My JEE Journey: A Realistic Experience and Lessons I Learned
Preparing for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) is a journey that reshapes you academically, mentally, and emotionally. Every student has a different story, and this is mine. I secured the 90th percentile (general category), and while it wasn’t the highest score, it taught me lessons that I genuinely believe can guide future aspirants.
This article is not about being perfect.
It’s about being real.
I started my journey in the 11th class, and it was during COVID times, so classes were conducted virtually. Yes, virtually. You all know how it goes.
Anyway, I didn’t study seriously in the 11th and missed out on many basics. By the end of the year, I began practising questions from HCV and my coaching modules. Slowly, I started gaining a grip on the fundamentals, which helped me build interest in the subject and understand it better.
In the 12th grade, classes shifted offline, so I studied more seriously, but I still wasn’t consistent. As the exam dates drew closer, I increased my intensity. While practising, I realised an important truth: doing random questions won’t help much. You need to understand exam patterns, solve PYQs, and prepare according to the types of questions asked. Also, solving questions with a time limit helps a lot. I know this because I didn’t follow this approach initially, and it affected my performance.
I was above average in physics and excellent in chemistry. But mathematics was really tricky, lengthy, and tough for the last two years (2021 and 2022), and I constantly struggled with it. I tried fixing it several times, but after four or five attempts, I honestly gave up, and that alone cost me around 6 to 7 percentiles in my final score. If I had pushed myself a bit more, I could have gotten into a much better institute than the one I am currently in
So, I am listing down some mistakes that I made, which you should avoid, and sharing some experiences that might help you.
I feel like I could have done better and that I didn’t give 100%. I don’t want anyone else to feel that regret. After JEE, I promised myself one thing: I will always give my all, no matter what the result is, so that I never again feel, “I could have done better.”
So, remember this—NO MORE HALF MEASURES.
Key Points to Remember
1. Ensure that you have a good grip on all three subjects.
Do not let one subject pull your entire score down.
2. Keep track of time.
We often think, “This time won’t come again, let’s enjoy,” but we forget that once it’s gone, we don’t get it back.
Use your time wisely, study consistently, and aim for a better institute—it will give you exposure to countless opportunities.
3. Consistency is the key.
Even if you study just 2–3 hours a day, do it every single day.
Consistency compounds, and skipping study days breaks the rhythm.
4. Categorise the topics smartly.
Do not blindly complete all the topics, fetch some previous year papers and analyse what is the pattern and what topic is getting more weightage and then assign prioritites to the topics and complete them accordingly.Here's how you can categorise the topics:
1. High Weightage-High Input: That means they are asked in exams frequently but they are tough topics
2. High Weightage-Low Input: These are very crucial topics and helps in scoring marks.
3. Low Weightage-High Input: Do not waste time if you are struggling on a topic that is not much asked but requires a lot of practice.
4. Low Weightage-Low Input: You can prepare them as they take less completion time and if you are lucky enough they'll earn you some marks.
5. Keep revising the topics you’ve completed.
Once you know the formulas and basics, don’t revise through one-shots.
Solve problems instead, and if you get stuck, refer to your notes or the specific video.
6. Always aim big.
This is not an exam preperation tip but a tip for preperation of absolutely anything. Always prepare your self for bigger things so even if something goes wrong you'll be still in a very good place and above than majority of competitors.
7. Don't panick if you are late.
It is very hard to maintain consistency for 1 or 2 years but keep trying,hardwork indeed pays off.
6. There are plenty of resources—don’t pay for anything unnecessary.
Smart studying > expensive studying.
8. Keep your notes clear and organised.
This helps a lot during revision because everything important is already in one place.
9. Make short notes.
They genuinely help during quick revisions.
10. DO NOT HESITATE TO GIVE MOCK TESTS.
Your initial scores may be low, but do not get demotivated.
Analyse the paper, identify your mistakes, and fix them in the next test.
Your marks will start improving—you just need to stay consistent.
