Practicing sample papers will also build your confidence and shine a torch on where you are going wrong
The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) will be held on May 7, 2017 and students aspiring to study medicine have only one month to prepare for the exam. Last year, the exam was held in two parts— NEET I and NEET II— in which physics was considered to be the trickiest section. This year, more than 11 lakh candidates have registered for the exam. With just a month to go, its time to pull up your socks and prepare accordingly. Here are some strategies to inculcate as the time ticks closer to NEET 2017: 1. Notes You have spent enough time over the previous year attending classes, reading and trying to understand numerous concepts that you have come across. If all these concepts are in a jumble, collect your notes, glimpse through all the biggest concepts and organise them properly. When it comes to competitive examinations, like NEET or JEE, well-organised notes can be counted as life savers in the last few days before the exam. When you have all the important points in one spot, there is no need to rush through 10 books trying to locate one concept that you just can’t seem to remember. Organising your notes will also give you a chance to quickly brush through all the important concepts and will count as a round of revision. Read | NEET 2017: Follow this two-month strategy 2. Practice sample papers With all the knowledge that you have collected over the year, there is no need to fear an exam that will mimic the potential questions of NEET. Practicing previous years papers and mock tests will not only give you a good idea of how to manage the time during the exam, but will also help you narrow down the kind of questions that will be asked. Practicing sample papers will also build your confidence and shine a torch on where you are going wrong. This will help you in the next step. 3. Mistakes and weaknesses Everyone has a weakness and there is always some concept or question type that keeps going wrong. When you have identified what these mistakes and weak points are, you can spend a little time trying to understand them and correct your methods. There is, however, not much time left to understand something entirely new. Give yourself two or three days to go through the tougher portions of the syllabus and revert to revision of topics that you are confident about. Read | NEET 2016 topper Het Shah shares his success story and exam strategy Your study sessions should now contain a good mixture of theory, problem solving, revision and a look at previous years’ papers. 4. Physics and numericals Last year, physics was found to be the trickiest section of all. Topics which contain a lot of problem solving require practice and time. Spend at least an hour every day solving these questions. Repeated solving efforts on more tricky questions will help you identify and avoid the “traps” and you will discover better methods of arriving at the answer. Last year’s topper Het Shah suggests, “Attempt the biology part first as it takes a lot of time, although you should most definitely try to minimise the time taken for that,” he says. When you are confident with the numerical and problem solving type of questions, you will not waste too much time on them during the exam and will be able to find more time to work on the once that require a little more thinking. 5. Health The most important thing that students should keep in mind is their mental and physical health. Working hard and studying continuously is good until it makes you sick. There is no point of all your preparation if you are too unwell to write the paper on the day of the exam. So, remember to take a good number of breaks between studies. Eat healthy and do not miss out on sleep. A healthy body and mind will help you greatly.