To be a winner - start early (A post for those who gave 10th board exams this year)

This is a post mainly for JEE 2016 aspirants - candidates who gave their class 10th board exams this year. Others may also find it useful because I have tried to answer some of the common questions like - "How to study ?", etc
Warning : Extremely long post!!
10th exams over ! pheww !!! a sigh of relief for you - a big load gone of your head or maybe it will go in a couple of days. Your teachers/parents must have told you - "Get good marks in class 10th and your life will be settled well"

Now let me acquaint you with the bitter truth
If you are aiming for engineering, then class 10th mark sheet is nothing but your "Age proof". Shocked! Yes it is nothing more than age proof. No one will ever ask you your class 10th percentage. In no competitive exam(engineering) will you be judged on the basis of your class 10th marks. So, even if your exams didn't go well, don't panic. Your dream destination - IIT has nothing to do with class 10th marks.
Let's start with exposing some bitter truths about your next 2 years : 

• First of all, an extremely important point - "Your class 10th percentage/CGPA is in no way a measure of your ability to understand the things. It simply reflects your ability to memorize the things". So, you must not feel superior about being a 10 pointer or scoring a 95%. You must immediately forget your class 10th percentage which you might be taking as your biggest achievement in life till now. Maybe society will think you as a topper if you scored a 10 CGPA or a 95%. But soon you will realize that all this is material pleasure (Moh - maya as you call in Hindi). I have seen people with low percentage in class 10th and who cleared JEE with flying colours and I have also seen people who had good percentage in class 10th but could not do well in JEE. To summarize

Golden rule 1 : Forget you class 10th percentage for the next 2 years.

• Till now you were in a river - Now you will be thrown into a sea. This statement has 2 meanings intended :

1. Till now your syllabus was very much limited (compare it with a river). Now, your syllabus will be huge (compare it with a sea). There are no books prescribed for IITJEE. People can only name a few books based on their experience which are closely related to IIT JEE syllabus. There will be a large number of chapters. Some of them will be interesting and others will be extremely boring. But, to get a rank, you will have to cover each and every chapter in width and depth.
2. The second meaning intended is more important. Till now you were competing with maximum of 300 batch-mates (compare it with a river). Now, you will be competing with 13 lakh candidates (compare it with a sea) who are aiming for those handful of seats. So, better accept that fact that you are not going to top every time even if you were a topper in school.

Golden rule 2 : Brace yourselves - a storm is coming
and it will continue till your death

• Accept the things as they are. You might be having a habit of inspecting about each formula/equation taught in school. But, you will have to relax this a bit. You won't be given proof for each and every equation now. There will be some things which you will have to accept as they are.

Golden rule 3 : Not everything has an explanation at your level

• Only highly talented extraordinarily intelligent people who were born smart are able to clear JEE. This is the most popular myth(a false belief) among JEE aspirants. JEE rankers are not born intelligent. They are also normal people. What distinguishes themselves from others is that they are motivated , dedicated , hard working and patient.

Golden rule 4 : JEE rankers are not born intelligent

Now, we come back to the questions that you must be having in mind.

Which coaching to join ?

Should I go to Kota ?

Can I crack JEE with only self study ?

Should I join a correspondence course ?

How to start the preparation ?

What exactly is the way to study ?

How to get the desired motivation ?

What books to use ?

How to manage time between school and coaching ?

Should I join a dummy school ?
How many hours should I study ?

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It's a long list. I will try to answer most of your questions - of course I also had the same questions in mind 3 years ago. Since I have travelled the road that you are going to travel, I am eligible to answer these.

One of the most important thing in deciding your fate is the choice of coaching. It's important to choose a coaching wisely. There must be a number of coaching classes in your city - all claiming that top JEE rankers are from their institute and you must be attracted towards them. Let me explain how I made a choice.

I stay at Kanpur. In Kanpur, a coaching as XYZ is famous (assume the name XYZ because I don't want to name the coaching). Thousands of students study at this coaching centre. Whenever I asked any of my seniors that which coaching should I join, the immediate reply was - XYZ classes. But considering the fact that thousands of students are taught at a time in that coaching (with a microphone), my parents refused to send me to that coaching. FIITJEE was newly established. So, I appeared for the entrance test and got a 65% waiver in tuition fee. And so, I joined FIITJEE. End result : a number of students of XYZ classes have also joined FIITJEE and are repeating this year.

So, make your own choice - it's your choice that will matter.

