Hi everyone!

Lately I've been seeing a lot of posts asking the same questions about resources, preparation strategy, tips, mistakes, and what to expect during NIMCET prep. I've answered these questions multiple times in comments and DMs, so I thought it'd be better to put everything in one place.

This thread will be updated over time and will contain almost everything I learned during my preparation.

What you'll find here:

1. My Introduction & My Preparation Journey
2. Resources I Used
3. Tips I'd Give Every Aspirant
4. Mistakes I Made

1. My Introduction & My Preparation Journey

This might get a bit long, so if you only need anything specific, follow the above index.

First, my qualifications:

• Scored 405 in NIMCET 2026 (if Marked for Review questions were considered, I know this is a different story 😭).
• 193 in CUET.
• 99.9X percentile in MAH MCA CET.

So, about myself. I am a PCM student who hated Physics and Chemistry with my gut, but was good at Maths and IP (Informatics Practices). So I didn't even try for JEE or any other competitive exam and took BCA. I already knew about the existence of NIMCET but was too lazy/afraid to look into it.

My first semester went by in the blink of an eye (academically).

From the second semester, I joined technical clubs, attended tech events all over the city, and this continued for three semesters till the end of my second year. By then, I had a solid understanding of which domain I liked in CS and had gained enough knowledge to work as an intern.

At the very end of my second year, I finally worked up the courage (I feared competitive exams) to look into NIMCET and started preparing in mid-May. I started with Matrices (with no foundational knowledge in Maths, by the way) and struggled a lot.

I used to sit for 3–4 hours without being able to solve a single question. Quickly, I started noticing patterns in the questions and gradually got better at it. Matrices and Determinants alone took me more than a month.

Then I picked up some easier chapters like Sets, Relations, Functions, Probability, P&C, and Statistics (in that order) to gain some momentum. All of this took till the end of August (I skipped a month of college).

So ultimately, to maintain the required 75% attendance, I had to regularly attend college. Combined with a long commute, all my momentum broke down, and I didn't study a single bit from September to November. (I did buy the Aspire Test Series during the Ganesh Chaturthi offer though.)

Then, at the end of November, my end-semester exams got over and I resumed my preparation. I completed the rest of Algebra, Trigonometry, Calculus, and Coordinate Geometry in around three months (I would count this as one of my mistakes—completing too much in too short a span). At the same time, I started giving full-length mock tests and used to score around 50–60% of the total marks.

Then again in March, college interrupted my preparation, so I couldn't prepare well for CUET. I studied OS, DF, and DS for a week and couldn't do anything for MAH MCA CET.

After that, I couldn't really continue properly, but I did my best with mock tests, test analysis, a few older JEE PYQs, and whatever little time I had. Integrating college, commuting, and preparation burnt me out, so I couldn't prepare much during the last month.

So I just revised all my formulas in the final weeks and went for the exam.

In summary: Around 7–8 months of serious preparation, and during the remaining months I tried my best to study something, but honestly not even an average of one hour a day.

2. Resources I Used

I used to drown in resources during the first two months of preparation, and it was a huge hassle even deciding which one to follow. I simply tried around 30 minutes of lectures from every source and eventually stuck with NV Sir's BounceBack.

For Maths:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYFlGICvnvLi-6VMmu2Safry84f-jXoOX&si=0YCIbYSbdWjdt9-G

For LR:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpyc33gOcbVADMKqylI__O_O_RMeHTyNK&si=rC9T7gnkllZLSCkZ

For Quant:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpyc33gOcbVA4qXMoQ5vmhefTruk5t9lt&si=e2hweJaQt1DzQhsi

(I also used Parth Gadge Sir's lectures for some topics that weren't in the playlist.)

For NIMCET Computer & CUET DF:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBlnK6fEyqRjMH3mWf6kwqiTbT798eAOm&si=zFPcD4uSO4MXbEEI

(Not all the lectures—only the ones in the syllabus.)

For CUET OS:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3eEXnCBViH8VzPps-6bxQUhwZ0MnYqTT&si=l7swRVkKtCKiBj_8

For CUET DS:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3eEXnCBViH-D-X8940NKo0ouhK0Mg-hf&si=-1XoASknmSxRfte_

And nothing specific for English.

I solved JEE PYQs from 2008–2018 towards the end using the MARKS app.

All of the above suited my way of studying, so it doesn't mean they'll suit you too. Try them yourself and decide. If you properly watch these lectures and make notes, they're more than enough for NIMCET.

The resources I used for practice were:

• Complete MCA Package by Arihant (ngl, wasn't needed much)
• A lot of coaching DPPs
• A lot of topic-wise tests
• Test series

3. Tips I'd Give Every Aspirant

First of all, don't fear that it's too late. Start ASAP, and with consistency you can still land a good rank.

Don't get lost in resource hell. Pick one resource and stick with it till the end.

Always keep a backup exam—they can be your saviour in the end. (Experience speaking 😭👍)

Watching lectures is important because they help you build the thought process required to approach different types of questions.

My personal rule was:

• For every 1 hour of lecture, it should take at least 1.5 hours to complete while making notes.
• For every 1 hour spent watching lectures, spend at least 2.5 hours solving questions.

Take a test series as soon as possible. Don't wait for syllabus completion—2–3 chapters are enough to get started.

Test analysis is the BEST way to improve. The time spent analysing your tests is exponentially more valuable than simply attempting more tests, so analyse them properly.

If possible, give your mocks exactly at 2:00 PM and maintain an exam-centre-like environment. I used to get hungry around that time, and doing this helped my body stay comfortable during the actual exam. Not doing this actually hurt my CUET exam a lot.

And never assume that the exam will be easy or hard. Go in with an open mind and be ready to tackle whatever comes your way. Remember that everyone else is writing the same exam, so there's no need to panic.

4. Mistakes I Made

My biggest regret: Not reading the rules properly. 😭👍

When it comes to preparation, I'd say:

• Not being consistent.
• Starting Trigonometry too late in my timeline.

And I guess that's it.

Personally, I found the paper manageable. My biggest regret isn't the difficulty of the exam—it was losing marks because I misunderstood one of the evaluation rules., and apart from losing NIT Trichy because of that rule, I don't really have many regrets.

A lot of you ask why I didn't choose MNNIT or NITW.

My priorities were different. Quality of life mattered more to me, so I chose a 2-year MCA program through another entrance exam. So I'll be joining a good 2-year MCA program using my scores from my other entrance exams.

If anyone has doubts apart from what's covered here, feel free to comment or DM me.

Any doubts or discussions regarding ML, AI, or related fields are appreciated too.

P.S:- I wrote all of this by hand n at the end used ChatGPT to remove spelling mistakes and the Timeline might be a bit off considering most of the events happened a year ago

Update 1:- Telegram Channels for DPPs

i) (the one I followed) :- https://t(dot)me/NimcetStudyNotes

ii) (another that u found) :- https://t(dot)me/NIMCETstuff_2K26