easy”, “I will take care of everything”, “just enroll and trust us” sound comforting, but reality is very different. Also, repeatedly saying admissions are closing and then reopening batches multiple times creates unnecessary FOMO among students. Either stay honest about it or stop using this strategy.
Biggest demerits:
PYQs were never discussed with the seriousness they required. Most of the time, answers were simply ticked and moved on. Students who were in the batch will understand this point. I am not talking about YouTube classes because the explanations there are actually much better.
In the beginning, they clearly say that students do not need to read any books because they will provide everything. This is probably the biggest trap a beginner can fall into. I blindly followed this advice, and I believe many others did too. It is genuinely harmful advice for newcomers preparing seriously for CDS.
The syllabus starts like a turtle and ends like a rabbit. No student can properly revise endless PDFs and huge content dumps in the final phase.
There is a lack of deep learning in GS. Unfortunately, the GS section is not covered with the depth it actually requires. In comparison, Journey Extraordinary is far better when it comes to conceptual understanding and detailed coverage.
Merits:
Weekly full mocks
Daily Google Forms
Breakfast sessions, although later they also became another source of content overload.
Personally, I would not suggest their paid course. Defence Wallah and Journey Extraordinary are better alternatives in my opinion. CDS Journey YouTube videos can still be useful, but mainly for revision, not for actual learning because many topics are not covered with the depth they deserve.
To sum it up, studying seriously and merely watching videos on a screen are two completely different things. Do not fall into the trap of worshipping teachers.
They are doing their work, but at the end of the day it is also a business. Businesses survive on emotional hooks, fear of missing out, and selling hope.
Again, no hate towards any teacher. This is simply my honest feedback as a student.
All the best to everyone preparing.
Jai Hind.