It starts with a dream: How JEE aspirants overcome hurdles to stay on course

The competition is intense, with just over 50,000 seats available in engineering colleges including the Indian Institutes of Technology, National Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Information Technology and government-funded technical institutes. (Illustration by Suneesh Kalarickal)

“It all starts with a dream… a dream you'd never want to wake up from. A dream where those glimpses won't evanesce once you're awake but the one where those books, those all-nighters, and those formulas are everlastingly engraved in your memory,” says 16-year-old Vaibhav Gupta, elaborating on what motivates him to pursue a coveted undergraduate engineering course.

Gupta, a student of Dr BR Ambedkar School of Specialised Excellence and based in Krishan Vihar in north-west Delhi, studies over 12 hours a day, poring over hundreds of formulas, text books and notes and, of course, thinking about what would happen if he doesn’t make the grade.

More than a million students appear for the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) that the National Testing Agency conducts every year in two sessions in January and April. Registration for the second session in April started on February 7.

The competition is intense, with just over 50,000 seats available in engineering colleges including the Indian Institutes of Technology, National Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Information Technology and government-funded technical institutes. But that doesn't stop students like Gupta from pursuing their dreams.

While Gupta’s inspiration was his cousin, a civil engineer, Khushboo’s hero was her uncle, a chemical engineer.

Vaibhav Gupta is a 16-year-old JEE aspirant.

Khushboo, who lives in Kondli village in east Delhi, heard about various career options – engineering, banking, medicine, teaching or a government job. While she is clear about her goal, her biggest constraint is the lack of funds to help her preparation.

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“I belong to a backward caste. I have been watching my parents struggle since childhood and how tough it is even today for society to accept us just like other human beings. Caste itself is a big taboo,” 16-year-old Khushboo told Moneycontrol as she went through the solved examples in her 949-page organic chemistry book.

Khushboo’s father works as a labourer at a wholesale shop in Delhi and tries to meet the requirements for her daughter’s studies.

“Still, we are not capable enough to afford an education loan. So, I borrow relevant books from my school library for JEE preparation,” she said.

To supplement her learning from online sources such as YouTube, which offers only some respite, Khushboo attends interactive sessions at the Government Girls Senior Secondary School in New Kondli and approaches tuition teachers to clear her doubts.

For the past year, Khushboo has been following a strict schedule – after coming back from school, she attends a tuition class in the evening, finishes the household chores, and then again sits for revision.

“At times, it becomes tough to keep up with the hectic schedule. It becomes monotonous and tiresome following the same routine and difficult to stay focused,” she said.

For the past year, Khushboo has been following a strict schedule.

During school exams, it becomes harder to keep her regular schedule but support and encouragement from her parents and teachers keep her motivated.

“I firmly believe that today's struggles will help me create a better life for myself and my parents,” she said.

However, if things do not go as planned, Khushboo plans to appear for the Common University Entrance Test to pursue a B.Sc.

15 hours of study in a day

Living in a rented house with family, life hasn't been easy for Saurabh Kumar. This was more so during the pandemic, when the financial crunch was at its peak. He started out on his journey to the JEE as Covid-19 ravaged the country but had to pause after class 12 because of a low score.

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Kumar also relies on online education because the alternative was too expensive – about Rs 2-3 lakh.

“My father is a security guard. We could not pay that much,” he said.

Since Kumar doesn't have to attend school now, he makes full use of the time available. He wakes up at 4 am to study till 8:30 am, when his online class starts. He takes a half an hour break at noon before again diving into a six-hour study session.

“It takes 15-16 hours of study in a day and a lot of time is spent on writing lesson notes online,” he said.

So far, Kumar has learnt that it's all about time management and keeping stress in check.

Self-driven

For all JEE aspirants, persistence and motivation are key factors. But Gupta says it is more important that motivation is self-driven.

“External motivation may be good for a day or two, but it is my self-motivation that wakes me up every day and convinces me that it's not over until I win,” he said. “There are times when you feel like a loser, but even the slightest vision of the dream, that slight glimmer in my dad’s smile, is what keeps me going for another day.”

Eighteen-year-old Saurabh Kumar, a JEE aspirant.

As far as Gupta’s Plan B goes, it is quite simple: Don’t mess up Plan A.

“Even though I am still the same young me that dreamt of this very journey 10 years ago, I find it amusing that I would get this far,” he said, showing pictures of his recent visit to the IIT Delhi campus.

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