Tips to Crack NLU Admission

We hear you’ve been bitten by the NLU bug? And that you’ve been preparing for the battle (just kidding, or are we?) of CLAT 2022 & AILET 2022 religiously? And that you worry about the direction your preparation is heading towards? Fret not! This blog has got every tips to crack NLU admission, you’ll need or want to get you that edge. Let’s build the road towards cracking your NLU dream! 

CLAT 2022 & AILET 2022 – Tips to Crack NLU Admission

First things first, you should know the CLAT syllabus like the back of your hand! The Consortium of National Law Universities, administers the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) for cracking admission to India’s twenty-two National Law Universities (NLUs). However, the CLAT results are also accepted by several private colleges like Nirma and NMIMS. 

CLAT is intended to be a test of aptitude and abilities required for legal education, rather than being an assessment of a candidate’s retention and recall power. Continuing the trend this year, as per the Consortium website, the UG-CLAT would assess applicants’ comprehension and reasoning skills. 

The CLAT 2022 (UG) will be a two-hour (120 minutes) exam consisting of 150 multiple-choice questions worth one mark (1 mark) each. Every incorrect answer will result in a deduction of 0.25 mark (-1/4 mark). The break-up of the questions shall be as follows: – 

• English language
• Current events, including General Information
• Legal Argumentation
• Reasoning logically
• Quantitative Methodologies

The catch? CLAT scores are applicable to 22 out of 23 National Law Universities in India. NLU Delhi accepts only AILET (All India Law Entrance Test) scores. The AILET 2022 will be a 90-minute exam consisting of three (3) parts, each with 150 multiple choice questions. The total reaches to 150 marks. The three sections mentioned hereinabove will be:

• Section A: English Language (50 questions; 50 marks).
• Section B: Current Affairs & General Knowledge (30 questions; 30 marks).
• Section C: Logical Reasoning (70 questions; 70 marks).

The syllabus remains the same for both the examinations. However, time management forms a crucial part, more so in the case of AILET which is 90 minutes for 150 questions as against CLAT’s 120 minute for 150 questions. You can take cues from this article to customise your preparation for AILET. 

Now that the cat is out of the bag, let’s delver deeper into building our strategy for cracking NLU admission.

Tips to crack NLU admission through CLAT & AILET

Tip #1 – Decide

“A butterfly flaps its wings in the Amazonian jungle, and subsequently a storm ravages half of Europe.”

• Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman

Set your mind to the goal of converting the NLU of your dreams as early as you can. Lorenz, by his wonderous insights, namely, the butterfly effect has made it adequately categoric that what you decide today can and will have an impact on what happens tomorrow. 

But what are the decisions you must make?

• Which entrances to aim for? If both, how to cover for the time duration gap between CLAT and AILET?
• Self-Study or coaching or a hybrid of both?
•  Reference list for primary sources – books, e-Resources, YouTube videos, Newspaper & channels, fictional & non-fictional readings
• Are mock tests helpful? If yes, which one/ones to buy? If not, how to practice?
• What should be your daily routine? How to manage your time for the exam prep and board exams efficiently? 

These are some questions you need to ponder upon. The answers will help you formulate a strategy that suits both – your aspirations and efforts you are willing to put in. Though there can be no generic answers to any of these questions, an earnest attempt has been made by us here and here to cover pointers on these topics to help you arrive at your own answers. Let’s go crack NLU admissions!

Tip #2 – Read! Read! And … wait for it…Read!

The language section of both – CLAT & AILET, wants you to “…develop your capacity to read and understand bodies of text…”, both – fictional and non-fictional. As Oscar Wilde might would have you believe “It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.”

