CUET UG Toppers' Tips: The CUET UG topper, Vani Gupta, scored an overall pass percentage of 95 per cent in Class 10 and 97.6 per cent in Class 12.
Vani Gupta of Uttar Pradesh’s Noida appeared for CUET in its debut edition in 2022. She appeared for five papers – economics, business studies, accountancy, English and mathematics and secured 100 percentile in all subjects except mathematics.
Gupta has been academically a bright student throughout her school life. She scored 95 per cent in CBSE Class 10 and 97.6 per cent in Class 12. The 19-year-old, currently pursuing a BCom (Hons) from Shri Ram College of Commerce, shares how she prepared for the CUET UG.
My CUET experience
I did get nervous when appearing for my CUET UG exam, especially the maths paper. After reading the question paper, I felt like I was not adequately prepared for it.
I had maths, economics and English in one day and one month later, I had to appear for business studies and accountancy. To appear for all the papers together, one has 200 minutes, meaning 40 minutes for each subject. The first exam I appeared for was maths, and I clicked it by mistake and the exam suddenly started. I wanted to start the CUET paper with the English paper.
The maths paper was difficult and lengthy as compared to the rest. The paper carried ‘match the following’ type of questions where we had to solve three to four questions to arrive at the solution. That was a bit difficult and time-consuming.
Some business studies questions on planning and business environment were difficult and tricky. English was fairly simple.
What was my preparation strategy?
For CUET, I prepared through my Class 12 books. I knew I wanted to get admission to a Delhi University college which would require me to score maximum in board exams. When we started our Class 12 academic session, the CUET exam was not announced so I focused on my Class 12 subjects from the start.
I picked up several well-known MCQs from the bookstalls but after taking the exam now, I felt those questions were not at par. I bought Career Launcher and TIME’s booklets and MCQ sets from the APC Publishers and Alka Dhawan for Business Studies.
Advise for aspirants
– Choose the right mix of subjects in CUET.
– Be careful when choosing what paper to start the exam with on the exam day. I selected maths first and I became nervous after finding the paper time-consuming.
– CUET English paper focuses on grammar, and reading comprehension, unlike the CBSE English syllabus.
– Do not ignore the Class 11 syllabus. It is important for minute concepts. Class 11 concepts from all the subjects including accountancy, business studies and economics are required in Class 12 and are also asked in CUET
Life in SRCC
While filling out the CUET application form, SRCC was my first preference. However, I also opted for St Stephen’s College, LSR and other Delhi University colleges. I always wanted to study at the University of Delhi and SRCC’s legacy, its faculty and its current standing in academia inspired me to study here. I also did not want to go to an all-girls college so that was also a factor I considered while choosing SRCC.
I do not think choosing and getting into the best college will define anyone’s life. It is up to us how we utilise the resources and get ourselves groomed with the environment and excel.