How should I start preparing for CLAT 2021?

Are you a CLAT aspirant planning to give this exam in 2021?

Here is a step by step guide to help you prepare well for this exam, or any other competitive exam for that matter, since the essence of preparation lies not in steps, but in understanding the syllabus better and studying with planning and consistency:

Step #1 — Understand the syllabus properly The first step to prepare for any exam, including CLAT, is that you have to read the entire syllabus carefully and understand it completely. You have to understand how much of what you have to study in order to prepare well, and also to not waste too much time on related topics that are not included exclusively in the syllabus.

Step #2 — Check previous year question papers The second step to understanding your syllabus properly is to evaluate previous years’ question papers and assess the type of questions that are asked for each topic in your syllabus. It would also help you if you try to get an idea about the expected questions, paper pattern, attempting sequence and weightage given to individual topics in the paper.

Step #3 — Consult your teachers or friends for textbooks and course material

The next step is to collect resources for studying. You might need help from your tutors or your fellow CLAT aspirant friends to know which books to read from. Talk to your friends about the options that are available in the market before spending money on anything expensive. If you are relying completely on self-study, you will also need to look for online resources such as test papers, YouTube lectures for difficult topics, doubt solving forums, etc.

Step #4 — Join a CLAT coaching if required It is suggested that you should start studying by self at first. If it feels like you are having difficulty in understanding, planning or making notes, then only you should join a coaching class. Nowadays, a lot of online CLAT coaching such as Law Prep Tutorial are also available who want a stay-at-home help for their online CLAT preparation. CLAT online coaching has proven to be more convenient for people from small cities where physical coaching centres are not available.

Step #5 — Build a habit of self-study Ideally, even if you are taking help from any coaching centre, no matter online or offline, it is always crucial to build a habit of self-study. Even after attending coaching for 5 hours a day, if you don’t 2 hours to self-study, you will suffer with your retention towards the end. Moreover, self-study works as a daily revision for topics you have already covered in coaching. More revision means stronger

retention and clearer concepts.

Step #6 — Give mock tests This is the most important step for preparing for any competitive exams, including CLAT. However, a lot of students tend to skip or overlook this one. Most students under-evaluate the importance of mock tests. Mock tests give you confidence, and improve your paper solving ability for that particular structure. It also helps you to understand your strong and weak points helping you to prepare and perform better. Nowadays, a lot of CLAT online mock tests and CLAT mock test series are available for students which are greatly convenient and save a lot of time.