Getting into IIT’s is a dream come true for any engineering aspirant. They are autonomous public institutes of higher studies for engineering in India. At present there are twenty three institutes located in various states of the country. The admissions to these institutes are through a common admission test that is JEE advanced for undergraduates and Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) for graduate degrees. These exams fall in the category of one of the toughest exams of the world. The students with an aptitude for physics and mathematics problem solving techniques easily go through the exam. It’s very essential to have a look at quick tips before you start your preparation to crack this exam. Here are some of the top tips from the toppers which you need to read by heart and must keep in mind.
- Be aware
You need to be aware of the type, pattern and level of questions asked in IIT-JEE Mains and advanced. The best way is to solve both higher level questions and general ones for practice. Also find a best way on how to solve contradictory questions. Go through all the patterns in which a question can be asked. Prepare equally well for both multiple choice questions and integer type questions.
- Perseverance
The competition for JEE Mains and Advanced is ever increasing year after year. No matter how studious you are, if you aim to get selected in one of the IIT’s you need to prepare harder and remain focussed. If you lose confidence easily and think that you are underperforming in your tests then remember that nothing comes easy. You need to stay focussed and always keep in mind that perseverance is the key to success.
- NCERT Books
These books are not much relevant in case of Physics and Mathematics but in case of chemistry, a lot of questions have been asked directly from the subject matter given in the NCERT books. At times it has been seen that in case of contradictory questions, the answers of NCERT are given much preference and considered right.
- Practise Analyze and repeat:
IIT JEE Mains and Advanced are two separate exams and both follow a completely different pattern. It has now become compulsory to appear for both these examinations. The best way is to prepare for both of these. Solve as many questions or problems you can as it will make you efficient and boost the speed. By giving IIT practice tests you can easily analyse your mistakes and be prepared about the pattern of the exam. This really helps in time management during exam which is really important.
- Versatile Approach:
If you are a monotonous student who sticks to a single pattern of study as taught by a specific teacher then you need to change this right away. You should be aware that more than 50% problems in IIT exams are based on new patterns and require high order thinking skills. You need to be open to versatile approaches and treat every question as a new question and solve the question with the least time consuming and correct approach.
- Time Management
Keeping track of time is one of the key to increase your speed. Once you start solving question in a fixed time limit, you will gradually start realising which questions you need to attempt and which not. In this way you will learn to optimize your time during the paper. Also working on clock improves your performance. But don’t forget to solve those remaining problems when the clock ticking is over and maximize the number of questions you solve to 20-30(Advance Pattern), 30-40(Mains Pattern) per hour.
- Maintain a balanced study pattern
If you want to be a good ranker or an IIT topper then balanced study is the key. It has been found that those students who are unable to make through this examination generally tend to study and work hard on the subject they are comfortable with. But the case should be exactly opposite. Devote more time to your weak areas and contribute equal study for all subjects because division of marks is equally divided.
- Calculate quickly
There are some questions that demand a lot of calculations and for that you should build up your calculating speed which is very essential. Maximum time in this exam is taken over by heavy and lengthy calculations. If you can handle some calculations on tips then this can save a lot of your time and you would be able to solve more number of questions. This is very important in an IIT-JEE examination.
- Remain Motivated
IIT is one of the toughest exams of our country. You need to be consistently motivated all the time during your preparation, because the question WHY am I doing this? Will strike you a number of times and might make you feel less motivated sometimes. All you need to do is head up straight and work harder to achieve your goal.
- Retention and Revision
You have 20 to 30 chapters each in all the three subjects and you prepare for a period of a year or two. You need to retain all the concepts for this long period of time. It is very important to keep on solving problems from past papers to keep reminding yourself of the concepts on a regular basis. Revision is very much important, especially in case of Organic and Inorganic Chemistry. All concepts and tricks should be clear to you all the time.
At last studying for boards is equally important but it does not matter for getting into IIT JEE. So, study hard for boards as well but do not let your boards hamper your rank in IITs, it has been observed in a lot of cases that students miss IIT JEE rank preparing for boards and not revising the things they had prepared for IIT. The most important thing is to keep calm and feel confident about your preparation. Always remember there is no exam that is the final judge of your fate. It is you who have the right to direction your path. Believe in yourself and what is best for you shall fall at your doorstep. Keep working hard and have faith in the powers you possess. Wishing you luck for your preparation and results!