Students’ Speak: How can working professionals prepare for GATE 2020

By: Aman R Vyas

To help you along on your tough journey, I have listed out a few important tips and tricks to crack GATE exam while working a full-time job.

Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) is tough to crack and it becomes even tougher if you are trying to do it while being a full-time working professional. In fact, this is one of the most common queries and a dilemma faced by working professionals who are preparing for GATE exam.

So, if you are planning to crack GATE exam along with a job, having a plan will play an equally important role as your hard work. To help you along on your tough journey, I have listed out a few important tips and tricks to crack GATE exam while working a full-time job.

• Make every second count: Taking eight-hour shift as standard working hours, you will not be able to dedicate more than four hours daily. The best way to do this is by utilising all the little breaks and even your lunch hour, too.
• Study in minutes not hours: We have already discussed that as a working professional preparing for the GATE exam, you will not be able to devote dedicated time for GATE preparation. So, please make your study sessions very carefully.
• Stay near your office: Staying near to your workplace of work will help you reduce your travel time and less exertion and fatigue which you can then devote to studying for GATE Exam. If you reach home fresh you will be able to focus on your GATE studies which will ultimately help your performance in the Exam.
• Avoid studying while travelling: This is a very common mistake that almost all working GATE aspirants commit.
• Don’t completely depend on the Internet: The Internet is surely your ally when it comes to preparing for GATE examination. But, it can also be your worst enemy if you don’t show due diligence.
• Opt for selective study: Selective study essentially means, performing SWOT analysis on the entire GATE syllabus. This way you can shortlist topics according to their difficulty level and devote time only to those that are going to help you crack the GATE exam.
• Your job is an advantage, not a liability: The biggest mistake you can do as a working professional preparing for GATE exam is to deem your job as a liability. Your full-time or even part-time job is one of the biggest assets in your pursuit of being a PSU officer or IIT student. Your job will support your GATE preparation financially with the help of your salary, which will not be possible for others. In addition to this, having a backup job option apart from GATE will also ease your mental stress compared to those who are completely dependent upon cracking GATE exam to get a job.
• Outsmart your competition: Another very important aspect for working professional preparing for GATE Exam is to understand their competition. Although at the first instance, your competition might look daunting, it is to be noted that only 30% of total GATE applicants are seriously preparing for the exam. If you want to surpass them and emerge a winner, you will have to outsmart them when it comes to your GATE preparation.

About the Author:

Aman R Vyas has recently completed Bachelor in Engineering with a specialisation in Mechanical from Savitribai Phule Pune University. He aspires to become a civil servant with hobbies including reading books on current issues and laws, and trekking