ABOUT MANVEE

Manvee is the Founder & CEO of LL.B Mania, and a student at Chanakya National Law University, Patna. Her areas of Interest lie in Sports Law & Intellectual Property Rights, and her achievements lie in the same areas.

Moreover, she is a national-level Athlete & holds a national record in High Jump & a dozen of State & Cluster level records.

Presently she is working on her blog which is called LLB Mania. According to Feedspot, LL.B Mania is ranked 113^th Position out of 162 presently which is an achievement in itself. LL.B Mania started as an Instagram page in 2018 for providing daily legal updates and in 2020 during the pandemic, she started the Blog website for LL.B Mania in April 2020 and now it has been a year and their website is growing day by day.

TOP QUESTIONS OF LAW ASPIRANTS

1)Students are often worried about whether they will be able to crack the law entrance exam in 1 year/2year/6 months/1month preparation time. According to you, how much minimum time should a student give for preparation?

Manvee-“According to me this question will vary from person to person. I have seen people cracking CLAT in span of 6 months to 2 years as well. However, cracking clat with 1-month prep is practically impossible unless and until some miracle happens on the D day with that student.

According to me as per the new pattern of CLAT, Coachings are not a necessity now, moreover we have plethora of content available on YouTube, one just needs to do some basic research to strategize his/her prep. The new patterns require the comprehending ability and critical thinking for the students which is a must for lawyers and I am really happy with the change in new pattern.

I cracked CLAT 2020, without any coaching and I would like to tell you that I cracked CLAT being in Law School. Coaching mentors often tell that, “Law School ke sath CLAT nahi crack ho paega”.But its not true at all. All one need is proper plan and its executions in the planned way, then one can crack clat while studying in Law School.

I passed out 12^th in 2018 and the same year I just sat in the exam without any prep. But I realised later on I should have prepared atleast for 3 months also then results might vary in 2019. In 2019 I gave clat after the drop but was unable to clear the exam, because I realised I didn’t gave my best, I became complacent as the exam arrived, neither I prepared GK notes throughout the year nor did mock analysis, and I took distance learning program, no one was there to guide me, this was the blunder I committed, as a result I could not make it that year and had to take admission in Private College in Bangalore.

But I didn’t give up! I took all my CLAT materials with me to my hostel and decided to write CLAT 2020 for one last time, although there was ambiguity that I may or may not crack, but I still tried. My College was pathetic, I started realising after 2 months of admission, this was not the place that I deserve. Be it Management, Hostel, or Facilities, only thing which was best was the Faculties (not all). But Only for faculties I cannot stay in the pathetic place where I was not getting the environment which I wanted always, the admissions were going on throughout the year, they even lied to our parents and do whatever they wish. I felt trapped and decided I need to get out of this shit!

So, I decided at any cost I need to crack CLAT 2020. Even our faculties who got campus placement from NLSIU at that college as Assistant Professor that same year when we got admitted, they openly told us in class get out of this place, you are going to get nothing hell out of here after your graduation, and after 1^st semester all of them left the college and joined somewhere else. Now after hearing that I was pretty much sure I am not going to stay here anymore, so I planned my next 5 months and started to follow.

I planned my schedule in November 2019 and started to follow that, it was pretty much painful but I have no choices left. My College timing was 9AM to 4PM (Monday to Saturday). And even our hostels were out campus 20 km far from the College, so we need to catch our buses daily at 7.50 AM and in the evening at 4.30 Pm. It took 1-2 hours from Hostel to College and Vice Versa. It was pretty much tiring.

I use to read The Hindu while I was in the Bus (Morning & Evening) this way I use to cover Current affairs and made e-notes in my phone and later on transfer that to my laptop. And I use to reach hostel at 5.30 Pm, So I took snacks and sleep for 1 hr and after having my dinner at 8.30 I use to complete my college work by 11 PM. And from 11.15 Pm to 3 am I use to prepare for CLAT daily in hostel and whenever I got sphere time in College.

In sum total I was working 18-20 hours daily for next 5 months (November 2019 to March 2020) and sleeping for 3-5 hrs not more than that, pretty much similar to working in Tier-1 law firms.

It was really painful for me, sometimes I though of quitting and accept that my destiny is here only, but my mind never led me to give up. My dad use to tell me in my childhood “God Help those, who help themselves”and this quote was still in my mind and I wish something happen that I get time to prepare well for CLAT 2020, so the covid-19 lockdown happened. I realised god saw my struggle in the college and providing me opportunity by extending the date of the exams and with online classes as well at home.

I was happy and safe at my home in mid-march 2020. Online Classes & Less workload; it was a blessing in disguise for me. Now I started my preparation in full-fledged manner. From March 2020 to mid-September 2020, I got 6-7 months approx. for my preparation which was sufficient for me, because I learnt the skill of comprehending long texts in my law school via projects and moots & another important skill was research skills, this thing helped me a lot.”

