How to efficiently prepare for Medical Entrance Exams?

The Medical entrance exams faced by the students graduating from schools every year are an uphill task. Adding to that the overall pressure of board exams and the expectations one has from their own self is enough to stress out any student. Thus, it becomes important to know the most efficient manner to prepare which yields the best results without becoming overwhelming.

List of Medical Entrance Exams

• NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) -This has replaced AIPMT

• AIIMS Nursing (All India Institute of Medical Sciences)

• PGMIER (Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research entrance exam)

• CMC Vellore (Christian Medical College entrance college)

• JIPMER (Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research)

• AFMC (Armed Forces Medical College)

• BHU-Medical (Banaras Hindu University Medical entrance exam)

• COMDEK-UGET (Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental colleges of Karnataka-Under Graduate Entrance Test)

• ICAR AIEEA ( Indian Council of Agricultural Research, All India Entrance Examination)

• AMU MBBS (Aligarh Muslim University)

• MU OET Medical (Manipal University Online Entrance Test)

• DU Faculty of Medical Sciences

• AU AIMEE (Annamalai University All India Medical Entrance Exam)

• KIMS (Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences)

• MGIMS Wardha (Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences)

• IPUCET MBBS (Indraprastha University Common Entrance Test)

• BVP CET MBBS (Bhartiya Vidya Peeth Common Entrance Test)

• Jamia Hamdard MBBS

Apart from these, every state conducts its own CET’s so a student should be well aware of them as they give access to prestigious state-run universities.

Overall tips to prepare for Medical Entrance Exams efficiently

1. The competition is stiff and the difficulty level is fairly high. These being are odds, it’s still possible to ace these papers through dedicated studies. Prepare a timetable and stick to it.
2. Time management is crucial, and so if forming short-term and long-term goals. These will be important for covering maximum ground in each subject while constantly testing oneself.
3. Don’t overlook the Board exams while preparing for the competitive exams. Many students make the mistake of ignoring the Boards to give preference to others, thus jeopardizing their admission criteria itself. Remember, it’s important to score the minimum percentage in your boards to be considered for admissions, no matter what your rank in the competitive exams is. And the syllabuses are more or less the same, so better focus on both.
4. Apart from the NCERT pick up and focus on select books which help your concepts better. Don’t follow the crowd and choose books which your peers have just because find out which author is able to explain best. Also, it’s wiser to not switch between many books for any singular topic as it might confuse more than it explains.
5. Don’t leave any topics undone during your preparation, no matter how dreary or boring they are. Be it Biology, Physics, or Chemistry every subject has equal chances of fetching marks. Preparing well in advance ensures you have less pressure during the end.
6. Make use of websites which aid your studies in interesting ways. Dare2Compete is one such website which has countless quizzes and competitions for every subject which a student can participate in. This is a fun way to revise what you already know and learn new concepts.
7. Official websites of various have mock/sample papers and also previous year papers. Practice them thoroughly and make use of similar materials on different websites.
8. Time your tests. Completing the paper on/before time is a skill that will only come if you have practiced enough. Practice brings accuracy which brings speed. And in every competitive exam, time management matters the most.
9. Keep up to date with the official notifications.
10. These exams are crucial to your future, so it’s imperative that you distance yourself from things that might distract your preparations. However, this should not be confused with complete isolation.
    
    

Important topics to cover for the Medical Entrance Exams

The medical entrances have their main focus on three subjects-Biology (Botany and Zoology), Physics and Chemistry. Here we will look at each subject and the trend it had in the past year papers. This gives a clear idea of which topics are more important and fetch higher marks.

However, a student must keep in mind that marking trends changes with time, so under no circumstances should an individual proceed to leave topics which might have had a lower percentage of questions in the previous year. Treat every major topic equally.

Botany

• Molecular basis of inheritance: DNA packing, DNA replication, Genetic code, Genetic material, RNA processing (higher percentage of questions)

• Ecology: Ecosystem, Environmental issues, Biodiversity, Population growth model, Stratification (higher percentage of questions)

• Reproduction in a flowering plant: Embryo sac, Pollination, Endosperm (higher percentage of questions)

• Plant Kingdom: Algae, Angiosperms, Gymnosperms, Lifecycles, Mycorrhizae (higher percentage of questions)

• Genetics: Blood grouping, Genetic disorder, Mendel’s biography, Mendel’s selected characters (higher percentage of questions)

• Biological classification: Kingdom Monera, virus (medium percentage of questions)

• Cell biology: Cell division, mitochondria, prokaryotic cell (medium percentage of questions)

• Plant anatomy (medium percentage of questions)

• Plant morphology (medium percentage of questions)

1. Living world (low percentage of questions)
2. Morphology (low percentage of questions)
3. Morphology of flowering plants (low percentage of questions)
   
   

