Where there is a will, there is a way- absolutely proved by Manisha Duhan who cleared NABARD Grade A exam 2020 with flying colors. If you aim for something with all your deeds it will come back to you. Manisha is a live example of this.
Manisha belongs to a small village and faced every challenge to pursue her dream of acquiring a government job. Her family stood right behind her in every struggle she faced. Manisha has always been a meritorious student. From her childhood to her graduation, she had always stood out from the rest. She was a gold medallist in her graduation (B.Sc. Agriculture) from Rani Laxmi Bai Central Agriculture University and pursued her post-graduation from Indian Agriculture Research Institute, New-Delhi from pathology division.
Coming from the village, Manisha is well aware of the economy of the village, the industrialization of rural India, and the problems faced by the people there. Joining as an assistant manager in NABARD is apt and justified for Manisha. Her knowledge of agriculture and her upbringing in the rural area will benefit her in the career she chose.
To know about Manisha’s Success Mantra for clearing the NABARD Grade A exam, read the article further. Let’s read it from the words of Manisha Duhan.
Why did you choose NABARD?
I chose NABARD because it is the development bank of India working for rural prosperity, and because of its work towards rural India, it has always been a source of inspiration for me. NABARD is a clear and transparent organization working towards the development of both rural and non-rural economies. Because of the amalgamation of all these features, NABARD is the best organization to work with.
When did you start preparing for NABARD Grade A?
NABARD was always in my mind as soon as I finished my post-graduation but then I started my preparation for the NABARD exam a year ago. I started my preparation as soon as the notification came. As I had two months of time to prepare for NABARD prelims so I devoted my whole time to preparation.
Manisha’s Preparation Strategy for Prelims
Before preparing for any exam I recommend everyone to do a SWOT (Strength, weakness, opportunities, and threats) analysis for better exam preparation. Once I knew my strengths and weaknesses it was easy for me to move further in my preparation. I checked the exam pattern to see the areas I have to study.
| Serial Number | Sections Asked | Total Marks | Time Taken |
| 1. | Quantitative Aptitude | 20 | |
| 2. | Reasoning | 20 | A composite time of 2 hours (120 minutes) |
| 3. | English Language | 40 | |
| 4. | Computer Knowledge | 20 | |
| 5. | General Awareness | 20 | |
| 6. | Economic and Social Issues | 40 | |
| 7. | Agriculture and Rural Development | 40 | |
| Total | 200 |
After analyzing the exam pattern I knew the major areas I have to focus on to. The ARD section, English, and the ESI section have the maximum weightage in the exam and fortunately, agriculture and rural development and the economic and social issues were my strengths. I was confident about English too. But, I feared the reasoning and quant section as these were my weaknesses.
NABARD exam has a sectional cut-off which means you have to qualify for every section of the NABARD exam. Equal importance should be given to all the sections to sail through the prelims.
Devise a proper strategy
I recommend every aspirant devise a proper strategy. Every exam has a certain pattern thus for a fruitful result go through the previous years’ papers to check the type of questions asked. Never skip any section if you are serious to clear the NABARD exam. Make a chart of important chapters from each section and it will be easy for you to proceed further.
- Be aware of the NABARD Grade A syllabus and previous year papers
- Analyze the trend of previous year papers, learn what not to do and what to do
- Prepare as if you have nothing to lose
- Don’t focus on the no. of posts, exam stages, etc., and never complain about the process
- Enjoy that you’re learning something new. Be thankful for that
- Confidence and feeling of completion are important in the process
- Don’t neglect any section but at the same time “Be choosy” at the time of your studies
- Make notes of original sources (Study original sources like Annual reports, budget, survey, NABARD Annual report, website, census, etc.)
- Don’t go for the Answer key. Start preparing for the next phase
- Focus more/equally on all the sections of phase 1. In phase 2, practice typing
- Be ready for “unexpected things”. Eg. – Interface, Word limit, difficulty level
- Just do your work and don’t focus on results
Manisha’s Preparation for Mains
As I began my prelims preparation I extracted the mains syllabus along with the prelims syllabus. I advise every aspirant to prepare simultaneously for both phases to relieve oneself from the undue pressure. In my experience, I learned that the phase 1 exam plays a crucial role in your phase 2 preparation. Especially for the ARD section and the ESI section be thorough in whatever you study. I followed the mentioned steps for my mains preparation:
- Study Phase 1 Paper Again
- Equal importance to paper 1
- Do the practice of typing from different keyboards
- For paper 2, focus on class notes, study each word
- Find your strong points and make them more strong
- Use the picture formats
- For Current affairs, make one-liner notes/digital notes
- Make notes for the last 5 days, and on the exam day, just revise it
Manisha’s message for you
You are in the phase to select your career and NABARD offers multiple opportunities to develop your career. While preparing for NABARD make a stronghold on ESI, ARD, English, and GA. Prepare these 2 topics from the Phase 2 perspective.
To know more about what all she did in her NABARD preparation watch the video below:
Role of ixamBee in Manisha’s Success
During my preparation, I took help from the ixamBee’s mock interview which helped me in my actual interview. The advised recieved from the expert panel were very fruitful and helped me to crack NABARD interview.
NABARD Grade A Online Course
The key to clear and excel the NABARD Grade A examination is a focused study and therefore ixamBee has a comprehensive yet focused NABARD Grade A course prepared by the experts. It includes:
- More than 470+ Video lessons on different topics of all the seven sections of NABARD Grade A Phase 1 Examination.
- 270+ Study Notes wherever required to supplement or ease the learning
- Approx. 6000+ Practice Questions in the form of Concept clearing questions after each video lesson, Section tests, and Mock Tests.
- 10 section tests for each of the subjects
- 15 Full-Length Practice Tests based on exact exam pattern and difficulty level.
Despite the syllabus being exhaustive, we have devised the strategy and prepared such a course structure that enables the student to not only clear but also excel in the NABARD Grade A exams.
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