5 Tips for Cracking JEE

Are the IIT-JEEs a tough nut to crack? In all likelihood, a majority of the nine lakh students appearing for the exams are probably asking the same question. JEE (Joint Entrance Exam) is one of the most prestigious exams for aspiring engineers to study in some of India’s top colleges. But how tough are they?

If you were looking for an easy answer, we’re sorry to disappoint, but they are one of the toughest exams in the world. Now, hang on! We’re not asking you to give up, especially if your dream is to be an engineer! Even though this is one of the toughest exams to crack, several people manage to do it year after year. We reached out to a few of them and asked them for tips on preparing for the big test. Here’s what we gathered to make life just a little bit easier for you:

1. Plan Your Studies

There’s way too much to study for the JEEs, so splitting it up into smaller portions helps (much like cake and pizza).

“I followed a general rule of devoting 3:2:1 ratio of time to Maths, Physics and Chemistry. Since Maths was not one of my strong points, I assigned more time for it, and focused on studying formulae and practising sums,” says Venkatesh Iyer, who scored 236 in the 2016 IIT Mains.

While math was a tough subject for Venkatesh, you need to figure out which subjects are easy-breezy and which ones would need more time. Planning your studies will help you make the most of your time and prepare better – a win-win!

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2. Start Preparing Early

The JEE syllabus is based on the concepts of Physics, Chemistry and Maths you would have studied in junior college. These two years have been a good testing-time for you to assess your strong and weak points. Look at each topic from different perspectives to test your understanding. A strong foundation will help you tackle any questions that come your way, even the sneaky ones twisted around to make them seem more complicated than they actually are.

3. Study. Revise. Repeat

Most people tend to leave their revisions for the end – either a week before exams or on their way to the exam hall.

“Everytime I finished a topic, I would sit and think about what I learnt so it would sink in,” says Sayali Thorat, who scored 195 in the 2014 IIT-JEE Mains. “Moving onto a new topic without revising the previous one can muddle your mind. Along with frequent revisions, I would also revise everything I studied during the day before I went to bed so I could retain the information I was taking in.”

Think of it like a TV show: ever watched the recap before a new episode? Treat this similarly; catch up with everything you’ve studied before picking up the next subject. While those last minute revisions work as lifesavers, they work even better as daily revisions.

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4. Do Practice Tests

“Solving sample tests is a must. They tell you where you stand with respect to preparation and time management. Knowing which questions to solve and which ones to leave – depending on your strengths and weaknesses – takes time and some amount of trial and error. The only way to get it right is to solve as many question papers as you can, especially the recent ones,” says Anuya Deshpande, who scored 186 in the 2013 JEE Mains.

A test may seem scary, but it is even scarier if you don’t know what it looks like. Mock tests familiarise you with the paper pattern, kinds of questions asked and, more importantly, show you how much of your studies you remember under pressure! There are also online mock tests or crash courses to help you prepare for the JEEs.

5. Other Things To Keep in Mind…

It is natural for doubts and fears to creep in when you set out to overcome tough challenges. At times like this, remind yourself of your end goal – getting into a great engineering course. While JEE preparations do call for long hours of hard work, don’t forget to take breaks. Step out; go for a stroll, hang out with friends, and give your brain some time to relax; it will help improve your productivity. You’re about to put in a lot of hard work, so make sure your body is equipped to keep up. Feed it good nutritious meals and lots of water. The healthier you are, the better your mind will function.

We hope these tips come in handy for all you aspiring engineers. Remember – while hard work gets you on track, smart work will help you achieve your goal! If you have any more questions on how you can go about preparing for the JEE, get in touch. We’d be happy to help!

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