You may decide to go to Kota. I didn't go to Kota/Delhi for coaching because my parents were not convinced that I can live on my own in a hostel. So, they refused to send me for coaching outside Kanpur.

As far as I know - Kota can build your life or destroy your life. If you are focused and not attracted by things around you, then you will surely make it to IIT. A good competition prevails in Kota and you can also find the best faculty there.

However, if you are distracted by the things around you - you may spoil your future.

Also, if you think that you won't be able to live without your parents at this stage, then it will be wiser to stay at your city and join a local coaching institute.

To decide the institute, check the following : 

Past results

Authenticity of past results

The faculty members

Coaching timings

Their study material quality

Facility of a test series

etc etc

There might be some of you who do not have a good coaching facility in your area. In that case, you may choose to study on your own. Remember that coaching won't make you clear JEE. It's your efforts and dedication that will help you to get through the toughest exam. Coaching only provides a direction to your preparation. Cracking JEE will be your own task.

Also, you may choose to opt for a correspondence course. The one provided by Resonance is the best in my opinion. It's just right for JEE and if you study it well, then you will surely clear the exam. Resonance also provides you with the facility of a test series.

Another choice would be FIITJEE RSM. Note that RSM is slightly more difficult and is above JEE level. I personally won't recommend RSM.

Correspondence courses are designed exclusively for JEE and can prove to be the best material for JEE - it will be a good choice to opt for a correspondence course parallel to your coaching.

Now we discuss the general aspects of JEE preparation.

Let's start subject-wise

Physics : You will be beginning with basics of calculus. Calculus is something that will be completely new to you. After that you will be proceeding to Kinematics , Laws of motion and so on. All this is a part of a branch of Physics called as Mechanics. I would recommend purchasing a book called HC Verma (Part I and II). It's the most popular book for Physics and you will find it everywhere when you search for "Books for IITJEE". It's one of the best books for JEE Physics. Read the first few chapters from the book.

To read more about mechanics, you may like to go through the following post :

All About Mechanics

You can find more about physics here : 

Physics for IIT JEE

For most students(including me), it turns out that Physics is the easiest and the favourite subject. Enjoy JEE Physics - it is indeed beautiful.

Maths : Depending on your coaching, you will begin with algebra/coordinate geometry/calculus. All the three are really really important for JEE. If you are from CBSE board, you are advised to start with RD Sharma. It's the best book for beginning any chapter. If you are from ICSE board, then ML Agarwal is the book to be followed for basics. You might think that board level books are useless for JEE (I had this misconception in the beginning). But let me tell you that Board level books are the most important books for JEE. My rank - 33 is a result of studying NCERT in great depth.

NCERT Maths might not be a good choice. RD Sharma is the book to be read.

For maths : 

Mathematics for IIT JEE

Chemistry : This subject is viewed as the most boring subject. People think that chemistry is all about cramming. It's completely wrong. This is the subject that decides your JEE Rank. The general trend among JEE aspirants is that they are good at maths and physics but weak at chemistry. The thing that differentiates toppers from others is that they study chemistry well - and hence, chemistry turns out to be a deciding factor. 

Chemistry has 3 wide(and mostly unrelated) branches : Physical chemistry , Organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry

Physical chemistry : it is more like Physics(in chemistry). You will enjoy this. NCERT is the book to be followed in the beginning.
This link will be helpful :
Physical Chemistry for IIT JEE

Organic chemistry : it is another beautiful branch of chemistry. It's about carbon and the wide variety of compounds that it can form. LG Wade (Pearsons Education) is the best book for organic chemistry. It is a bit think but you may begin from this book. It will take you right from the basics to the advanced level.
Helpful link :
Organic chemistry for IIT JEE

Inorganic chemistry : This is viewed as the most boring branch of chemistry.

I won't say much about it

Read here for inorganic chemistry :

Inorganic chemistry for IIT JEE

And here for more about chemistry :

Chemistry for IIT JEE

You might get scared seeing the size of the books (LG Wade has some 1000 pages). Indeed you will have the study these entire books thoroughly. You will have 2 whole years to do it. So, it won't be difficult - just that you need lots and lots of patience and hard work.

It is advisable to refer JEE syllabus and stick to it while preparing for JEE.

I had a general strategy of studying.

