How I Prepared for CLAT

Do's and Don'ts For Aspirants

If you keep waiting for the right day or the correct time, it will never come. You need to just start. This is the mindset with which one needs to think about this exam. CLAT is not a sprint race, it is an obstacle marathon, which requires us to pace ourselves and be consistent. I think the most important thing is to start early and cover as much as possible. If one begins preparation in 11th grade, time is a luxury they have. So you can afford to take things slow but it would still matter to take it seriously right from then. Give the mocks you are saving for next year, finish the practice books you have, and finish as many materials as you can in your first year. Most essentially, work towards feeling comfortable in sections you are most underconfident in. For me this was maths, and I would suggest working on maths right from the beginning and gaining immense confidence in it. Another skill to develop at an earlier stage would be speed reading. Pace yourself, work on it regularly and build on your comprehension abilities. What you should do at this early stage, is work on niche areas, things you cannot work on when school and CLAT pressure is boiling over. Things that take time and need attention, such as vocabulary. I would recommend making vocabulary lists, re-reading them, having vocabulary-building apps on your phones, and making it a process you enjoy while learning. With GK, I think it is useful to figure out a study strategy that works for you, find sources that are comprehensive and also understand the work this section alone demands. Even if you don't score well in GK sections in mocks, I would recommend learning those questions for future reference. For legal/logic/English, practice as many passages and sectionals tests, but also remember that doing individual subject tests and doing all three reading sections together in a mock are different experiences and must be practised separately.

For those who are at a later stage in their preparation, you also still have time to work on everything needed and beyond, given that you can prioritise and plan. Hence, the key here is having set timetables, devoted hours and working out a realistic schedule. Here also consistency plays an important role. In my opinion, reading newspapers needs some specific strategy given it is one of the most emphasised preparation methods. But unless done over many months and used smartly, it can be futile. I think a useful way could be to use them for reading practice along with vocabulary notes, but also to filter important GK topics that can then be further researched.

A few things to remember to avoid during these months:

Do not panic about low scores while also don't ignore them. Understand if the mock was particularly hard or if it was something you could have changed.

Don't be complacent with mocks, don't save them for later and don't be afraid to explore a wide variety of them in the initial months.

Don't try to cram in too much in the last months. Plan out a schedule and aim to finish basic materials at least a month before the exam. Whatever happens, the last month requires a calm and confident mindset, so nothing you do should hamper that.

Don't try to predict anything in CLAT- whether it is the difficulty or the GK topics. It will almost never work and you may leave crucial elements from your preparation.

CLAT is much different from any school exam, at least in my experience as a CBSE student. The preparation is also different from other well-understood exams such as JEE/NEET, which means it can also get isolating. Your social circle or your family may not always understand your progress, especially when measured by scores or marks. Don't let any of this get to you and be very grounded in your own reality of your preparation.

Don't hesitate to ask for help, either from your mentors or friends. In fact, work with your friends to benchmark against each other and improve.

Lastly, just work honestly and convince yourself of the efforts you have put in. You cannot possibly cover everything so your aim should be to work till you are confident in yourself to give a strong final attempt. At the end of the day, it is an aptitude exam that tests patience and perseverance, as much as cognitive skills and it is beneficial to keep this in mind.

By Ayushi Bhartia

Student, Career Launcher, Chennai