Keeping a track of your application

1. Almost all the IIT’s have an online system where they update the latest information about the form, kindly keep on looking at them regularly.

2. If status of your application has not been updated before the last date of form contact them and ask them if form has reached. Also same can be tracked on the speed post site, keep tracking your courier because you do not want your application to get lost.

3. If your speed post is not getting delivered you can call their centers and ask for update about your application.

4. Keep a separate calendar for where all you have to go for interview or written exams cause that is very important because you may miss out on something that is important.

5. Also keep a separate sheet of where all you have got admission and where you are bound to get admissions.

6. Always read all the rules about upgrading once you have applied, i.e. do you need to send the fees for getting a higher preference or do you have to pay fees only after final offer has been made.

7. Also send the Demand Drafts well in advance because postal delay might play a role.

8. If they do not update your status on site about receipt of Draft you may call before the end date so that it does not create any problem.

9. Always keep the receipts of Speed Post by which you send Application and Fees they are very important in case of delays and any misplacement from the postal side.

Preparation of Forms

The given guideline is just the basic guideline for filling up any form.

1. Be sure to fill in all your personal details like address as latest as possible if they are bound to change fill in something that would be more permanent.

2.Before filling up the preferences be sure to go through the detail course structure given on each of the IIT’s site and also enquire with the seniors if you have any contacts that would give you some perspective.

3.Be sure what you are applying for. Fill in the exact preferences you would like to have refrain from filling options you are not interested into, if at all number of options available are still remaining fill the not so useful options at the end.

4. Your preference should always be in the order you want admission into, never keep the branch in which you are bound to get admission first, keep the difficult one first and then subsequently fill in the manner where you have surety of getting admission. That is first fill up the preference where you have little chance of getting admission and the last one where you are bound to get admission whatever may be the case.

5.Be sure to give the exact details about your academics, i.e. if your percentages are 59.5 then do not get tempted to write 60 because it may create problem at a later date.

6. If you have any experience and you are able to furnish certificate for the same then you may fill in the details about the same if they are asked.

7. Check exactly on whose name the Demand Draft needs to be drawn on.

8. Double check all the details that you have written and especially you GATE score Academic Details and your “Preferences” because they will matter the most for admission.

(These are the basic guidelines also kindly go through form thoroughly if their are any other minor details. Kindly send the form well in advance and if possible attach a sticker of your name in printed instead of writing cause that would be more legible and would avoid and delay)

How to solve Test Papers and hence how to prepare in December and January

Its almost END of the DECEMBER now. Its time to change the strategy now. From Now onwards one should solve and try out more and more objectives. And i suggest that one should try out objectives from different subjects at a time. It means that one should now start to solve the previous years GATE papers or any paper which covers the total syllabus.

Remember GATE is not Descriptive kind of exam. So if one will go on just reading and reading that will not work. This kind of preparation can help one to crack university exams or IES kind of exams. But this is logical exam. So its preparation is also different.

And one should not write paper just to check how much he is knowing and he is correct. One should solve the paper as one of the learning tool.

Here i am giving one technique that one can follow.
Everyday try to complete at least half paper. And remaining time devote for the subjects which are still to prepare or to revise.

Now its how to solve the paper?
Look at the objective. If you know the logic then solve it out and check your answer. Now if the answer is wrong see where you are lacking. These objectives are the only tools to make your fundamentals clear and strong. Only reading will not help in any way. Now if your answer is correct then go to next question. Now it is possible that you have done this subject before 2 or 3 months. SO you are having some faint idea about it. But you are actually not knowing the formula or logic. Then just stretch your mind. Try to recall. Don't look at the reference book or answer. let your mind work and recollect the information. Now after trying for some times if you can't remember it then please go through the reference and learn it again. Make a note in a separate diary or on the test paper only.
Now another condition can happen that you don't know anything about the question. So don't worry at all. And open the reference book. Prepare that topic from it.

In this way you can learn 30 different logic in one day if you are solving say 35 or 40 questions. And along with that you are testing your prepared topics too. And you are also analysing that where you can make silly mistakes. SO this is very useful method.

And in a week write at least one paper in a 3 hour time limit and preferably at the time of actually GATE paper. So that you can check the coolness of your mind at the time of exam.

And please don't tick the questions for which you are not sure. Don't take risk. Never bluff.

ALL WILL BE WELL. :)

Its December and nothing is lost!

