College101- An Introductory guide for about-to-be college students

So, exams and results over. Most of you would have already decided whether to take a drop or not. If not, see this. So, this post will guide you about the Do's and Don'ts for college, based on many messages, emails, and comments I have been seeing over the last couple weeks. I'll be doing this as a Q&A session, based on the questions most requested to me.

1. Which college is the best for me? I am yet to decide my choices for counselling.
Well, check this out, this is a complete guide to choose your choices. Also, please consult people from all the choices you are filling. You can discuss your doubts here. This group has people from all colleges. Also, see this post. It will help you. Finally, I must say that it's your choice to go for a particular college/branch. I am not at blame if you end up choosing something you don't like. Consult many people and decide.

2. What should I do in the 1-month break I have before joining college?
Well, you had been studying for a long time, so I suggest you enjoy this time. You can pick up a hobby, learn to code, spend some time with family and friends, etc. In my case, I watched a TV Series called 'The Big Bang Theory', learned to play the Guitar, made up my Facebook page(like it for interesting stuff on JEE, college, and computers), visited a lot of places, etc. This time is precious as it won't come again. I strongly recommend learning to code in this break. It is because it is fun, every college has a course on Programming, and it's a must-have skill today.

3. How to learn to code in this break?
There are plenty of resources out there on the Internet. I strongly suggest you to learn C++ as a first step. You can do it first by seeing this playlist by thenewboston(really nice work). You will not get everything in the first try, but keep on trying. You can use this book along with these tutorials. For problem practice, I recommend you to practice a bit on SPOJ. Go to the basic problems sections, arrange them in the order of decreasing number of users, and solve around a 100. If you do this you will become really good at coding and will ace the first year(irrespective of whether you are in CS or not). You should see these articles-Getting Started with Computer Science- Part 1 and Getting Started with Computer Science- Part 2

4. Should I buy a laptop for college?
Well, if you have a financial problem, then you don't need to for now, because every college has a Computer lab, but still having one is immensely useful. Everything in college depends on your laptop, and you must buy a good one. If you haven't thought of buying a laptop yet, and plan to do it later, DON'T. Get it now, and get used to it, code a bit, play with it. A good laptop must have an i3 or above processor(7th gen or above), 4/8GB RAM or more, a decent Graphics card, and a good hard drive(SSD preferred, or 1TB hard drive at the minimum). Currently, many back to college and cashback offers are available on Amazon, so you might want to buy from these links. I have searched for the best laptops available in every range(arranged in increasing order of price). Some of these(the cheap ones) don't have OS, you can install Windows(paid) or Ubuntu(free)

Asus Vivobook X541UA-DM1358D (Intel i3 7100U (7th Gen)/4 GB DDR4/1TB/Intel HD Graphics/DOS) - Silver

Lenovo Ideapad 320E 80XL0378IN 15.6-inch Laptop (7th Gen Core i5-7200U/4GB/1TB/Windows 10 Home/2GB Graphics), Onyx Black

ACER E5-575G/Ci5-7200U/4/1TB/W10/2GB GRAPHICS/BLK NB (NX.GDWSI.007)

Dell Inspiron 15 3000 3567 15.6-inch Laptop (7th Gen Core i7-7500U/8GB/1TB/Windows 10 with Office 2016 Home and Student/2GB Graphics)

Apple MacBook Air MQD32HN/A 13.3-inch Laptop 2017 (Core i5/8GB/128GB/MacOS Sierra/Integrated Graphics) (If you can afford 60k, do go for it. Apple is a class apart, unless you are into gaming

HP Pavilion 15-CC129TX 2017 15.6-inch Laptop (Core i5/8GB/1TB/Windows/Integrated Graphics), Silver

Microsoft Surface Pro (Core-i5 7th Gen/4GB/128GB/Windows 10 Pro/Integrated Graphics), Silver

2018 Flagship HP Pavilion 14" WLED HD Premium Business Laptop - Intel Dual-Core i5-7200U up to 3.1GHz 16GB DDR4 1TB HDD B&O Play 802.11ac Bluetooth HDMI USB Type-C Webcam Backlit Keyboard Win 10

The list is by no means exhaustive, but I have tried to cover laptops of all range. If you are too lazy to buy one from out, you can order from here, I have taken this list from various tech websites and personal experience. You will find them good. Avoid watching a lot of TV series/movies.

5. How to survive in college?
Every college has a different culture of study, extracurriculars, etc. Talk to seniors and develop a healthy relationship with them. Ask them about the study patterns. And talk to many people. And try to adjust against feelings like homesickness, lack of friends,etc. Develop confidence and avoid bad habits.

This was all. If you have any more doubts, feel free to comment here.

Some Quora answers for exams

Motivation:

A motivational answer and must read, cause it means a lot to me.

My JEE story

For those who think of themselves as 'weak' students

How to stop being average

Perks of being at an IIT

Increasing productivity

Motivating yourself to study

Life at IITB

Some advices for students in class 9-10



Strategies:

Avoiding Social Media

Must have skills for any competitive examination

My schedule during JEE preparations

The best way to prepare for JEE

Some common mistakes during JEE preparations

Making a timetable

Some study hacks

Clear every exam in one click



Tests:

Must avoid mistakes during any exam(read a day before the exam too)

Analyzing test papers

If you are in Class 11:

For students at in the beginning of class 11.

