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A second shot, a perfect finish: Delhi student tops NEET-UG with AIR 1, eyes AIIMS
Unlike the image often associated with India's most competitive entrance examinations, endless study hours, isolation and burnout, Panshul's preparation followed a surprisingly balanced routine.
Delhi’s Panshul Bansal
For most National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) aspirants, 701 marks would have been enough to celebrate. It is a score that would have comfortably secured one admission to one of the country’s premier medical colleges. But for Delhi’s Panshul Bansal, it became the starting point. In the re-examination conducted on June 21 after the original test was cancelled, the 17-year-old raised his score to 715, securing All India Rank (AIR) 1.
“I was expecting a good college even with my first score,” says Panshul, a student of Somerville School in Kailash Colony. “Maybe VMMC or somewhere similar. But I wasn’t expecting this.”
The result, he says, was the outcome of sustained hard work.
Unlike the image often associated with India’s most competitive entrance examinations, endless study hours, isolation and burnout, Panshul’s preparation followed a surprisingly balanced routine.
His day began at 6.30 am. Instead of opening textbooks immediately, he allowed himself time to unwind before beginning focused study around 9 am. He studied until noon, took a long lunch break, resumed from afternoon and studied until early evening, then stepped out to play, and finally returned for about an hour of revision at night.
“I didn’t compromise on spending time with family or friends,” he says.
Nor did he give up his hobbies. When the pressure of preparation mounted, he turned to piano, skating, tubing, outdoor games and even video games.
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His advice to future aspirants is practical. “Focus on question practice,” he says. “Solve as many questions as you can and keep giving mock tests. They show you exactly where your weaknesses are.”
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For Panshul, consistency mattered more than intensity. “The biggest hurdle was making sure my scores didn’t fluctuate,” he says.
Interestingly, he says he never found one particular subject significantly more difficult than another, instead focusing on maintaining performance across Physics, Chemistry and Biology.
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His ambition has always been to become a surgeon. Although he has not yet chosen a specialty, neurosurgery and cardiothoracic surgery currently interest him the most.
As for where that journey begins, he doesn’t need time to think.
“AIIMS,” he says.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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