Hi guys, this is Jayesh. I secured AIR-5 in GATE 2019. I graduated from IIT Delhi in 2018. I joined the classroom program at IES Master.
- Take us through those initial moments when you got to know your result.
I was sitting in my class when the result was announced. I didn’t have access to Internet when the result was out, but one of my friends messaged me that the results have been declared. He asked me for my ID and password, I shared it with him, and he just gave a one-word reply i.e. 5. That was a moment of great happiness for me. Immediately I forwarded the message to my mother, and she received it quite happily, and then within a few minutes there were calls coming from all my relatives, my maternal grandparents, my auntie, and all. They were showering me with blessings. - Which class were you attending when the result was out?
I was sitting in Steel class which was being taken by Kanchan Sir. I was controlling myself. I was waiting for the class to end so that I can share the result with Kanchan Sir. - Did you share it after the class was over?
Yes sir as soon as the class finished, I ran up to the podium and told Kanchan Sir that the results have been announced. I touched his feet, and shared the result that I have secured AIR-5. - What was Kanchan Sir’s reaction?
He was quite happy, and I could sense an emotion of pride in his eyes as a student taught by him has achieved this feat. I guess that made him quite happy. - What was the reaction of your classmates?
Actually the class was over, and most of the students were out. But a few students were clustering around Kanchan Sir to get their doubts cleared. They were also surprised to see that a student from the last batch was able to secure such a rank. - Which program were you a part of here at IES Master?
I joined the Regular Classroom Program evening batch. My batch started on 26th July, but I took admission on 10th of August, and subsequently I was regular in my classes. - How would you describe your classroom experience here at IES Master?
Actually I was a bit late in joining the program because this was not something that I had planned that I would appear for GATE, but I made up my mind a bit later. The classes were very smooth, and the flow was perfectly set out. I was able to digest most of the things there itself in the class. Kanchan Sir teaches extremely well. He made my concepts so clear that I never had to revise the notes.
- In flat six months, you cracked GATE. It’s no mean achievement by any standards. What was the key to success?
I credit all my success to my family and IES Master. IES Master has played an instrumental role in helping me achieve this success because without them my concepts would not have been this clear, and I would not have been able to crack GATE with such a great rank. - At what point of time did you decide to go for GATE?
Basically that’s what most of the students do is that they prepare for ESE and GATE simultaneously. My target was Engineering Services, but I decided to prepare for GATE as well. Proper GATE focussed preparation, I was able to do for a month only i.e. after the ESE Prelims examination. I had a time of around five weeks. During that time, I met Kanchan Sir and he advised me to focus on previous years’ question papers and the test series, and that’s all I did and secured this rank. - How was this year’s GATE paper?
When I went to the centre, two of my friends had the same centre for shift 1. They were discussing that the paper was quite tough. But when I wrote the paper for shift 2, I found it moderately difficult. - How did you perform in IES Master Test Series?
The path that I followed in IES Master Test Series was that I ensured that the graph is increasing. I started from rank 15-20 and then I progressively moved up the ladder and ended up at second and third position in the test series. - What was your strategy for attempting paper?
I focussed more on speed first. The strategy which followed in the exam was that I ran through the paper in one go, and then I made up my mind that I had to finish the paper in a span of about two hours. Then subsequently I revised the paper once again and checked all the answers that I have marked. This really helped me as I was able to identify two or three silly mistakes when I revise the paper entirely. Thereby I saved a lot of marks. - Any specific strategy to tackle negative marking?
I think we should listen to our inner instinct, and go for attempting the maximum number of questions if you have a doubt in any question between two given options then I believe in taking the risk and going ahead. - How effective was IES Master study material in your preparation?
IES Master material and classroom notes have helped me a lot. I am frankly telling that they were so well designed that I never prepared any short notes. I entirely relied on them, and I used to them revise them thoroughly and entirely without shortening them any further. - What is the right time to start preparing for GATE?
What I feel is that if you don’t want to take a lot of stress then May or April month is the right time to start preparing for GATE. - Any mistake that you would like to flag, and which future aspirants should be careful of?
I believe that your coverage should be vast. I left a few topics like Steel, which if I would have attempted three-four more questions correctly then that would have improved my rank a bit. I think that in the given time frame that is the cost that I had to pay for starting my preparation late. But I am satisfied with that. - Did you ever have second thought while preparing for GATE 2019?
There have been a lot of moments where I used to repent on my decision that started my preparation so late by getting late in joining the coaching. But in those moments, my room-mate helped me a lot. He used to constantly keep me motivated throughout whenever I used to feel low, he was there to support me. He constantly made me believe that “Yes I can do it,” and I owe a little bit of success to him also. - Does group study work in ESE or GATE preparation?
I never relied on group study. I focussed on preparing on my own solely. - What would your choice be, PSUs, ESE or higher studies?
Right now my focus is ESE, but I would definitely opt for PSUs, and then in the long run I am preparing to go for Civil Services. - What were your plans otherwise, while studying at IIT Delhi?
While I was at IIT, initially I had planned for placements but in my final year I decided to opt out of placement, and have my own start-up with my friends. But it didn’t materialise. I worked on it for two months that’s why I got delayed. In the month of August, I decided to prepare for Engineering Services and GATE. - How was your experience at IIT Delhi? Tell us about your college life.
I did my B.Tech from IIT Delhi, and those four years were the most wonderful years of my life, I enjoyed a lot. When I entered IIT Delhi, I made up my mind that I won’t study for these four years, and that’s what I did. But after graduating, I started my preparation, and finally ended up at this place. - Tell us a little about your schooling.
I did my schooling from Saint Mary Senior Secondary School in Sikar. I got admission there in 6th standard. It’s an ICSE board school, and I continued there till my 12th standard. - Tell us a little about your family.
I hail from Sikar in Rajasthan. My mother has been a very strong pillar throughout my life. She has helped me at all instances of my life. Next to her, I have my maternal grandparents, who have also supported me in whatever endeavour I took whether it was a start-up or preparations for exams. These people were always there with me. I owe my success to them. - Tell us a little about your parents.
My mother is from teaching background. She is a professor of Chemistry. She received her Ph.D in Chemistry in the year 1995 from Sikar itself. That’s all I would like to share. - What would be your message to the students from IIT Delhi?
I believe that just like me, my juniors are also capable of achieving this feat. So, I would just like to tell them that it’s never too late to begin your preparation. Have faith in yourself. Just focus on your goal, and keep practicing hard. That’s the only key to success. - You have been an excellent student here at IES Master. We are so proud of you. Thank you for giving us your valuable time.
Thank you so much sir. IES Master has been a blessing in my life.
