‘Dropped a year to prepare for NEET UG’ | Toppers Tips

Vrishti Chandra, a native of Vadodara, secured a rank and score high enough to gain admission to a government medical college in her first attempt after the drop year. Speaking to indianexpress.com, she reflected on her preparation process, the challenges she faced, and the key lessons from her NEET UG journey.

Schooling, background and early interest in medicine

She completed schooling from Navrachana Higher Secondary School, Sama, Vadodara, scoring 96 per cent in Class 10 and 95.2 per cent in Class 12, both in CBSE. An early interest in Biology played a key role in choosing medicine as a career path.

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“I chose MBBS because of my strong interest in Biology and my desire to serve society through medicine,” she said, adding that the profession’s scope for lifelong learning was another motivating factor. While medicine was the primary goal, she had also considered life science–related fields as a backup and was mentally prepared to continue preparation if the first attempt did not work out.

When preparation began and the role of coaching

NEET-oriented preparation began in Class 11, alongside regular schooling. She said the school syllabus was aligned with NEET topics early on to avoid duplication of effort and last-minute pressure. For the drop year, she enrolled with Infinity Learn by Sri Chaitanya. 

“The focus during the drop year was on strengthening concepts, revising systematically and increasing test exposure,” she said. Daily routines typically included attending lectures, revising concepts, making notes and practising multiple-choice questions.

Study hours averaged around seven to eight hours a day initially, gradually increasing to about 12 hours a day in the latter half of the drop year as the exam approached.

Key preparation strategy: Understand concepts before speed

She emphasised that conceptual clarity was prioritised over aggressive question-solving in the early stages. “Building strong fundamentals by attending lectures and practising daily was the base,” she said.

Revision was treated as a continuous process rather than a separate phase. Short notes were maintained for quick recall, while NCERT textbooks were read repeatedly, particularly for Biology and Chemistry. Backlogs, when they occurred, were addressed by breaking topics into smaller sections and integrating them into daily schedules instead of postponing them indefinitely.

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Mock tests, mistakes and revision

Mock tests played a central role in preparation, especially during the drop year. Full-length tests were used not only to assess performance but also to identify patterns of errors. According to she, analysing mistakes was as important as taking the test itself.

Incorrect and doubtful questions were revisited repeatedly, and common errors were noted down to avoid repetition. Silly mistakes and question traps were handled by slowing down during reading and underlining key values or conditions during practice.

Handling difficult questions and exam-day strategy

During both mock tests and the actual exam, she followed a structured approach to maximise attempts without panic. Biology was attempted first, followed by Chemistry and Physics. Each section was tackled in three phases — quick easy questions, followed by medium-level ones, and finally the tougher or doubtful questions.

“The simple strategy I followed while attempting was that I solved the portion I could easily solve,” she said. For difficult Physics questions, the focus was on staying calm. “One should think calmly if a similar or related question has been done earlier or not. If not, write the given values clearly, make a diagram and then think of the approach,” she explained.

Managing Physics and weaker areas

She identified that Physics was the most challenging subject. To overcome this, she relied on recorded lectures, repeated practice and doubt-solving sessions. Concepts were revised multiple times rather than rushing through new material, especially in weaker chapters.

Near the exam, the strategy shifted away from heavy learning. “In the last week don’t go for anything new. Just solve sample papers, analyse them and revise the points or formulas you are still making mistakes in,” she said, adding that excessive testing in the final days should be avoided if it leads to exhaustion.

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Stress, breaks and mental health

Like most aspirants, she experienced stress during preparation. Over time, stress management became a deliberate part of the routine. Timed practice sessions were used to simulate exam pressure, helping build familiarity with stress-inducing situations.

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Outside academics, she listened to spiritual and motivational music and stayed physically active through swimming and cycling. Social media use was minimal, limited to WhatsApp. Writing stories and poems, along with social service activities, were used as occasional breaks from preparation.

Life after NEET and future plans

She is currently pursuing MBBS at Sri MP Shah Government Medical College, Jamnagar. The choice of college was guided by factors such as government status, faculty strength, clinical exposure, infrastructure and affordability.

Looking ahead, the plan is to pursue post-graduation after completing MBBS and internship. While no final specialisation has been decided yet, Anatomy is currently the favourite subject.

Reflecting on the overall journey, Chandra she said preparation was less about extreme measures and more about sustained effort. “Be consistent, focus on concepts, and revise and analyse mistakes,” she said — a summary that captures the long, measured approach behind a successful NEET UG outcome.