CLAT will be throwing passages of about 450 words each to be read in 5-7 minutes by you. Also, you have to read with utmost focus so as to NOT have to repeat reading it for the 5 questions that are to follow from each passage. Further, the idea is to develop a reading habit to enhance your comprehension and language skills, including your abilities to:

• Read and comprehend the main point discussed in the passage, as well as any arguments and viewpoints discussed or set out in the passage;
• Draw inferences and conclusions;
• Summarise the passage;
• Compare and contrast the different arguments or viewpoints set out in the passage; and
• Understand the meaning of various words and phrases used in the passage.

AILET will feature 50 questions in the English section, with questions around similar idea going by the trends. 

But is language section the only area where you’ll be benefitted by inculcation of reading habit? NO. You will be expected to read 450-word passage in two other sections – “Legal Reasoning” and “Current Affairs”. Moreover, “Logical Reasoning” section will also feature short passages of about 350-words.

Tip #3 – Meet NEWS, your best buddy

General Knowledge coupled with Current Affairs forms the “heart and soul” of almost every entrance exam in India. In fact, even the Consortium website wants you to “…ensure you stay abreast of news and current affairs by regularly reading quality newspapers and periodicals.” Logic? Laws and their relevance are extremely dynamic. To follow the news means to follow the trends and patterns of the ever-changing dynamics of society, and thereby the laws or the need to outlaw them.

Newspapers like The Hindu, Indian Express, The Guardian, etc should be read on a daily basis. The Opinions and Editorials (“Op-Eds’) make up for good reading practice while enhancing your GK. Also, “The Explained” page of Indian Express is extremely informative and fun to read. Top the recipe up with periodicals and you’re good for cracking admission into the NLU of your aspirations.

Tip #4 – Practice! Practice! Practice!

As per Aristotelian Nicomachean Ethics, “For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them.”

The sections of Logical Reasoning and Quantitative ability require practice and application over a period of time. Consistent practice coupled with enhanced accuracy and efficiency, i.e., time management for optimum correct answers is the key.

For Quants, the Consortium website suggests to “…Improve your speed of answering questions on quantitative techniques by practising with materials such as 10th standard mathematics textbooks.” The DI (Data Interpretation) section within Quants will require your precision with numbers and decimals. 

The greater number of questions you practice from as many standard sources as you can will ensure your comfort with any and all types of questions that can be asked from any domain within the section. 

Moreover, practicing is not limited to just the Quants and Logical reasoning section (more in the next section). Practicing mock tests should be your bread and butter before the actual D-Day. Despite the fact that “practice is the hardest part of learning”, remember that “training is the essence of transformation.” 

You’ll find course content and practice materials listed on oliveboard. You can also take a free mock test right this minute here.

Tip #5 – Eat that Logic! – Tips to Crack NLU Admission

The Logical Reasoning section will feature 300-word passage followed by one or more questions that will require you to:

• Recognize an argument, its premises and conclusions;
• Read and identify the arguments set out in the passage;
• Critically analyse patterns of reasoning, and assess how conclusions may depend on particular premises or evidence;
• Infer what follows from the passage and apply these inferences to new situations;
• Draw relationships and analogies, identify contradictions and equivalence, and assess the effectiveness of arguments.

The key here is to first clear your concepts from one standard source. What concepts? Well check the exact definitions of inference and conclusion. Do they mean the same? You’ll also find a compendium of reasoning questions for AILET here.

Once you’re all set with your concepts start solving questions from as many sources as you can! You got this!

Extra Tip – If two or more candidates get the same marks at the All-India Law Entrance Test (AILET), their merit will be determined on the basis of higher marks in the section on Logical Reasoning in the AILET 2022. (The perfect motivation for that extra effort, isn’t it?)

And more tips…

Stay Hydrated! 

Don’t stress yourself out. 

Make a plan and stick to it. 

Keep an eye out for Consortium issued “learning platform” provided to candidates who have successfully completed their application equipped with-

• Guides to the question paper and sample questions;
• Model question papers; and
• Instructional materials and exercises for each of the subjects that the UG-CLAT 2022 comprises.

That’d be all from our side! Stay tuned for more tips on how to crack NLU admission. Ciao!