For all those who believe that if they have not prepared very well until now then they have lost the chance i must inform one thing that we have well around 60 days to go and nothing is lost. Now the only thing required is single minded dedication for your final aim. Even if you can give 7 to 8 hours a day, you still have a chance. So if you have worked hard, but not hard enough then this is the month you should start pushing cause after this it would be hard. As per my personal opinion 2 months is good enough a time for you to take the situation back in control. You may start with few areas that you think you are weak in and pick up on them fast, after that you may start your refreshing of every subject cause that is very important. Writing paper's during this period is also very important, you should atleast have the habit to sit around for 3 hours without getting bored and with full concentration. So try giving practice test's as much as possible.

Strategy for GATE 2010

Well the detailed brochure for GATE 2010 is out and this is my personal strategy that i might have employeed if i was going to appear for GATE 2010.

1) Concentrate on Mathematics:- Mathematics is 15 marks section and it is not important only from the view of GATE but also after that because most of the studies that we face in masters is related to differential equations and advanced engineering mathematics so it is good time that you prepare your Math section throughly and gain enough confindence in it cause that will take you a long way.

2) Prepare the General Aptitude:- Whenever i would not have been in a mood to study technical i would have picked up the book for General aptitude cause its fun reading and solving those questions gives your brain some work out and refreshes you, my preference during the time of day when i feel bored like during after noon or night. This covers your 15 marks.

3) Prepare the most basic of the subjects first:- Everyone agrees that the tough and the important subjects are nothing but extension of the basic subjects so if you have your basics in place that would give you extra comfort and make you feel confident and then you might attack the final tough subjects. And if you have prepared well in your college exams then they are also not that difficult. So in a way you have dealt with all of them.

4) Write some papers:- I would have written atleast one paper in 15 days and for that i might have joined any one of the test series because the pattern has changed and you need to get accustomed with the change. Still the previous year's paper are not obsolete you can always go through them for technical questions.

Addition of a General Aptitude section.

This might come as a surprise to many but it should not be that big a deal, A common component of General Aptitude has been added to all the papers from GATE 2010, although some may argue why is it required in a technical test, then well they might have their own reasons and looking at past performance only they might have added this. But its not a thing to Panic just prepare some basic aptitude and as one may see that it holds a healthy weightage of 15 marks its important that this part should not be ignored because during final ranking even 1 mark means a difference of 100 ranks so its important. Those who do not yet have a first hand experience of solving any aptitude questions should sit down and do that. One reason i feel it should not be something to panic for is because as such everyone is going to solve advanced engineering mathematics and the general aptitude might have some questions related to school level maths so its not something to panic for. My advice would be that if one does not have material for General aptitude then they might start with solving books like R.K.Aggrawal or they may borrow material from their friends who are preparing for GRE or CAT. Try to acquire the question paper set or some basic booklets from your friends who have joined various CAT coaching institute, that might serve the purpose. Although this being the first time many speculations may come up and it seems the organising committee wants to move away from a completely technical test and do some balancing act. The underlying statement being that they want people who are not only technically sound but also have great aptitude. (But i still do not feel personally there should be the General aptitude component, its just a personal feeling).

INFORMATION GIVEN IN THE BROCHURE

Verbal Ability: English grammar, sentence completion, verbal analogies, word groups, instructions, critical reasoning and verbal

deduction.

Numerical Ability: Numerical computation, numerical estimation, numerical reasoning and data interpretation.

As we can see that the course is something similar to that has been asked in CAT but i do not think that the level should be same as that of questions asked in CAT so if you prepare from the material for CAT then it should be sufficient. But do not ignore this part its a very important part and will help you a lot in scoring well over-all.

The detailed site has been launched and its address is

http://gate.iitg.ernet.in/

Myth about time for Perparation.

There exist a gross misunderstanding about the time it takes for preparation. Time for preparation is a personal thing. I have my room mate who had prepared in 25 days and got AIR 62 where as other people had an year or two years coaching and they also ended up at the same place so its more personal.

Several Reasons for this difference.

1) Preparation during college exams:- If you have prepared very well during your college exams it becomes very easy for you to refresh it and you can prepare early. As was the case with my room mate who was the class topper and had his basic worked out very well.

2) Level of understanding:- Some people read things and they understand it in first go while others need to give it enough time before they can assimilate it and understand it. Well that's up to to everyone and that's one of the reason that people take time.

3) The extent of the course you are aiming at:- Well its quite evident that selective study is the way to go, you need to choose the syllabus you are going to give your full energy on. Cause its but natural that even if you have one complete year you wont be able to finish course if you are trying to go in utter depth and trying to do everything so that's one more factor.

4) Confidence in the level of preparedness:- Some people are confident on whatever they have prepared and need not to go through it again and again. While other need to go back and keep looking at it so they take time, this factor is also quite personal.

Well these are few factor which determine how much time you would take for preparation. So its up to you.

And on a lighter note all of us are Engineers and we are famous for doing things in whatever time frame we decide so its not difficult.