How to prepare for GATE 2022 in six months

This article will help you know how to prepare for GATE 2022 utilising the last six months before the exam.

Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering, commonly famous as GATE, is India’s one of the most popular exam that is conducted by IITs on rotational basis to grant admission to M.Tech and other higher degree engineering courses at Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), National Institutes of Technology (NITs), and other engineering institutions. This year, IIT Kharagpur is conducting GATE 2022 on February 5, 6, 12 and 13, 2022. 

GATE is considered one of the toughest exams in India because the competition level is high in the exam. Every year, lakhs of students take up the GATE exam. Still, only a few per cent of students qualify in the exam and are selected for admission to Master of Engineering (ME), Masters in Technology (MTech) and PhD programmes to IITs, NITs, IIITs and other institutes/universities in the country. 

Cracking GATE 2022 is not a cup of tea for every candidate since the syllabus for the exam is vast, and completion is very high in the exam. Hence, GATE 2022 preparation requires effort and time. However, many students start preparing for the exam from the last six months before the exam. Therefore, candidates aspiring to take up the GATE 2022 exam can refer to this article for the tips and strategies on how to prepare for the GATE 2022 exam in six months:

Know the GATE 2022 syllabus and exam pattern

To prepare for the GATE exam in six months, a student needs to know the syllabus and exam pattern. Syllabus and exam pattern are the two most important things a student needs to keep in mind and prepare for the GATE exam accordingly. GATE syllabus helps candidates know the topic from which questions are asked in the exam, whereas the exam pattern lets the students know how the exam is conducted. Once the students become aware of exam patterns, they know how many and what kind of questions are asked, the total time given to complete the exam, total marks distributed in the exam and more. We have furnished the GATE exam pattern in the table below:

Refer previous years question papers and find out the topic with more weightage

After knowing the exam syllabus and pattern, the next step for preparing for the GATE 2022 exam is to know the topics with more weightage. To know the issues with more weightage from the GATE syllabus, the candidates need to check previous years question papers and sample papers released by the authorities. On analysing the previous years’ question paper, you will see many topics from GATE 2022 syllabus have more weightage in the question paper, and if the candidate focuses on such topics, they can score more in the exam. Besides this, practising previous years GATE question papers regularly also enhance exam preparation and help the students understand the exam syllabus, exam pattern, and level of questions asked in the exam.

Design and follow a study plan

In the next step, GATE aspirants need to prepare a study plan according to their aptitude, topic-wise weightage and syllabus. A complete study plan will help GATE 2022 aspirants track their progress and know what topics need more attention. While preparing a study plan, the aspirants need to prepare daily and weekly study targets in their plan. The candidates need to allot more time to difficult topics. Besides this, the candidates also need to give mock tests place in their study plan. Once the study plan is prepared, the candidates need to stick to it and follow it religiously until the exam is completed. 

Select the best study materials

To perform better in GATE 2022, candidates need to select the right study materials. Generally, the students are advised to refer to their undergraduate textbooks of degree courses. However, candidates are also advised to refer to extra study materials along with textbooks. Books and study materials that are easy to understand, have lots of examples to define the topics and covering the complete syllabus are considered right study materials/ books. The extra study materials and books help the candidates to gain in-depth knowledge or widen their knowledge of topics included in the syllabus. Besides studying the best study materials, the students are also advised to regularly practice the GATE mock test. It helps candidates develop an understanding of their overall exam preparation. 

 Revise daily

The key to success in GATE 2022 is deliberate practice and revision of topics. Other than practising the topics from the GATE syllabus, the candidates need to make revisions of important topics daily as it will enhance their exam preparation. The aspirants must take out at least half an hour daily to revise what they have learned or practices the previous day. Revising daily helps the aspirants keep track of their overall exam preparation and know where to focus more until the day of the exam.

Know your strength and stay motivated

It is always best for the candidates to know their strengths and weaknesses when preparing for exams like GATE 2022. Knowing the strength and weaknesses helps the candidates focus on their strong and weak areas during exam preparation. Besides knowing the strengths and weaknesses, the students should also keep themselves motivated because motivation always helps them keep going on a journey. Motivation blended with determination and dedication always gives the best result. While preparing for challenging exams like GATE 2022, students often feel low, but a motivated mind will always push you to give your best.