GATE (General Aptitude Test
in Engineering) is one of the most prestigious and sought-after exams for
science geeks in India. Every year, thousands of engineering and computer
science students aspire to score well in the GATE exam to get admission to some
of the best universities- including IITs and NITs. But contrary to popular
belief, this exam offers more than this. For starters, a lot of PSUs (Public
Sector Undertaking) now hire candidates based on their GATE score. As a matter
of fact, these scores also let students apply for scholarships and many more.
This examination tests a
candidate's grasp of a subject. It tests their basic understanding of the
related concepts and every detail that might be important. If you are an
aspirant preparing for the same, you must have extra resources other than the
syllabus - one of them being the previous years' question papers. It will help
you get a better understanding of the pattern of questions, especially if you
are giving the exam for the first time. In this article, we will discuss the
importance of the same.
Which Question Papers to
Target?
The GATE Exam started in the
year 1984, and it is no brainer that solving decades-old question papers won't
help you with the preparation. The syllabus and curriculum keep changing. Added
to it are the new discoveries, alterations in the working of machines, the
ever-evolving technology, and the introduction of new concepts every now and
then. So, how old should you go? The answer is to solve question papers from
the last four years. Here, the GATE 2021 and GATE 2020 Question Paper are the most important and
relevant to the current syllabus as well as exam pattern.
Importance of Solving
Previous Year Question Papers
The question still remains,
why solve the question papers from previous years, and is it enough for the
preparation? Here are some of the reasons why you should be focusing on GATE
2018, GATE 2019, GATE 2021, GATE 2020 question paper:
● Candidates will be able to
understand the marking scheme and pattern of questions appearing in the exams.
Mock tests also help you with the same.
● Solving questions from the
actual papers will help you boost your confidence.
● You can gauge the actual
difficulty level of the exam and analyze the parts of the syllabus that need
more revision.
● Aspirants can know their exam
level of preparation and improve it over time.
● Your speed and accuracy in
answering the questions improve significantly.
● You can omit unnecessary
parts of the syllabus that might also be difficult for you to cover.
As far as the second half of
the question is concerned, solving question papers from previous years is
important but not enough. You also
need a lot more resources to ensure better preparation for the examination.
Some Other Useful Resources
Here are a few more resources
that you must refer to if you want to crack the next GATE examination:
● GATE syllabus to understand
the important and narrowed parts of the entire curriculum.
● GATE online and offline study
materials to cover the syllabus and understand the concepts.
● GATE mock tests and sample
papers to understand the preparation level and mark the left-out topics.
● GATE notes and books for
diving deeper into the tiniest of the concepts.
● GATE difference between and
full-form articles for a better understanding of the covered topics.
If you are a tech geek
looking forward to cracking the GATE exam in one go, make sure you
cover all the resources that we have mentioned in this article. Refer to the
most reliable sources to gather these materials, and organize your day to get
better results. All the best for your exams!!