GATE CE 2020 exam was conducted on 9th February 2020 with 1,25,974 aspirants. Every year many candidates are paid off with good scores for their hard work and dedication. Among them, We have Kartikay Kaushik who truly became an inspiration for all the GATE aspirants by achieving AIR 26 in GATE 2020 Civil Engineering exam. Kartikay always focused on clearing UPSC(ESE) for which he worked hard and made his own strategy. His preparation for ESE earlier known as IES (Indian Engineering Services) helped him to crack GATE exam.
So, here while sharing his experience with BYJU'S Exam Prep, Kartikay elaborated his preparation journey step by step in detail which will definitely help all the GATE aspirants. After all, Experience is the teacher of all things.
Gradeup: Please tell us something about yourself and your motivation to appear for GATE 2020
Kartikay:
- To start off, I did my B Tech in Civil Engineering from IIT Roorkee and graduated in May 2019.
- Although I did land a campus placement at OYO, but decided against joining the private sector and hence decided to prepare for UPSC Engineering Services Examination (ESE).
- Actually, I did not center my preparations towards achieving a good rank in GATE. My aim, from day 1 was ESE. Since the syllabus for GATE is more or less a subset of ESE, I guess I was able to secure such a good rank in GATE '20. The motivation was fairly simple: To lead a life of dignity and make my parents proud.
Gradeup: Please share your preparation strategy in detail
Kartikay:
My preparation strategy revolved around building the core concepts very well and a comprehensive revision routine to go along with it. My focus has been to perfect the theoretical aspect of each subject as I know I can deal with the numerical aspect well.
Every GATE aspirant knows that the syllabus of CE is really vast and hence it becomes difficult to get a hang of it. To overcome this problem, extensive revision is required.
I suggest making personalized short notes to have a quick review of each subject. It is also important to learn from our mistakes as GATE is all about accuracy and speed.
Good accuracy requires complete review of the results of mock tests, analysis of what went wrong along with a strategy to avoid such mistakes in the future.
Speed is a thing which can be developed only by practice. I suggest solving previous year questions of last 20 years with time constraint to develop speed.
Gradeup: What would you say are the important topics and preparation sources(books/study material etc) to prepare for GATE?
Kartikay:
- I actually referred to coaching material for my preparation. I avoided any book as it really makes the learning process more complex. It is very important that we learn the concepts in a way that helps us to crack the exam.
- Most of the coaching materials and platforms like BYJU'S Exam Prep are targeted specifically to clear a particular exam and will really help an aspirant to cover the whole syllabus much more quickly and efficiently.
Gradeup: Please brief the challenges you faced during your journey
Kartikay:
I really find it difficult to mug up things without having a sound logic behind a particular concept or topic. Many topics in the syllabus require rote learning and are really important from the exam point of view as well. Revising such topics multiple times is the only way to tackle them as leaving them is not an option.
Apart from that, remaining motivated is the key. It is really difficult to be charged up throughout the preparation phase. At times life seems to be dull and boring. I think taking a break from studies for a day or two to refresh yourself, listening to songs or simply sleeping your way out of this phase is the best option.
Gradeup: What are the mistakes that you might have done during your preparation, that you would advise fellow aspirants to avoid?
Kartikay:
- Avoid social media.
- Have a good peer group to discuss your doubts or any other problem related to your life. Keep your family and relatives close.
- Do not spend too much time in planning out a schedule. Just start somewhere and see where it goes from there.
- Take good care of your health. It should be the top priority of any aspirant. Try to do some exercises everyday as sitting and studying for such a long phase will deteriorate your health slowly.
- Do not take the aptitude and mathematics syllabus for granted. Their weightage in the exam is really significant and crucial for you to score well.
Gradeup: What was your strategy in the last 1 month before the GATE exam?
Kartikay:
In the last 1 month or so, I chalked out an extensive revision schedule. Trying to revise 2 or 3 subjects in a single day was my priority as it really helps your brain to function in multiple dimensions at the same time.
I also focused completely on solving numerical to develop speed. Looking up the important previous year questions and analyzing my mistakes in mocks played an important role as well.
Gradeup: How did BYJU'S Exam Prep help you in your preparation?
Kartikay:
I came to know about BYJU'S Exam Prep from a friend in September 2019. Initially, I was unaware of the many functions of the app and used it to keep up with the application forms of various examinations. Soon I was giving a whole bunch of Quizzes and found the level of questions to be really good.
I also enjoyed solving doubts of fellow aspirants on the platform as well. The general sessions on the do's and don'ts during the preparation were also helpful to align myself on the right track.
Gradeup: What feature of the BYJU'S Exam Prep App was the most useful for you?
Kartikay:
I have to say that the whole community of BYJU'S Exam Prep is really awesome. The quality of doubts posted in the doubt section of the app is amazing. By solving these questions, I was definitely able to learn new concepts everyday and the learning never stopped.
There was always a question or two which I had no idea about.
Gradeup: Any special advice for BYJU'S Exam Prep users preparing for GATE 2021
Kartikay:
Believing in yourself is the key. Please have faith in your abilities, the best you can do at this point of time is work hard and leave the rest to your destiny.
Study hard but more importantly study smart. Best of luck.
Stay connected with BYJU'S Exam Prep for such motivating stories from GATE toppers.
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