Zoology

• Human physiology: Circulatory system, digestive system, nervous system, excretory system, endocrine system, respiratory system, sense organs, skeletal system (high percentage of questions)

• Microbes in human welfare: Bioprocessing, industrial products, sewage treatment (high percentage of questions)

• Biomolecules: DNA, Enzymes, Lipids, RNA processing (high percentage of questions)

• Animal kingdom: Chordates and hemichordates, Porifera, mammals (medium percentage of questions)

• Biotechnology: Artificial vector, PAGE (medium percentage of questions)

• Human health and disease: Immune system, infectious disease(medium percentage of questions)

• Reproductive health: Artificial fertilization, contraception methods(medium percentage of questions)

• Strategies for enhancement of food production: Animal husbandry, artificial selection(medium percentage of questions)

• Human reproduction(low percentage of questions)

• Evolution(low percentage of questions)

• Animal morphology(low percentage of questions)

• Animal physiology (low percentage of questions)

Physics

• Mechanics: Circular motion, gravitation, Newton’s laws of motion, fluid mechanics and properties of matter, elasticity and viscosity, rectilinear motion and vectors, relative motion, rigid body dynamics, electromagnetic waves, units and dimensions (high percentage of questions)

• Electrodynamics: electromagnetic induction, capacitance, electrostatics, current electricity, electromagnetic field (high percentage of questions)

• Optics: Geometrical optics, physical optics, wave optics(medium percentage of questions)

• Heat and thermodynamics: Heat transfer, KTG, Thermodynamics(medium percentage of questions)

• SHM and Waves: SHM, Sound waves(low percentage of questions)

• Modern Physics: Nuclear physics, semiconductors(low percentage of questions)

Chemistry

• Organic chemistry I (low percentage of questions)

• Organic chemistry II: Biomolecules, aromatic compounds, alkyl reaction, alcohol reaction, ether reaction, practical organic chemistry, environmental chemistry, isomerism, carbonyl compounds(high percentage of questions)

• Inorganic chemistry I: Periodic table, chemical bonding, periodicity and its properties, p-blocks-block elements(high percentage of questions)

• Inorganic chemistry II: Coordination compounds, Metallurgy, Qualitative analysis, d-block f-block elements(high percentage of questions)

• Physical chemistry I: Nuclear chemistry, atomic structure, chemical equilibrium, ionic equilibrium, thermodynamics, mole concept(high percentage of questions)

• Physical chemistry II: Chemical Kinetics, surface chemistry, solid state, electrochemistry, solution and colligative properties(high percentage of questions)

Which books to refer while preparing for Medical Entrance Exam?

Biology

• The NCERT Biology books of class 11 and 12 should be studied thoroughly as it covers every topic for these entrance exams. Additional books should be studied but one must never overlook NCERT text’s over them.

• Trueman’s elementary biology (Volume 1)

• Trueman’s elementary biology (Volume 2)

• Objective NCERT at your fingertips by MTG

• Trueman’s objective biology for NEET

• Complete NEET guide for biology by MTG

• Biology by Pradeep publications

Physics

• NCERT Physics for class 11 and 12

• Concepts of Physics (Volume 1 and 2) by H.C.Verma
• Complete NEET guide for Physics by MTG

• Objective NCERT at your fingertips by MTG

• The Feynman Lectures (Volume 1,2 and 3)

• Fundamentals of Physics by Halliday, Resnick, and Walker

• Problems in general physics by I.E.Irodov

Chemistry

• NCERT Chemistry for class 11 and 12

• Numerical Chemistry by R.C.Mukherjee

• Complete NEET guide for chemistry by MTG

• Physical Chemistry for medical entrances by Tandon and Singh

• Inorganic Chemistry by O.P.Tandon

• Organic chemistry by Graham Solomon

The medical entrance exams test you on your concepts and understanding, thus it is imperative that you build a strong base. Refer to few trusted books for your concepts apart from the NCERT texts and don’t confuse yourself by looking at the same concept from multiple texts. Find out which book suits your understanding and gives enough practice and stick to it instead of flitting between multiple texts.

The medical stream doesn’t necessarily mean MBBS, so keep your options open for other career paths except that. This will give you more options to choose from should you wish to. Except for interdisciplinary courses with biology, certain commerce-centric courses are also accessible to PCB students, thus one could always shift the streams too.

Aspiring medical students must prioritize a comprehensive study plan and dedicated preparation to successfully navigate the challenging terrain of medical entrance exams, ultimately paving the way toward earning a coveted medical degree.

Preparation for these entrance exams is a test of endurance as much as of your concepts. So make sure you prepare smart and keep yourself healthy (both physically and mentally) for the exams to come. Your family, friends, teachers, and counselors should be your first go-to option if you face any confusion or stress. They are there to help and you must never shy away from it.  A healthy body and a healthy mind are the key factors for success in life, so prioritize your attention accordingly.

Best of luck!