Before a particular chapter was covered in coaching, I used to study it from the base level books (mentioned above). This way I already had a brief idea of what was going to be done and so I remained more attentive in class. Next, when the chapter was covered in class, I used to make detailed notes (self written notes are always the best). After every class, I used to revise my notes in depth. Sometimes even a single page took half an hour. But finally I ensured that I know each and every concept that has been taught in class. Next I went on to solve basic problems from the board level books (mentioned above). When I was confident, then I moved on to the challenging problems of the FIITJEE study material. This way I made a smooth transition from zero level to JEE level. Next I used to solve Past year IIT JEE problems. If time permitted, then I also solved(+ read) a particular book (which I will be mentioning below)

I never studied at night - I took a complete 9 hour sleep.

Note that I was admitted to a non-attending school. So, I had a lot of time to study for JEE (Read below about non-attending school).

My general schedule : 

• Get up at 7 o'clock
• Get fresh by 7.30 AM
• Study from 7.30 AM to around 11.00 AM (this varied from 10.30 AM to 12.30 AM)
• Next I used to take a break of about 1 hour in which I used to take my lunch, bath, played computer etc.
• Then again I sat to study from around 1.00 PM to 3.00 PM
• Then I had a coaching from 4.00 PM to 8.00 PM (3 days a week)
• It took me around 1 hour to travel
• I used to come back home at around 9.00 PM
• After that I used to watch television/have dinner from 9.00 to 10.00 PM
• Then was time to sleep (at 10.00 PM)

This used to be the general schedule.

On non coaching days, I had more time to study. And I used to plan the things accordingly.

One little but useful strategy that I followed was "planning the next day". Every night before going to sleep, I used to plan what I would do the next day. It used to be a short term plan/goal like - solve rotation package + read p-block elements from NCERT etc.

This way I had a clear idea of what was going to be done the next day (JEE is all about planning the things smartly and wisely)

JEE is like a race. If you have watched 3 idiots - "Life is a race. If you will not run fast, you will be a broken egg :P". To remain running in this race for 2 long years, you need lots and lots of motivation.

Get motivated here :

Get motivated to crack IIT JEE

and here :

How does it feel to crack IIT JEE

Now I will be mentioning the books that I used (the books I used in the long run) :
Physics : NCERT + HC Verma as beginning books, DC Pandey as a supplementary
Maths : RD Sharma + ML Agarwal as beginning books, TMH as a supplementary
Physical Chemistry : NCERT as a beginning book, OP Tondon for additional theory, RC Mukherjee for advanced problems
Organic Chemistry : NCERT as a beginning book, LG Wade as a supplementary
Inorganic Chemistry : NCERT as the godbook, JD Lee as a supplementary

These books are more than sufficient to get a good rank in JEE.

Coming to another important topic : Dummy school
It is highly recommended that you should join a non-attending school for JEE preparation
In general there are 3 types of students : 

1. Those who are extremely weak :  Such students are not motivated to get into IITs. Such students should not leave school if they want to secure a seat. Reason being - inclusion of board's marks in the normalization procedure. If anyhow you manage to get a good percentage in Board exams, then you may get a seat in a good NIT even though you do not have good marks in JEE Main.
2. Those who are average : Such students are capable of getting good rank but they haven't realized their potential. They are satisfied even if their rank is not that good. Such students should also not leave school.
3. Those who are highly motivated to get a good rank in JEE advanced : Such students do not care about JEE Main rank. They are hungry to get into IIT and will settle for nothing less than an old IIT. They are recommended to leave school if they feel that school is a waste of time.

Note : Leave school at your own risk. I am not responsible in any way if you leave school and mess up your life. Use your own discretion rather than blindly following my advices. The blog contains all what I did. It's not necessary for you to follow everything(blindly).

Another question that a number of aspirants ask me is that "How many hours should I study ?". This question really has no answer. The number of hours will vary from zero to 15 sometimes. From my study schedule that I had mentioned above, you can easily see that it's not that rigorous. Don't think that JEE preparation is about shutting yourself in a room and studying day in and day out. You should enjoy it. It's all about right planning and right execution. Don't ignore any of your extra curricular activities. I loved playing computer games and sometimes I played them for hours. That refreshed my mind and I could focus better.

Finally, I would like to conclude.

I would suggest you to enjoy with your friends and family for say a couple of weeks.

Your preparation should start by the mid of April. Study whole-heartedly and enjoy IIT preparation. IIT preparation is like a journey - a two year long journey which you will never forget if you enjoy it. You will get to learn numerous lessons of life in this journey which will help you to face the world boldly.

This blog will always be there to help you.
Here is something that you would definitely find useful: A guide to get a top 50 rank in JEE

Feel free to post any doubts/queries.

Scroll through various posts to get an idea of the topic.

All the best