JEE exams are one such life changing event for IIT aspirants. JEE Main is first stage to clear for those who aspire to take admission in IIT’s. For many others JEEM is destination. For such aspirants it is advised that if they have missed January, they must appear in the second phase normally conducted in April but now delayed due to COVID 19. Even those who have taken examination in January must take second phase examination since best of the two scores is considered. JEEA aspirants are also advised to appear in JEEM second phase to ensure their name in list of qualified candidates eligible to take JEEA examination.
JEE Main is designed mostly with questions of singular concepts and some even direct formula based. On the other hand, the questions asked in the JEE Advanced require in-depth understanding of concepts and their application and are even multi- conceptual. Such questions require not only a solid foundation in the subject but also concept clarity along with high IQ, high analytical skill, high reasoning power & exposure to solving of various types of problems from initial principles.
Due to COVID 19, both examinations are delayed which means extended preparation time available to serious and focused students which they must utilize gainfully. Even though the preparation for Mains and Advance go hand in hand, proper strategy needs to be planned for excelling among the 2.24 lac competitors screened from first stage JEEM examination, qualified to appear in JEE Advanced examination. Owing to small number of seats around 5500 in General Category, the exam requires a rigorous, methodical, consistent preparation. The aspirant requires high levels of discipline, dedication, effort, self-motivation to succeed with good ranking.
For those who missed out on the first attempt in JEEM or want to improve their ranking to qualify for JEE Advanced, here is an opportunity to strengthen their preparations. Attempting the first Main exam, should be considered as a mock test which clarifies the weak areas for detailed analysis and further preparations.
It is a fact that preparation for this is not a process to be completed in a month or two rather it is a continuous process of preparation for years together. Few tips and tricks by experts will help such aspirants to strengthen their preparation strategy for achieving success simultaneously in both JEE Main 2 nd phase and JEE Advanced examination.
Smart planning and time management is the key – The foremost essential for succeeding in JEE is a smart revision plan which covers the entire syllabus well in available time. Make the study task table that utilizes the time effectively by dividing the subjects and topics on daily basis to cover revision comfortably. Allocate equal time to each subject such that due attention is paid to each topic/concept. Discipline is the key to follow the timetable meticulously.
Utilize the resources efficiently, do not refer too many books – Mastering the concept is a must, so choose the easiest to understand study material. At this stage NCERT books and your concise study notes and tricks to solve seemingly difficult questions are the handiest material to clear the concepts. Never get puzzled by referring various authors as different writers have different methods to solve a problem and can lead to confusion. The study material provided by reputed coaching institute proves immensely helpful.
Attempt online mock tests – Methodical planned revision and taking daily mock tests will help them overcoming their weaknesses, increase speed and accuracy and keep them well updated with the current trend and pattern of the examinations. Online platform such as myPAT provides complete access to previous year papers, online mock tests, doubt clearing sessions, and expert opinion with real time analysis. Students tend to learn from the mistakes and hence avoid repeating them. Attending regular mock tests is useful to understand the gap and weak areas during preparation. Joining test series through an authentic source to get All India RPI (Rank Potential Index) helps to know the level of preparedness and national standing amongst peer group. This not only helps in clearing the weak concepts, but also helps in managing the time effectively and gainfully for better outcomes. The mock tests provide comparative as well as progressive analysis that will help the students to plan their path of preparation accordingly.
Practice lot of questions but with clear concept – Solve quality problems covering all types and patterns in past years. Cracking JEE requires clarity of concept, it’s applications and analytical skills.
Last week(s) strategy
1. Do intermittent quick revisions from your short notes. Go trough formulae and concepts at a glance of every chapter of all three subjects.
2. Do not try to attempt new problems at this stage.
3. Focus more on polishing the strengths by regular revision, testing, analysis, and corrective action to perfect the concepts.
4. Believe in yourself, work hard and stay focused with positive energy.
5. Taking some time to relax or rest also prepares the brain to recall the learnt things.
6. Keep calm as temperament plays a vital role in JEE success. With all the preparation done so far, nervousness can decrease the performance on the day of examination and even the most potential candidate can be adversely affected.
Tips on examination day
Start with the subject you feel most confident in order of your comfort level. Attempt first those questions where you are sure of correct answer. Do not entail negative marks by attempting questions which are black box type and you do not know anything about it.
For JEE Advanced examination, in addition to above, must attempt questions with no negative marks even if you have to guess. Finally it is relative performance and not absolute level of difficulty which matters.
(Author RL Trikha is Director FIITJEE Group. Views expressed here are personal.)
