1.Tell us about you? What are you doing currently?

I am Pratik Poddar, now in my final year in Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Bombay. I like Mathematics (especially Probability, Calculus and Number Theory). Even during my JEE preparation, I knew that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
2.When did you start thinking about IIT ?

I was told about IIT by a mentor of mine (Father's friend, an IAS officer then) when I was in class X. Before that, I knew I had to take PCM, but had no idea of the answer to the question, what next?
3.What was you rank?

IIT JEE 2006 - All India Rank 3 AIEEE 2006 - All India Rank 2
4.Which books did you follow during your preparations?

Physics: 1) NCERT 2) Concepts in Physics by H.C Verma (Two volumes) 3) Problems in General Physics by I.E. Irodov 4) University Physics by Freedman and Young or Fundamentals of Physics by Halliday, Resnick and Walker 5) Aptitude Test Problems in Physics by S.S. Krotov Chemistry: 1) NCERT 2) Numerical Chemistry by P. Bahadur or Numerical Chemistry by R.C. Mukherjee 3) Concise Inroganic Chemistry by J.D. Lee 4) Chemistry Principles & Applications by Sienko and Plane 5) Organic Chemistry by Solomons and Frhyle or Organic Chemistry by Morrison and Boyd Mathematics: 1) NCERT 2) Higher Algebra by Hall and Knight 3) Problems in Mathematics by V Govorov, P.Dybov, N.Miroshin, S.Smirnova (Edited by A.I. Prilepko) 4) Trigonometry by S.L Loney 5) Coordinate Geometry by S.L. Loney 6) A Course in Mathematics for IIT-JEE by Tata Mc-Graw Hill These books are more than sufficient. Of course, you have to read only those sections which are there in the syllabus.
5.Have you taken any coaching? Do you thing coaching make a major impact in cracking IIT?

I took classroom coaching from Bansal Classes, Kota. Although I don't deny that Bansal Classes had a huge impact on my preparation, but at the same time I don't think coaching is necessary for cracking JEE. Although these institutes publish sparkling results in newspapers but the truth is that the precentage of people getting selected is not very high. If you are in a city, I would recommend joining a good coaching class in the same city as far as possible considering the varied problems that arise in Kota due to absence of parental guidance.
6.Did you joined any test series ?

I took test series of Fiitjee, Delhi and Apex Academy, Mumbai.

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7.How many hours did you study daily ?

Its not hours that count. Make sure that you feel fresh, energetic and positive when studying. Take a five minute walk or a half an hour sleep if thats not happening. Sleep well and Eat well. There is no point giving night outs and studying. Sleep well before the exam.
8.On which subject you give more stress and why ?

I liked Maths and Physics so performed well naturally. I found chemistry difficult. I saw that most of my batchmates got good marks in Maths and Physics. So, to score a better rank, I needed to be better in Chemistry as there is no saturation point. The more you read, the better you become.
9.What do you think is the secret of your success?

1) Hard Work 2) Confidence in hard work, myself and God

10.Any advise to our readers? What tips you want to share with our readers ?

1) JEE is not the only time when you can prove yourself. So relax! Sleep well and eat well! Dont try anything special. Do whats most natural to you. 2) Dont waste time watching movies, going to parties and attending guests. Keeping yourself away from these pleasures for 2 yrs does more good than you would expect. 3) A strict No No to books by the following publishers: Dinesh, Pradeep, Krishna, Modern's, ,Gupta and Gupta.

Pratik Poddar AIR 3 (IIT-JEE 2006) AIR 2 (AIEEE 2006)