2)There are many students who have a doubt about whether coaching is really important to crack the law entrance exam. What do you think? Is coaching important? Did you take coaching and did it help you? Can someone without coaching also crack the exam?

Manvee-” If CLAT was on Old pattern coaching was needed somehow but for new clat pattern I don’t think so coaching is a necessity, however students find difficulty in Critical Reasoning so they can refer to YouTube, there are ample amount of content. The answer for the question Is coaching important?  Is a Yes and No, both! If someone has no idea of CLAT and its pattern and is weak in comprehension he/she may need coaching however if one has requisite comprehension skills, he/she might not need a coaching but a mentor.

I wouldn’t deny with the fact that mentor is a must for CLAT prep, it can be people who crack clat (Studying in NLU) or some coaching people, only if they can give you time & personal attention. CLAT is an exam of skill and time management, if one is able to manage and get both of them and execute this in proper manner, he/she can crack the exam.  I never took CLAT coaching but I got 2 mentors for me 1 was from NLSIU, Bangalore (now a 3^rd Year student), via my Professor in college (NLSIU Alumni), he guided me what should be the frequency of my mocks, how to attempt mocks, what should be the percentile in my mocks and other basic details and another 1 I got via Instagram, and he is Vivek Mishra Sir (Co-Founder Legalight), he guided me for Critical Reasoning and English part and moreover he gave me 1 on 1 personal attention on call whenever needed.

So Yaa! These 2 mentors played a vital role in my CLAT 2020 journey, If I would have not been in touch with these 2 people I maybe unable to crack the exam this time as well. Moreover, I got support from my Parents and my friends from my former law school, Joysree & Nithin, these 2 guys always motivated me in college and Joysree had full confidence in me that I am getting into NLU’s this year and it Happened. Joysree helped me in my projects when I was preparing for clat by taking most of the workload on herself so that I can prepare very well for the exam.”

3)In today’s generation, when it comes to deciding on a career, student’s first choice is either engineering or medical and not law. What would you say to those students who haven’t decided on whether they should take up law or not? What encouraged you to choose law as a career?

Manvee-” Answering your 1^st question, if a person is a keen reader and ready to read long texts for his entire life and, then Law is one of the best choices for him/her. If one is only coming in law profession by seeing the Tier – 1 Firms salary for the Freshers or Perks of Being a Judge, then I would advise them to do a thorough research on the profession and get a reality check about the profession.

Being a Judge, you need not to have a social life that much as an ordinary person does. You need to separate yourself from society. I have seen people giving up jobs of Judges because they were unable to enjoy their social life or socialise with people. Coming to the placement package in Corporate Sector, then my friend I would like to tell you it extremely difficult to get in Tier – 1 firm unless and until you are extremely meritorious and You need to be in Top 4-5 National Law Schools in order to get package of 15-17 lakhs/annum.

For rest of the people its extremely difficult although its possible to fetch internship and job if one plans and execute it proper manner being in lower NLU or any ordinary college. People are unaware of the fact that in Tier – 1 Firms they are required to work for an average of 70-90 hours a week (13-16 hrs/day approx.) in their initial years. These 2 are the main reason why aspirants are attracted towards the Law as career but they don’t have idea about the reality.

Coming to the next question why I chose law as a career, from my Childhood I loved to read books and more than that I love writing. But when I was in school, I wanted to be a commercial pilot so I opted for PCM in my 11^th Class, and this was the biggest mistake of my life. Somehow, I managed to pass in All 3 of them in My 12^th Boards, now I was pretty much clear that I am not going into science field. So, I have 2 options left either I go for Journalism or for Law, the eagerness to write and edit & Interpret led to opt me for law as a career.”

4)Many Students become depressed and feel that they cannot become successful lawyers if they won’t enter into a top law school. What’s your take on it? What would you say to students who have this mindset?

Manvee-” This is a most common misconception among the CLAT aspirants, that if I am unable to make it into Top 5 NLU’s I can’t be successful lawyer in my life. I won’t deny with the fact that being in top 5 NLU’s will help you to fetch internships at good places, but there are always If’s and But’s, Students do not know that for fetching internships at tier – 1 law firms or under the to notch advocates chambers, one needs to be in top 10% of their batch and moreover, they have to be all rounders like they need to achieve in moots, paper presentations, publications at reputed journals, etc.

So, if someone is mediocre student and is not in top 10% of their batch then they can work on their skillset and CV building, they can get internships easily by compensation marks over skills. And in my opinion getting into top NLU’s or even in any of the NLU’s doesn’t guarantee you that you will be successful lawyer. All that will matter is your consistency and hardwork that you did in your Law School, Initially it will be difficult to get internship in tier 1 law firms or even in tier 2 firms, but if your CV is exceptional and you are ready to put your 100% efforts then you are getting internship or job in reputed law firms, no matter what law school you studied be it private or government.”

