Aman Goel is a third-year Computer Science and Engineering student at
IIT, Bombay. He writes a popular blog, where he guides students about cracking
the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) for admission to IITs. He is also the most viewed
writer on Quora under the topic “JEE”. Aman is currently doing his internship
at Rubrik, a cloud computing company based in California.

Aman spoke to PaGaLGuY about his experience of blogging, cracking the JEE
and engineering in general.

When did you first
start writing a blog? Why do you write only about JEE preparation?

After JEE results, many students started asking me questions about how I
prepared for JEE, the books I used, etc. It was a cumbersome task to answer all
these issues on Facebook or over the phone. So, I thought of writing an article
and just sharing the link. It would be beneficial for both, students and me
alike. This is how the blog started. JEE is a superset for all other
exams. Preparing for JEE Advanced prepares you for different Olympiads, Kishore
Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY) scholarship, etc.

Have you thought
taking up writing as a career?

No, I don’t enjoy writing. I am interested in core computer science and
would like to pursue it in future also.

If not engineering,
then which career would you choose?

I would have joined my father’s business and would have settled down in
Kanpur.

Why an engineer and
not a writer?

I took up engineering as a choice. My parents gave me the freedom to
take up any profession.

Any support from
IITB for your blog?

No. even if I write about them, they won’t endorse it.

You like Organic
Chemistry. Why? Is it because it is scoring subject?

Yes, it is a scoring subject. My chemistry teacher recommended me a book
by LG Wade. It is an interesting book. It gives you an insight into organic
chemistry without you having to memorize things.

How much time and
energy is devoted to the blog on a daily basis?

In the first year, it took up a lot of my time. Now, I have a team of
three ‘freshies’ who follow my blogs. They volunteered to write for me and I
agreed.

Students do so much
to become engineers and then get a management degree and sell soaps. Comment

(Laughs) I see many reasons why this happens. Many take up engineering
not knowing what it is about. Secondly, many have to opt for a branch which
they are not interested in. But the competition here is so much that they are
motivated enough to do better even after IIT. Thirdly, if a student fails to
get a good placement, they will definitely like to learn more skills to get a
job of their choice. Personally, I did think of giving the CAT after I had
cracked the JEE, one of the toughest exams. But now I am sure of pursuing only
pure computer science.

Why do you not
encourage aspirants to think of other professions or/and take it easy if
the paper does not go well?

I don’t think JEE is the end of everything. The challenges that we face
in life are very different from JEE. It is important to take things in the
right spirit. You should not judge yourself on the basis of the exam. I think,
it is important for parents to not pressurize their children to get into an
IIT. I know a senior who did not get admission into an IIT. He took up B.Tech
in Information Technology in an NIT, cut offs from which are lower than
computer science. He worked very hard and got an offer from Google.

How do deal with
people when they ask silly or tough questions? Do you skirt the question or
answer everything that comes your way?

It happens a lot. I have stopped replying to them about six-seven months
ago. Many students ask questions not relevant to the topic of the post. The
idea of the blog was that I need not repeat things. But I am forced to repeat,
so I stopped replying. I answer only if a comment is in the relevant section.
Some come up with a book and ask me a review of how good it is. They don’t
realize that I have not read all the books available in the market. The blog is
about how an IITian prepared. It is not meant to replace teachers or the hard
work that a student has to do.

Is it necessary to
take the exam for KVPY?

It is not required. I had applied purely out of interest. I made
bubbling mistakes and got a bad rank.

What do you think
of the time between Mains and Advanced? What should aspirants be doing besides
studying?

It is a crucial time. It is expected that the syllabus is complete by
now. You might be weak at some chapters and strong at some. Revision is the
important thing to do now. It is an ideal time to spend 12 hours a day
studying. Solve more questions on topics you are weak, but don’t neglect the
strong areas. Students should solve more questions.

There is a lot of
uncertainty about the pattern of JEE Advanced exam. What is your advice to
students?

Students should not prepare for a pattern. They should be prepared for
surprises. Life is full of surprises, so take this opportunity to learn how to
face them.