GATE 2022 Topper Interview Madhav Parihar AIR 6 BM Stick to your preparation & don’t let anyone demotivate you

With an aim of becoming a well-known scientist in India, Madhav Parihar appeared in the GATE 2022 Biomedical Engineering paper and secured AIR 6. According to him, working hard and smart while saying no to procrastination is the best strategy or tip to crack Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering.

Madhav started dreaming of becoming a scientist at the age of 12 and hence appeared in the GATE 2022 exam to see him pursue his Master’s from IIT Bombay in Biomedical Engineering. Careers360 interacted with him to know his preparation strategy, best books for the GATE exam and others. Read GATE 2022 topper interview of Madhav Parihar to know his exceptional journey.

Careers360 - Tell us something about yourself; Where have you done your engineering from and in which branch?

Madhav - My name is Madhav Parihar. I am from Rajgarh (Dist. Dhar), Madhya Pradesh. I am 21 years old and currently pursuing my B. Tech (3 rd Year) in Biomedical Engineering from Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science, Indore (Madhya Pradesh). I live in my college’s hostel.

Careers360 - What was the GATE paper you appeared in? What rank did you get in GATE 2022?

Madhav - A: I appeared for GATE BM 2022. My All-India Rank is 6.

Careers360 - What is your GATE score and how many marks did you secure out of 100 in the GATE paper?

Madhav - My GATE 2022 score is 840 out of 1000 and my marks are 37 out of 100.

Careers360 - What was the reason you appeared for GATE 2022? Pls, elaborate.

Madhav - I keep a keen interest in science. I wanted to study something different than all these classic branches. That's why I chose the biomedical engineering branch for my bachelor’s and I feel lucky that I chose it. From the age of 12, I wanted to become a scientist. At that time, I thought that it could be any field but I will become a scientist. I appeared for gate because I want to pursue my dream of doing research and becoming a well-known scientist in India.

Careers360 - Have you applied to any PSUs recruiting through GATE? Which ones? Is there any plan for a Master’s?

Madhav - No, I don’t want to join any PSU. I want to pursue my Master’s from IIT Bombay in Biomedical Engineering.

Careers360 - When did you start your preparation? How did you prepare for the GATE exam? How many hours did you put in per day as per the stage of preparation?

Madhav - I started my preparation in September 2021. I prepared for the exam with selected books and the GATE previous year’s question paper. I used to study for around 6-7 hours daily.

Careers360 - Can you share any preparation strategies with our readers? When should one start preparing for GATE? How to schedule study time and make timetables?

Madhav - The best tip or strategy that I can come up with is go with what suits your way of studying. Just work hard and smart and say no to procrastination. Other than that you should be confident in yourself. As much as possible, go for the books. mentioned a few books. They are amazing. Go for them.

Around 6-8 months are enough for the preparation of gate. But a year would be decent for those who are likely to start from the beginning. For the time table, First see that you are a night person or morning person (My suggestion would be morning). Then look for the time other than college or work depending on what you are doing. Keep at least 6 hours for the preparation every day. Giving time to 2 subjects daily is decent. Rest is what suits you. I am repeating this line because what suits you will increase your productivity.

Careers360 - How important do you feel GATE mock tests are and why? Is it true that if one solves the previous year’s question papers, there is a good chance of cracking the exam successfully?

Madhav - GATE mocks tests are important. They play a very important role in your preparation. PYQs give you an idea about how many concepts are asked and how questions are crafted and it’s a good practice too. Its not completely true but yes, it’s very helpful.

Careers360. Which books did you follow for GATE preparation? Pls, name some very important must-read books for GATE.

Madhav- I like to study with books and there are some specific GATE books which helped a lot in this journey

They are:

• Engineering Mathematics: B.V. Ramana

• Electric Circuits: Alexander and Sadiku

• Signal And Systems: Oppenheim

• Analog Electronics: Sedra Smith

• Digital Electronics: Morris Mano

• Control Systems: B.C. Kuo and Norman Nise

• Measurement Systems: A.K. Sawhney

• HAP: Donald C Rizzo

• Medical Imaging System: R.S. Khandpur

• Biomedical Instrumentation: John G. Webster

• Biomechanics: Nihat Ozkaya- Springer

• Biomaterials: Mauli T. Agrawal

Careers360 - What was the toughest aspect of your GATE preparation?

Madhav - I would say the randomness of distribution of marks to any specific topic.

Careers360 - Which are the topics one should focus more on? Kindly give us some details.

Madhav - Aptitude and Mathematics are the topics which are very useful to reserve about 26-28 marks for you. Other than this Signals and Systems, Electronics and Medical Imaging Systems holds the importance and then BMI too. Other than this all the topics generally cover 4-5 marks.

Careers360 - What did you do for leisure? Any specific activities that helped you unwind?

Madhav - I used to talk to my friends and family. I used to spend half an hour with my sister and having fun. Other than that Music is something that’s so helpful to calm and relax.

Careers360 - How should you schedule answering the GATE exam – which section to attempt first and which next? Did you have any strategy? Kindly share your exam experience with us.

Madhav - First of all you should go for aptitude because they are so rewarding. They add up so much value in your score. Then going for the subject questions. There you should go for fact based questions because in those questions either you know the answer or you don’t that’s it.

Then you should look at others one by one and try them. If in the next 45 seconds you are sure that you can give it a try then you should, otherwise get to the next questions and also have some brainstorming meanwhile. And at last, you will also have some questions which you know but are time consuming so keep them for last. When I was giving my paper, I used the same strategy.

Careers360 - What did you feel was one tough thing for you in the GATE exam?

Madhav - GATE exam is usually moderate but because of its randomness in weightage of particular topic. It carries a thought or a doubt that will come or will this topic come or not? which is not good for your confidence because doubting yourself in something creates weakness which you never want. Some weakness gives you strength but this gives tension mostly.

Careers360 - Any advice for future aspirants?

Madhav - First of all, I would like to convey one thing to the aspirants that be sure of what you are doing. Knowing well about your acts is very important. Never let this social platform and variety of study material confuse you. Try to understand that they are for your better understanding. If possible, go for the books as much as possible for the conceptual study. Because books are great. Stick to your preparation and don’t let anyone demotivate you. The goal you set for yourself will determine your next 3-4 years significantly so act wisely. Read to understand not to mug up, that's what I would say.