5)Few students have a doubt in mind that whether they should take a drop for the entrance exam or not. Some students feel that drop isn’t worth for law while some feel that they should give another year for it. What would you tell to the students who are confused about whether they should take a drop or not? Do you think a drop year is worth it?

Manvee-” No, I would never recommend anyone to take drop for exam like CLAT, we have time an again seen the hypocrisy of clat consortium, so we cannot trust them more, they tell something do something. I have covered in one of my Blog CLAT – The Exam of Elite, I would suggest every CLAT taker who is thinking of drop year, should not take a drop for the exam like clat.

I would like to ask people who are thinking of dropping a year just tell me one thing taking a drop year will give you guarantee that you will get NLU’s in that attempt or not?

If the answer for you is yes then go for the drop, if the answer for this question is No, then take admission in some law college after a thorough research. For the exams like CLAT 7-8 months rigours preparation is sufficient for cracking the exam, I realised very late that taking a Drop year was never justified for the aptitude based exam, if you want to drop a year then write Judicial Service exam or UPSC, that will require a drop for sure! I have seen people taking double drop and not getting NLU’s. What’s the benefit of double drop then? So never drop for CLAT-UG atleast.

Law Profession demands work experience, the earlier you get into practise the chances are more of getting success increases. I am 1^st generation lawyer from my family, no one was there to guide me, if the things which I knew today someone told me when I passed out my 12^th immediately, then I would never took the drop for CLAT in 2019 and took admission in the same year in 2018 and I would have been in 3^rd year now.”

6)Many students have a fear that since they belong to a particular stream (For example- Humanities) they won’t be able to crack the law entrance exam (for example CLAT) because they didn’t had maths as a subject in their intermediate. Is it true that if you belong to stream which doesn’t have a particular subject then they won’t be able to crack the exam? Do you think such students have a disadvantage compared to others?

Manvee-” It’s a myth my friend! “that I belong to XYZ stream I can’t crack CLAT”, Honestly speaking any person with good comprehension skill, critical thinking and aptitude can crack CLAT. Only thing that matters is how early you start and in a planned manner. In CLAT they don’t ask Calculus, Trigonometry and all. In fact, now Maths has been replaced with Data Interpretation which I thing is pretty much awesome decision. For D.I one needs to have grip over the maths upto Class 8-10, that’s it! Most of the CLAT takers think that I can clear CLAT by leaving the Maths Section! The biggest mistake everyone does, I did the same in year 2019 and as a result I couldn’t qualify the exam, but for CLAT 2020 I attempted 4 questions out of which 3 got right and gave a boost to my rank and I cleared the exam.

Maths is the only section which can get you NLU or get out of the NLU race, what I felt in my CLAT journey. A gap of 0.25 marks can lead to difference in 250-500 ranks, so just think a gap of 1 mark can make you 2000-3000 rank up or down.

Never ever leave maths section in CLAT, atleast solve 1-2 sums, out of 15 sums 5-7 sums are always doable.

One thing I have observed, people from maths background have an edge over the other only in maths section, the actual clat aspirants are 7000-12000 who prepare diligently, but we see around 60,000 – 70,000 people write CLAT, then who are these people, these people are who do not get selected in JEE & NEET, so they think let’s write CLAT and get into NLU’s and once they enter into NLU’s they are unable to cope – up the pressure of workload and I have seen many people like these leaving the college midway, but what about that seat they wasted for one deserving aspirant who couldn’t get because of them. Just because they have an edge in maths so they get seat in NLU’s most of the time.

Get a survey done of people in NLU’s you will find most of them were never concerned about law as a profession at their first place, these people after passing out just increase the crowd and deserving candidate’s get the job late because of them.”

7)There are many students who are very weak in English because they come from a Hindi medium school. Many students who are from English medium school also have a fear since they feel they have poor vocabulary or poor readings skills. Due to poor vocabulary/reading skills they feel that they won’t be able to crack the law entrance exam. Similarly, many students are worried about maths as well. What’s your take on it? How can they prepare for English and maths?

Manvee-” See, these are the subjects that needs a lot of practise. One who is weak in vocab they need to start working on that immediately, I would recommend to do word power made easy because it contains root words which you can figure out easily in the passage of the CLAT exam. Reading of The Hindu Editorials is must for building vocabulary & new words. I personally used to make note of the difficult words from the editorial part and make my own sentences out of it, in this manner I got grasp over the new words and it benefitted me in the exam as well.

Coming to Maths, now the paper consists of Data Interpretation which requires the grasp over few topics Average, Percentage, Profit & Loss, Simple Interest, and Some part of geometry. Now I feel Maths section is easy for most of the aspirants compared to earlier one.

