CLAT: Time Management Tips

10 Rock-Solid Time Management Strategies to Boost Your Productivity - Time Doctor Blog

As we all know the Common Law Admission Test popularly known as CLAT is a national-level entrance exam for Undergraduates (UG) and Postgraduates ( PG) law programmes provided by the 22 National Law Universities ( NLUs) in India. This is a 5-year course where only the best students are enrolled.

CLAT is one of the toughest entrance examinations in India, and only the best students get an opportunity to study at one of the best National Law Universities. Being one of the hardest entrance examinations in India, it requires a lot of dedication, and hard work, but most importantly they need to have strategies which can give them an upper hand over the candidates who are giving the examination.

The new CLAT format focuses on evaluating the comprehension and reasoning skills of the candidates. Nonetheless, it ultimately tests the aptitude and reasoning skills to the limit that would be extremely necessary which will be required for legal education.

This article by CLAT Gurukul talks about the time management aspect of the examination, continue reading the article to know reduce your anxiety, and boost your morale, but most importantly solve lengthy passages quicker as compared to other candidates. Because we believe that smart work is better than hard work.

Why is Time Management Important in CLAT examination?

The competition for the CLAT examination is increasing drastically, and one must put his/ her maximum effort to prepare for the examination and come out with flying colours so that they can enrol themselves in one of the top National Law Universities. Effective time management plays a major role in bagging great grades in the CLAT examination.

What Should Your Strategy Be For The CLAT Examination 2023?

The CLAT examination will be a passage-based examination comprising of different sections such as English, Legal Reasoning, Logical Reasoning, Quantitative Methods, and Current Affairs. Performing well in individual sections is a great thing, however, when you try to solve every section in one sitting, that is, the CLAT question paper, things tend to turn ugly as you fail to reach the desired expectation. This is simply because the paper is pretty lengthy and time-consuming, and spending more time in one section would lead to having less time in other sections.

Here is a breakdown of the CLAT question paper to get a better understanding of time management:

· Before going through the question paper attempt to solve all the 150 questions.

· Separate your weak and strong sections, so that you can proceed with the easier and more confident sections first.

· The examination paper would be comprehension-based, make sure to read fast and read correctly.

Why Do Applicants Feel Overwhelmed During CLAT Examination?

It is natural to feel stressed while giving an examination, and considering the stakes are so high, it is no shock that a majority of the applicants would feel overstressed. It is good to feel stressed, but getting overwhelmed with stress is a devastating problem because it would only hinder in the way of logical thoughts, and we all know how crucial it is to think logically.

According to our teachers, here are some useful advice to shun stress during CLAT examination:

1) When Revising, Set Priorities: While revising it is extremely important to know your priorities; it will be beneficial for you in the long run because when you prioritise your time, and subjects, and evenly distribute the workload, it would be a huge relief for you because you will not anxious before the exam, and while giving the examination you will not be overstressed.

CLAT Gurukul helps their students to formulate a timetable with dates and times and a reasonable number of topics to be covered for each day, so that candidates can get a clear understanding of each topic, and if they need to dedicate more time to any of the allotted topics.

2) Make a Schedule for Revision: Revision is extremely important before any entrance examination, it is extremely important to revise your subjects, and clear any last-minute doubts. It is important to make a revision schedule and the list of topics arranged on the basis of their weightage, or on the basis of their difficulty.

3) Take a Break From Social Media Platforms Before The Examination: We all know how distracting social media platforms can be, and while scrolling through your feed you would get lost in it and by the time you get a hold of it you would realise that you have wasted an hour or two. Before a week or two of the CLAT examination step away from social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and even Whatsapp, if possible. Taking a break from these platforms would help you concentrate better, and it will be a great help to relieve you from unwanted stress.

4) Exercise On A Regular Basis: It is important to exercise daily, as it has been proven that exercising on a regular basis is a great method of stress buster. Exercising daily reduces stress hormones, and stimulates your body by producing endomorphins which are a natural painkiller, and it helps to boost your self-esteem which is important to answer each answer confidently.

The Best Technique to Solve Comprehension-based questions in CLAT 2023

The question pattern of CLAT was changed in 2020, and in the new format, every question is passage-based, which can be a piece of cake for some applicants but for some applicants it can be a tough row to hoe. As stated earlier, start the question paper with easy sections so that you can work through them quickly and save enough time for difficult sections.

