Toppers Mantra – Didn't get placement even after studying in IIT: Surrounded by self-doubt; Cleared GATE 4 times for job in PSU

My name is Shreyansh Bohidar. I have secured All India Rank 131 in GATE-2024. I had given GATE in Civil Engineering stream. This was my fourth attempt. Before this I have cleared this exam thrice. This exam was given for the first time in 2021. Took admission in Transportation Engineering in IIT Kharagpur through GATE in 2022.

Had to get job in PSU through GATE score
I was not happy with my score and rank in the last 3 years so I attempted GATE for the fourth time. From the very beginning, my target was to get a PSU i.e. government job through GATE score. After qualifying GATE I want to get a job in a PSU like IOCL, Coal India, SAIL or ONGC.

Today in Toppers Mantra, Shreyansh Bohidar is telling about his GATE journey and the important strategy for the exam…

I did my early schooling from Kendriya Vidyalaya, Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. After this he did BTech from NIT Raipur and MTech in Transportation Engineering from IIT Kharagpur.

GATE preparation along with college studies
I had a natural interest in engineering because I was always curious to know how things worked. My GATE journey started in 2021. I was doing BTech from NIT Raipur.

In my final year, I decided to give GATE exam and gave my first attempt. I started preparing for this in my third year of college during the Covid lockdown. It was not easy to juggle college studies and GATE preparation.

Early studies from elder brother's notes
I did not take separate coaching for the exam, but my elder brother supported me a lot who is a civil engineer himself. During this time, I studied with the help of online crash courses and my elder brother's notes. The exam went well, but my rank was around 3000. Meanwhile, my friends participated in campus placements and also got jobs, but this was not my target.

Got admission in IIT Kharagpur on the basis of GATE 2022 rank.
I studied the Civil Engineering syllabus thoroughly throughout the year and my rank in GATE exam 2022 was around 800. Due to this rank, I got admission in IIT Kharagpur. I completed my masters. However, my goal was still to get a PSU i.e. a government job. After this I gave another attempt

Paper got spoiled due to technical glitch in exam center
I was well prepared for GATE 2023. I practiced a lot and gave mock tests continuously. I was confident that this time my rank would be in the top 100, but due to technical problems at the test center on the day of the exam, the exam which was supposed to start at 2 pm could not start at 4 pm. This delay also had a huge impact on my performance in the exam. I was also hungry and due to confusion, I made a lot of mistakes in the exam.

5 government exams given together in 2023
My rank was around 1200 which was much lower than my expectation. I was very disappointed and upset by all this. The year 2023 was very difficult for me. I also gave GATE, SSC JE, DDA JE, HPCL and BARC exams simultaneously. I scored well in all these exams, but I did not get my desired rank in any exam.

Disappointment due to not getting placement in IIT Kharagpur
Apart from this, due to recession in the market in 2023, the college placement of IIT Kharagpur was also not good. No one in our entire batch got a job through placement. Because of this I started feeling that now all the doors are closed for me. I also started having self-doubt whether I was on the right path or not.

Panicking at the last minute doesn't help.
Finally, I made up my mind to give GATE one last time and gave my fourth attempt in 2024. This time I gave as many mock tests as possible and insisted on practicing. I had understood that there is no benefit in worrying at the last minute, rather it leads to more mistakes in the paper.

In such a situation, it is very important to keep yourself calm. In 2024 I scored 70.65 with 800 marks in GATE in Civil Engineering stream and my All India Rank was 131. With this rank I will easily get a job in any PSU.

Choose the stream related to the topic you liked in 11th-12th in GATE.
Students have the option to choose a stream while appearing for GATE exam. Many students do not understand how to choose a stream for the exam. In such a situation, during your studies in 11th and 12th, choose the stream related to the subjects which interest you the most.

The goal should not be to become a master of the syllabus, but to clear the exam.
Apart from this, students should also keep in mind that your aim is not to master the exam syllabus but to clear the exam. If there is any topic which you cannot understand even after a lot of efforts, then do not ignore the rest of the syllabus in order to become an expert on it.