This post is only for those giving GATE 2018 and for those who are willing to give it

their all. This is a general preparation plan. More detailed plan I'll give later. I'm
giving this mainly because I feel many aspirants are not preparing in the right way.
So, I'll give some general directions here regarding Do's and Dont's. As always every
advice must have a reason and only if you are convinced about the reason you should
follow it.
AIM: To score 90+ in GATE 2018
Why 90+? Hardly anyone so far in GATE CSE has achieved this while this is common
among other branches. But the main reason for this is that some areas in CSE are not
well known to many aspirants. And this is not due to any issue of ambiguity in
questions as was evident in the GO keys for last 2 years which were 99-100%
accurate. So, why not aspirants start aiming for 90+? Even aim 100. Any topic you
are not getting quality material, we shall provide. Also realize that even AIR 1 makes
silly mistakes and you have to account about 10 marks for this. i.e., if you know for
90, you get 80 in actual GATE. So, I do not want anyone to leave stuffs to luck in the
end. Below 70 you are almost doomed unless you have reservation.
How to start preparing?
This depends on where you stand. Suppose you have given GATE 2017, I would
suggest to first analyze what all happened in the exam - which all areas you
confidently answered, which all areas you made mistakes, which all areas you could
not answer etc. This should tell which all areas you should focus more.
Now in general, you need to know all GATE topics and should have the numerical
skills to apply them in a problem. So, aptitude is required in addition to it being
asked for 15% marks. What I meant is learning aptitude must not be just
practicing some speed/distance questions from some book, but also about learning to
solve problems on own. Some people have this inherent skill and they have a big
advantage in GATE. Others need to build it first by thinking a lot while solving such
questions.
Coming to other subjects Mathematics come first. And subjects like Mathematical
Logic, Set Theory, Probability, and Graph Theory you MUST do at first. Because
these are used in other subjects and hence ensures your strong base. These are also
the subjects why other branch students easily beat CSE students as quite often CSE
students ignore them. Other mathematics portions like Linear Algebra and Calculus
do not have any dependence in GATE syllabus and these you can cover anytime. (Of
course you may bring in a system subject here like OS if you feel bored with
Mathematics)
Then do the CSE subjects. Anyone would say Algorithms, DS and Programming
cover a lot of GATE marks. This is true. But there is no use in concentrating on these
subjects alone. Those who are good in programming C code usually do well in these
areas. And those who studies just theory usually get less in these areas. So, my
suggestion is to implement most of the algorithms you learn here especially if you
have not done so in your B.tech.
Then comes two subjects DBMS and Computer Networks. For DBMS text book (of
course only standard one like Korth/Navathe) knowledge and practice is enough if
you know and have practiced SQL queries. Otherwise just start writing SQL queries.
For Computer Networks a good text book and previous year GATE questions can
guide one well. Usually these two subjects are done well by most toppers.
Now come 2 subjects which most toppers loose marks on. TOC and CO. Actually
these two subjects are the reason why GO was mainly started because most answers
given on these else where were wrong. For these two subjects, the knowledge
required by IITs are just basic only as other subjects -- but even this basic knowledge
is taught wrong at other places including Universities. So, you must be really careful
in seeing any material on these subjects outside standard resources. You can also
refer the GO solutions here because as told earlier these 2 subjects are the main
reason GO was started.
Now, there are OS, Digital Logic and Compilers. For Digital Logic I'm not saying
anything as everything I wanted to say are covered in this PDF. OS is usually a high
scoring subject where toppers can score 100%. But sometimes questions can be
tricky like CO. But if you solve -- not learn the given solution -- all the previous GATE
questions you can score good. Compilers is usually not well covered even by toppers.
This is also one subject where the standard book -- Dragon book - is not easy to
follow for beginners. This book has a guide though and you can find the relevant
links for Compilers here.
Okay, so this is the brief coverage of all the subjects. For any subject resource you can
see http://syllabus.gatecse.in. Only for Digital Logic we have a PDF book now but my
highest priority is to do the books for other subjects which should be made in coming
months. These will be made in a way to help you follow the standard books -- and not
as a note book. Those who find trouble reading standard books can also see the best
CSE GATE videos collected here.
All the suggestions I gave are tough. And yes only YOU must work hard for it -- and
not me or any one else. The result will be your GATE result. And this is the reason
why GO is free -- so that no one comes here and expects others to work for them in
return for money they pay. What we believe in and what the results show is that
whoever works hard -- and of course works smart -- tops GATE. At first solving
problems on own takes time -- even after completing my Masters some GATE
problem used to take me even days to solve. But that is the effort you should give.
Always remember the 30% rule of GO book - never see more than 30% of the given
solutions. Else you are preparing wrong for GATE -- might work for ISRO or other
exams where questions are repeated.
So, are you ready to give it ALL?