You can be more confident in your stronger sections of the question paper by solving as many sample papers as possible. To help the candidates, CLAT Gurukul provides sample CLAT papers for free on its website. While solving the question paper make sure to time yourself for every question. At first, you would have a little more time than required but if you stay consistent and regularly solve mock and sample CLAT question papers, you can improve your timing.

Here is a useful tip: While solving the question set a timer for 1 hour 30 minutes, since the examination will be for 2 hours you can try to solve the paper within the set time limit and for the remaining 30 minutes you can attempt to solve the skipped questions and revise your answer sheet.

Time Management Tips for CLAT 2023

Here are some useful tips provided by our faculty members and alumnus to help you in the CLAT examination. They are as follows:

1) Tips For Each Section: Legal Reasoning is the most important section in the CLAT examination, therefore make sure to attempt it first and complete it within the first 30 to 35 minutes. Logical Reasoning should be attempted after the Legal Reasoning section and this section should also be completed within 30 to 35 minutes. The English section may or may not get tricky, hence try to complete it before 20 minutes. General Knowledge and Quantitative section should be completed within 15 to 20 minutes. And, Current Affairs within 15 minutes. You are still left with 15 minutes worth of time, during this time you will be attempting all the skipped questions and going through the question paper to avoid any silly errors.

If you are unsure about any question, DO NOT fill in the wrong answer, instead skip it and return to it after you have completed the question paper, because the CLAT exam has negative marking for each wrong answer, and each section would not be having any sort of sectional cut-off which is another important reason to skip unsure questions.

During the reading time, make sure to go through the passages at least once. So that while attempting the question you can simply scan the passage and answer the questions quickly without wasting any valuable time.

2) Set Aside Time for Every Section: The first step and most important step while attempting the CLAT paper is to effectively distribute time for each section. Make sure to divide the carefully by looking into your strengths and weaknesses, and try to attempt all the easy questions first and then attempt the tricky questions which will consume more time. Since you will not be any extra time limit, therefore make sure to complete the question paper in the allotted time, and have revised the paper at least once.

3) Comprehend The Question in First Reading: Before attempting any problem in the CLAT question paper make sure to read it quickly and carefully, and understand what it means; because answering the questions with unclear judgement is reckless and it might lead to negative marking. To avoid such a thing, develop a habit of understanding the depth of questions. Do not be in a hurry while attempting problems, even if it is a sample paper, mock test, or the CLAT examination.

When the entrance examination is as important as CLAT, cramming never works. The only way to crack this prestigious examination is through deep knowledge of the concepts, where you can explain them to someone without breaking a sweat. The time will be limited in the examination and you CAN NOT waste valuable time by reading the problem again and again; read once, read carefully. Do not get distracted and you should concentrate only on the questions during the 2 hours.

4) Skip Complicated Problems: During the reading time of the CLAT question paper go through each section to locate the easy or the tricky questions, this will assist you in interpreting which answers can be answered quickly and which can take more time than the others. The goal here is to attempt questions which can be answered quickly and correctly. If the question takes more than a minute, mark it and move on to the next question. If you feel that you are stuck on a question, do not spend time thinking about it over and over again, because it will only waste time.

Try to solve the question within 1 hour 40 minutes and for the remaining time you are supposed to return to the marked questions and commence solving them. Even in the last few minutes do not waste time if you are not confident about the question or the topic. Since every moment is crucial, attempt the questions accordingly.

5) Be Present For Mock Tests: Mock Tests are the best way to use these tips and being present in a number of these tests would reinforce your preparation. While attempting the mock test make sure to personally time yourself to see for yourself if you can solve the question paper on time or not. Moreover, practising mock papers also aids you in understanding the level, difficulty of the problems, and the form of questions present in the examination. Being consistent in the mock test would help you develop an idea of your strong and weak sections of the CLAT, and you can prepare accordingly.

6) What Not To Do On The Day of Examination: On the day of examination try not to talk too much, as talking too much can build up stress and anxiety. Prior to the examination keep up an optimistic mindset and avoid getting into any sort of negative conversation, ideas, and even quotes. In the final hours of the examination do not revise or go through anything new. In the examination hall avoid getting into any sort of conversation, and remain calm and silent.

While attempting the problem, do not guess, comprehend the question, and then answer it. If you are unable to answer it accurately mark it and move on to the next question. Do not spend too much time on one question, keep the flow going by solving more and more questions, or else it will affect your morale. Attempt your strong sections first, then move on to the weaker sections, do not jump into different sections while solving a section because it will create confusion. And lastly, remember that you have worked hard for the CLAT examination, and everything will fall into place. Be optimistic.

Originally published January 15, 2023