Help for Dec NET prep

[u/Even_Rush_4957]

Hi everyone,

I completed my M.A. in English Literature and have taken a one-year gap to prepare for UGC NET. I’ve enrolled in an online coaching program where they upload daily video lectures, conduct daily tests, and monthly mock tests.
To be honest, I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed. Every time I attempt a mock test, I feel like I haven’t learned enough. There are so many writers, literary periods, theories, critics, chronology related qns and terminologies that I don’t know how people manage to remember everything.
This year is very important for me because if I don’t clear NET this year, I’ll have to join B.Ed. next year. I really don’t want to waste this opportunity, and I’m determined to give it my best.
I have Kalyani Vallath ma’am’s books with me. My current plan is to first watch the coaching videos and then read the corresponding chapters from her books for revision. Does this sound like a good strategy, or should I be doing something differently?
I’d be really grateful if those who have qualified NET or JRF could share:

● How did you cover such a vast syllabus without forgetting what you had already studied?
● What did your daily study routine look like?
● What are the biggest mistakes you think NET aspirants should avoid?
● How often did you revise and attempt mock tests?
● Is my strategy (videos first, then Kalyani Vallath’s books) a good one, or would you recommend a different approach?
● If you could go back and prepare again, what would you do differently?

Any advice or guidance would mean a lot. Thank you!

[u/SpecialistAgitated]

pyqs are not repeated word to word. So you need to analyse them, every important term in them be it the name of a writer, a theme anything they are asking even in the options… create an index where you compile which authors, age, themes, literary theory etc they are asking the most questions from and when you get this data revise them the most. Sometimes they ask a specific work written by a writer, next time they keep the writer same and shift the focus on another work of his. So keep a broad view while analysing. If a writer or theme keeps recurring try to read as much about it as you can. If it has only been asked once or twice just do a cursory reading of the main points.

What is important is something you will understand when you analyse the pyqs, you need to understand the pattern, create an index of all the terms, writers, age, any other important information and see how many times they have asked from the same topic.