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This Expert Talk is Part of Careers360’s GATE  Preparation Series, in which we bring you views and experiences of professors and the toppers who cracked GATE in previous years. In these interviews, we target their preparation strategies, methodology, tips & tricks and insights that can help you in enhancing your GATE Coaching Plan. Needless to say, the preparation for the exam has to be your effort in the end, but some motivation and guidance is what shows you the path.

Careers360: On what factors should a student decide if he/she should prepare for M.Tech. or go for a job? Abhijit: The primary deciding factor is the interest and passion for engineering and research. A job after M.Tech is usually highly technical in nature while the one after B.Tech is more generic. For those wanting to do research, M.Tech is a must.

Careers360: Please share strategies that student should follow in GATE preparation? Abhijit: There are two kinds of GATE aspirants – those who have decided in the first year itself that GATE is the goal and those who wake up to the exam’s potential in their pre-final or final year. The first step in the preparation for GATE is the concept strengthening and in this the former set has a distinct advantage – diligently following the lessons in their engineering course greatly increases their grasp of the fundamentals and concepts and this also helps them ace their university exams. And it is sufficient for them to practice a variety of questions as GATE is just an extension of their engineering syllabus. The latter group is faced with a far greater challenge - to cover up for the lost ground and that too, without the aid of a teacher. To overcome this difficulty, one could opt for a good classroom coaching module, so that concepts can be strengthened in a shorter span. Also, your goal in terms of the rank to be achieved also plays a big role in shaping the preparation. For eg, if your goal is to join any of the top courses in IITs, you need to get a rank of less than 1000, which means that you cannot afford to leave out any section during preparation. On the other hand, if just qualifying is the goal, one can afford to leave out some sections and focus on the important ones and still get enough marks to qualify. Engineering Mathematics and General Ability constitute 30% of the marks and hence are critical but also high scoring sections. Also, for example, electronic devices in ECE contributes to not more than 2-4% of the marks but takes up substantial preparation time. Hence students are advised to check out the pattern trends in GATE over the last few years and identify critical and non critical sections and proceed accordingly.

So in essence, the approach to be taken will be determined by your attitude and goals.

Careers360: What should be the strategy for the GATE aspirants? Abhijit: If one’s concepts are already strong, then extensive problem solving and a mock test series would be sufficient at this stage. But if concepts need to be built or strengthened, then it is best to pick up 4-5 sections out of the 10 and focus on them. A correspondence course or online tutorials should help in this case. Also due importance needs to be given to the General Ability section as it contributes 15 percent and is relatively easy to score in.

Careers360: GATE is an online exam. What difference is it going to make and what changes a student should implement in preparation strategies? Abhijit: With GATE going online, a lot of practice would be needed to familiarize with a computer based test. A peculiar problem that can arise in GATE, where some questions might need workings to be done on a complicated figure/diagram (in case of a paper based test the same can be done on the question paper itself) , is that of replicating the diagram. Students might need to practice on that.

With the test having numerical answer questions, wherein one has to enter an answer, instead of choosing between four options, guesswork is eliminated and hence one cannot bet on luck or a solution based on elimination of wrong options.

For streams with multiple sessions, the score would probably be the only parameter to compare performance of students across the two papers. The All India Rank may not be very relevant for these streams.

Careers360:  For candidates interested in careers in PSU what different strategy should they follow? Abhijit: For getting into a PSU through GATE, candidates should aim for a rank of less than 1500 – 2000, depending on the branch of engineering and this would mean attempting all sections and trying to maximize your score. One would additionally have to prepare for the group discussions/interviews which follow.

Careers360: What exams other than GATE student can appear in? How different is preparing for other exams when compared with GATE?

Abhijit: Apart from GATE, a student can get admission to the M.Tech/ME programs of private universities, private colleges and state government universities via different entrance tests. For example, in Andhra Pradesh, all seats left over (in both govt and private colleges) after the GATE admission process, are filled via an exam called PGECET. Similarly, in Tamil Nadu, such seats are filled via TANCET. Deemed universities like BITS Pilani have their own entrance test. But one thing to be noted here is that all students gaining admission via these exams will not be eligible for the MHRD stipend of Rs. 12,400. These exams, while having similar syllabi, are relatively easier than GATE and the competition is lesser too.  

Careers360: What should be the time management strategy for a GATE  aspirant? Is it possible for a working professional prepare and crack GATE? Abhijit: Preparing for a couple of hours every weekday with a rigorous schedule on weekends for a year should be sufficient, provided the basic concepts are clear. Working professionals can also crack GATE provided they follow the above schedule. In fact, quite a few of GATEFORUM’s toppers over the years have been working professionals. The most important thing is to balance the work pressure with the added study load.

Careers360:  Please state the importance of mock test. What should be the frequency of taking mock tests and things to follow after that? Abhijit: A mock test series is an integral part of the preparation for GATE. The benefits are threefold - firstly, one gets exposure to high quality questions. Secondly, it lets one know the preparation level vis a vis other GATE aspirants. And lastly, it helps one plan exam taking strategies and adapt to the exam pressure. This adaption becomes especially critical this year as GATE is going online. But a student must choose a test series which is represented by students from across the country, gives a realistic comparative performance analysis and also simulates the exact online GATE environment via supervised or monitored tests. One test a week to start off with (3 months before the actual GATE exam) with two tests per week in the last month should suffice.

Careers360: What is the USP of GATEFORUM Classes? What difference does GATEFORUM bring in teaching approach? Abhijit:The USP of GATEFORUM’s classes is holistic and standardized high quality training. The classroom sessions by experienced faculty, coupled with comprehensive study material and the mock test series makes for a complete preparatory module. With regular faculty orientation and the use of instructor notes, we try to ensure that a student in the Gateforum Chandigarh center receives the same quality of training as that received by a student in the Mumbai center.

Careers360: Any other message you would like to share with the GATE  aspirants? Abhijit: To crack any competitive exam in India, one has to be dedicated and focused. In fact one has to go one step further and be obsessed with the exam. At the same time, one must enjoy the preparation – the learning, the problem solving and the healthy competition with friends.

A graduate in manufacturing engineering, Abhijit completed his postgraduate diploma in management from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow, class of 2003. He was working as a Product Manager in the Anand Group before he quit to start GATEFORUM. At GATEFORUM, he handles the marketing and logistics functions.