“Mock tests help in developing speed and accuracy”

SHIKHAR AGARWAL, ALL INDIA RANK 6, CLAT 2018, ON HOW TO WORK OUT A WINNING STRATEGY

WHEN DID YOU DECIDE TO CHOOSE LAW AS A CAREER?

The field of law had always been appealing to me and I felt that it is something that would suit me, and give me opportunities to be a better human being. So, after my Class 10 results, at the time of selecting the subjects—I had commerce with mathematics—I got in touch with my senior in school aspiring for law too, who advised me to enrol myself for coaching and introduced me to the several law entrance tests.

HOW TO PREPARE FOR CLAT (COMMON LAW ADMISSION TEST)?

A rational, realistic and systematic approach is must when preparing for law entrances. Strong and weak areas should be identified and one needs to work on mastering them. Divide your time studying for the school curriculum and law entrance preparation.

HOW DID YOU WORK ON YOUR WEAKER AREAS?

I was particularly strong in mathematics, analytical reasoning and English. I had to predominantly work on my general knowledge, legal and English vocabulary. For general knowledge, I decided not to study anything till my boards ended. I only made notes before the boards. I made notes on etymology and word roots for English through YouTube videos and tried to do diverse questions as practice for legal studies.

HOW IMPORTANT ARE MOCK TESTS AND TEST SCORES?

Mock tests give you an idea about where you stand with your preparation. Experiment with mocks as much as possible in order to develop a proper test taking strategy and get used to the pattern. Mocks helped me in developing speed and accuracy. Mock tests can only improve if you work on analysing the results. Give as many mocks as possible and don’t let a bad mock demoralise you. I got a rank as low as 800 in a mock and yet I am here before you.

WHAT WAS YOUR PREPARATION STRATEGY ?

I focused on completing as much syllabus as I could till December excluding general knowledge. This involved exhausting all the modules provided by the coaching institute, giving mocks to get an idea of the paper and making notes of what has been taught at the institute and through self-study. Once 2018 began, my focus shifted entirely to Class 12 boards and I managed to score 98 per cent. After boards, I gave mocks on a daily basis, worked out my exam strategy and revised prior concepts.