FOR THOSE SERIOUS about pursuing law as a career and doing law from a reputed law college, CLAT preparations should start in Class XI itself. Yes, being more of an ‘aptitude test’, CLAT can be cracked with minimal preparation but that will not be advisable for someone who is serious about pursuing law as a career and not willing to take any chance.

Some General Gyaan on how to go about preparing for the CLAT examination.

Maintaining focus on Board Exams Along With CLAT
There are multiple reasons why you can and should focus on the board exam along with your CLAT preparations.

Firstly, because CLAT does not require intensive, day-long preparations. It might be a broad generalization, but if you are very good in English and have a strong current affairs base, 150-200 hours of dedicated preparation is all that you require for CLAT. This roughly translates to a month-long intensive preparation.

Caveat: This is not to say that you should do your CLAT preparations in a month. If law is the foremost career option for you, preparations should begin from Class XI.

Start Your Preparations as Early as Possible. Imagine a race where you have a head-start over other competitors. Sounds unfair, right? In a tough contested entrance exam, where nearly 75,000 aspirants fight for 2000 odd seats, where a one mark difference can make or mar your chances, you will want to leave no stone unturned. As mentioned earlier, 150 hours of preparation is enough for CLAT. But if you are serious about pursuing law from a top NLU, you have to give it your all and start preparing from Class XI itself.

With such a marathon of a preparation, you run the risk of a burnout? Firstly, the risk might be over-hyped, because if you start from Class XI itself, the best you can do is put in a couple of hours every day for your CLAT preparation. (If you are from a vernacular medium, investing in another couple of hours study solely focused on the English language preparation is suggested). Compare this with someone preparing for the olympics who puts in 8-12 hours of practice every day. You will realise that the risk of a burnout for a student preparing for CLAT is minimal. Secondly, this risk is easily countered by following some simple things: Do not give up on your hobbies. Do not give up on spending time with friends. Do not give up on sports. Take weekends off on a regular basis.
You would also want to start your preparations early, because subjects like English with good reading speed and Current Affairs take time to build upon. Ten words a day is the only solid way of working on your vocabulary. Yes, Norman Lewis will help, but it will be like the desert over the ten-words-a-day main course. Ten pages of a GK manual is the only solid way of working on your general knowledge (unless you have been a quizzer or an avid newspaper reader from childhood).
Join a Good CLAT Coaching Institute in delhi. You can surely crack CLAT even without joining one. However, a coaching institute is useful because of the following reasons:

Firstly, a good coaching institute will have good faculty members. Some of these faculty members would have been in the CLAT business for years and they know the ins and outs of the test. Others might be graduates from NLUs, having themselves aced the CLAT during their younger days. Some of them might be subject wizards who will make you fall in love with the subject.

These faculty members will hold your hand during your CLAT journey. they will be your counsellors, subject experts, and even help you with the filling up of forms and other logistical issues. They will also keep you updated with the news, and without a doubt, Cracking CLAT will be a ‘happening’ journey.

Secondly, in a coaching institute you interact with your peers regularly. They are your competitors but they can be your collaborators, too. Howsoever you see them, being in the company of a peer group is good for you. Studying in a classroom with 30 other competitors helps you get a sense of where you stand. If that does not happen in the classroom, it will happen in the mock test. If you see your classmates as collaborators, do regular group study sessions with them.

Take a Lot of Mock Tests. Take your mock tests with sincerity and they will help you in multiple ways.

Firstly, they are an ideal simulation practice for you. Do make sure that the conditions under which you take your mock tests are similar to the CLAT Exam Hall setup. Start and finish on time. Practice on a computer.
Secondly, when the results are out, you will know how good or bad your preparations are. You can also know in which sections you are doing good and what needs improvement.

Thirdly, it allows you to devise a strategy: which section to attempt first, which to attempt last, etc.

Fourthly, mock tests help you develop a large base of ‘expected’ questions in CLAT (especially the current affairs part). Finally, mock tests put you in the right frame of mind for a competitive exam. You know when the exam is tough, it’s tough for everyone and the cut-offs are going to be low. If the exam is easy, it is easy for everyone.

Your clat coaching institute will surely provide you with a bunch of mock tests. Also, subscribe to a mock test series by a second coaching institute because there might be areas where the first institute is not getting it right.

Caveat: Those who do really well in the mock tests do not always end up with high ranks in CLAT and vice versa. Some aspirants get overconfident and their intensity lessens. Some aspirants are fatigued by the end of it. Some are just plain unlucky. There have been many CLAT toppers who did not do especially well in any of their mock tests. For records, there have been CLAT toppers who have never taken a single CLAT mock test. At the same time, many who regularly did well in the mock tests ended up with good CLAT ranks as well. So the verdict is this: ‘Take your mock tests well, but they are not the final word on your or anyone else’s CLAT rank.’