Practise, Practise, Practise is the key to get hands over these subjects. The more you practise the better you get the understanding of the concept.”

8)Students often get confused during 12th standard that whether they should focus on boards or law entrance exam? What’s your take on it and what would you say to the students?

Manvee-” It depends what are their priorities, I have my friend who gave priority to their 12^th Boards and then they took 1-2 drop for CLAT & I have those Juniors also who cleared CLAT with their boards. It all depends what you want at 1^st place.

If You don’t want to take drop then start focussing on CLAT from your class 11^th Only, make sure you get atleast 60-70% in your boards, that is more than sufficient & if You are struggling to pass in class 11-12^th then I would recommend you to focus on your boards 1^st because if you do not clear that, you won’t be eligible to get a seat in NLU even if You clear the CLAT exam.”

9)Do you think class 10 and 12^th marks are really important to enter into a top law school or to get a good job?

Manvee-” Not at all! Your Class 10^th certificate is only for your date of birth verification and CLAT required only 50% in 12^th Boards. And I never believe in this theory that If you are topper or score good in boards then only you can clear the examination or become a successful lawyer, Having Good marks will give an extra edge to you but that doesn’t means you will be a good lawyer or not in your life. All that matters is your consistency and hardwork that you put up throughout your law school & Post Law school.”

10)There are many students who decided to pursue law very late (For example: after boards) so, they didn’t get much time to prepare for the exam. More than any other subject, they are most worried about current affairs questions as they haven’t kept track of it. What would be your advice to them? How can they prepare for current affairs? What was your strategy?

Manvee-” I am one of them who decided to pursue law after my Boards result was out, I was struggling between Journalism & Law, end of the day I decided to go for Law.

See! Current Affairs is something which you cannot complete in 1 month or in a Crash course if you haven’t studied that whole year, current affairs need time and one needs to memorize that.

Current Affairs was always my favourite & strongest section in CLAT. I always used to get highest marks in mocks and in CLAT exam as well in Current Affairs section.

See, I have learnt from my mistakes only what I did in my drop year that in 2018 for CLAT 2019 and still unable to clear that, those mistakes I didn’t repeat in my CLAT 2020 preparation which I was doing simultaneously with my Law School.

I am writing down my mistakes which I did when I took a drop year –

• Not Reading the newspaper on daily basis
• Not preparing the notes for current affairs
• Just reading one liners MCQ’s from Compendiums
• Not doing comprehensive study for the important topics
• Not doing research for important topics
• Never analysed mocks properly
• Not doing the revision diligently.

My Preparation strategy for CLAT 2020 (G.K Section) when I was preparing while studying in Law School –

• Reading Newspaper on Daily Basis
• Preparing daily G.K Notes & revising them diligently
• Did my own research for Important events & made notes out of them (Texts & Videos)
• I used Compendiums only as a reference not for the main prep.
• Attempted & Analysed Mocks seriously.
• Moreover, I made notes from The Hindu & The Indian Express and connected that with past happenings of that events which I prepared notes.

So, these were the learnings from my own mistakes which I did in my drop year & trust me it works most of the time. So, if one has right mentor with them then they can clear the exam without coaching & when I am telling this then I assume that the student has basics knowledge of the exam patterns and has solved past year paper and some questions as well.”

11)When we talk about entrance exams there is always a question in the mind of students that how much time they should devote for preparation of law entrance exam in a day What would you say to the students regarding this?

Manvee-” The answer for this is pretty much simple, as I mentioned earlier it depends upon the priority of the person to person –

For 12^th Boards Students

• Make a Schedule and Set targets for your prep.
• On an average 4-6 hrs daily for 1 years along with attempting regular mocks & analysing them thoroughly.
• Try to maintain a balance between your Boards & CLAT, trust me its possible, it only depends on your willingness & willpower.
• You should be clear with your strategy before starting your preparation.

For Students who are in Law School

• Make a Schedule and Set targets for your prep.
• Spend around 5-6 hours daily for 6-10 months on your prep along with attempting mocks on regular basis & analysing them.
• Read as much law subjects as you can, Legal Section will be much easy for you because paper is comprehension based now, all you need to interpret that.
• Be aware with the Daily News and Important topics for G.K sections.
• You should be clear with your strategy before starting your preparation.
• The CLAT preparation will be toughest phase of your life when you will require to maintain a balance between your law school & CLAT prep, but it is possible.

I am pretty well aware of the mistakes that most of the CLAT Aspirants does, that’s why within a month (around May 2021) I am coming with my another venture CLAT EASY, which is a part of LL.B Mania, where we will be helping the CLAT Aspirants in their preparation & mentorship and all, everything free of cost. Because I Know not everyone can afford coaching, but everyone needs guidance for their preparation.”