Expensive Classroom Coaching, Correspondence Course or Self Study – which is better?

Classroom coaching for entrance exams like AIEEE, PMT, CAT, GRE etc. is very expensive. The coaching industry has grown rapidly over the past few years. However quality additions to coaching classes have been very little. Students who finally made it to the top notch institutions like IITs, IIMs, NITs etc. were not dependent on the classroom coaching but relied on techniques and approaches which suited them best. A correspondence course offers minimum advantages. However regular mocks tests ( if available) can add sufficient value. I have seen only one benefit coming from a classroom course costing as much as INR 40k – routine! You will study chapters one by one. And you will have loads of practice questions to solve. It simply doesn’t matter if you are appearing for engineering, medical or post graduate entrance exams. Techniques and approaches will be same throughout. You can resort yourself to follow yourself and study at your own. 1. There are three types of learners a. Visual b. Auditory c. Kinesthetic Know how you learn best and act accordingly. 2. What is your background? If you have been a blogger for a long time you will probably need lesser practice at RC Passages for CAT and intense practice for quantitative techniques. Approaches used by someone else may not suit you. Choose your own course of action. 3. Do you really want to prepare for this exam? Many students start preparing for engineering and medical exams just because of plain herd mentality. It is only years later that they repent for making this decision. If your interests do not intersect with those of your batch mates, you should do a thorough research to make any decision regarding your career. 4. Never, never follow money to make a decision. Salaries, placements and industry trends will only misguide you. 5. Find a mentor. Find someone who has already made it. You can easily find such people over social networking sites, blogs etc. Internet has made all this possible. Ask questions! Be inquisitive and work hard. 6. Make plans. Act on these plans. 7. Research trends in exam papers and success rates. Many entrance exams can be qualified with as little as 40 percent score. However it was always easy to score in monthly exams. What is different with this one time annual exam which has no retake? These questions should bother you.