Read it if you are are about to start class 11 or 12th exams

A year and a half left for JEE

For class 12 students:

JEE(Main) with just NCERT

Read it if you are are about to start class 11 or 12th exams

For students in the beginning of class 12.

How to score really well in JEE(Main)

Last days(after board exams):

3 weeks before JEE(Main)

10 days before JEE(Main)

Strategy after your JEE(Main) is over(40 days before JEE(Advanced))


Also check : Best books for JEE , A complete JEE preparation guide, Organic Chemistry, Mechanics, Algebra, Motivation

Last minute tips for JEE(Advanced)

It's all (almost) over. Around one week left for JEE(Advanced).

Time to add the finishing touches.

Nothing much can be done now for the study part. I would recommend seeing your formula book/ revise notes of all chapters. Don't try to study anything new. You can try learning chemistry for sure though. Inorganic Chemistry can be revised completely, and trust me, you MUST do it because final week revision is very important for Inorganic. Read the notes/book and try to recall everything(and maybe solve a few questions). You should also go for revising Organic Reactions and important mechanisms.

You must try to give at least 3 full-length tests in the last week if your syllabus is over. And in the same duration. Below are few things(many of them follow from the JEE(Main) article I wrote, cause they are used here too) which I feel must be followed on the exam day-

1. Before entering the exam hall:

• Make sure you bring all your documents, admit card, etc and reach before time.
• Drink enough water, have adequate food(not too much), stop studying by 8 P.M. or so on a day before the exam(have at least 7–8 hours of sleep).
• Go to the washroom before entering if you feel the need(you don’t want to go during the paper)
• .Many students study outside the exam hall. I don’t recommend that, and I also recommend ignoring such people if you aren’t one of them.
• Talk to your parents/guardian/teachers if they are present. Avoid talking to your ‘friends’. I remember my physics teacher saying that I should not worry, as he was pretty confident that I would go beyond expectations. These things ease out pressure.
• Be positive.

2. In the hall before the paper is distributed:

• You would be given an OMR sheet. You don’t want to mess with it. Fill all the details(please forgive me if the exam is online, just click the bubble in that case).
• DON’T FILL THE DETAILS(SPECIALLY ROLL NUMBER) WRONG.
• Do not mess with the invigilators in any way.
• Make sure you have filled everything correctly. You would still have around 30 minutes before paper commencements.(don’t remember the sequence, it might be before OMR distribution).
• Now, avoid talking to people around you. They would be unknown mostly. A self-talk helps at this time(I was pretty good at it).
• Relax and take a heavy breath(and all that kind of shit), but don’t sleep.

3. After Paper-1 is distributed:

• Don’t dive straight into the paper. Spend some time(5 minutes or so) looking at the questions. Try to get an idea as to what is tough and easy.
• Based on what is easy and what is your best subject, decide where to start.
• Attempt only a few easy questions in the beginning. Attempt 3-4 very easy questions from all the subjects first instead of attempting 15 questions from, say physics. This is where a lot of people go wrong. This builds confidence, as well as makes sure you attempt more.
• Don’t get stuck on a question for long. You can always do it later. This is a huge pitfall. JEE(Advanced) is meant to be tough(usually), and you must learn to move ahead if you get stuck.
• Fill the OMR section carefully and don’t keep it pending for the end. That sheet shows years of hard work. If you fill it wrong or you could not fill it(i.e. the exam gets over it before you fill it), then it would be really bad.
• Don’t answer without knowing(fluke).Choose the best option when in confusion. Don’t rely on ‘bonuses’.
• Use rough space wisely. It comes less in quantity(maybe they would provide some rough sheets, be careful whatever happens).
• Solve fast, but don’t solve things wrong. Cross check quickly before bubbling, if its possible. Use objective approach whenever possible(specially in mathematics). Differentiating options, considering equilateral triangle, eliminating options should be used as much as possible.

4. After Paper-1 and before Paper-2:

• Make sure you DON'T discuss the paper with anyone. Better stay away from everyone. Go to your parents/guardian/teachers. 
• Have some LIGHT food. Don't eat too much, else you'll feel sleepy(and don't stay hungry as well). Take some rest in a car or something if possible, and don't fall asleep. Do something relaxing(meditation,etc.). Stay energetic, and use this time to recover your energy.
• Don't get affected by performance in Paper 1 in any way. You might get overconfident or underconfident. Avoid it under all circumstances.
• Go back to the exam hall before the allotted time(30 minutes or as instructed).

5. During Paper 2:

• All points mentioned in Paper 1.
• Be energetic and unyielding irrespective of what happened in paper 1.

6. After the paper is over:

• Head straight home, and enjoy. You have been studying so hard for all these years. Time to chill!!!

You all must realize that JEE(Advanced) is one of the toughest exams out there, and you should respect that. Leave a question for later if you don't know/can't do it. Make the best out of those 6 hours. This is your last fight(for some time, of course), give your best shot.

It’s your moment, squeeze it and make it golden.

All the best!!!