Ashwij S Ramaiah from Davangere, Karnataka is the AILET 2012 (All India Law Entrance Test 2012) topper (All India Rank 1) with a score of 113 & has rightfully earned himself a seat in the prestigious National Law University, Delhi (NLU, Delhi). In a conversation with Nishatha Abraham Bijeesh from Campuswalkin, Ashwij talks about what inspired him to choose law as his future career path & how he prepared for AILET & other law entrance exams:

HTC: How did you get to know that you've got the 1st rank in AILET 2012? Has the good news sunk in yet?

Ashwij: Well I sat glued in front of my computer with the NLUD (National Law University, Delhi) homepage open on my screen right from 3:30 pm, refreshing the screen virtually every second. When I finally accessed it online and saw my name on the top of the list, I went blank!

I simply could not believe that I had managed to secure an all India rank 1 in the AILET examination, as it is an entrance test for admission to one of the most coveted law universities in the country - NLU Delhi. It was only when I got a call from NLU Delhi that I finally came to term with my unbelievable result!

Needless to say, I am extremely happy. I am glad that 2 years of toil and the guidance and blessings of my parents, teachers and scores of well wishers has finally paid off.

(Also read: AILET 2012 (All India Law Entrance Test) Results Declared)


Why did you choose law as a career?

Ashwij: There are several reasons behind this decision:

• The very first reason is that I’ve always been extremely interested in debating and public oration. I have been a part of the oration and debating team since primary school. I also feel that I have sharp analytical and reasoning skills which were probably developed further by reading a plethora of military related novels which related to the battle strategies of Alexander, Napoleon and other great army generals. And I felt that the profession which would help me utilize my skills would be law.
• After globalization, with the advent of many foreign companies, a new corporate culture has got established in the Indian economy which was accompanied by a frenzy of mergers and acquisitions. This has created a huge demand for a legal career.
• These days law as a career is inviting quite attractive pay packages, at times comparable to those drawn by MBA graduates from a reputed B schools.
• Legal education helps a lot in UPSC civil services examinations. Also, heard through the grapevine that a new All India Service by the name IJS (Indian Judicial Service) might also be introduced by the time we graduate. A powerful government position seemed like a lucrative option to me.

HTC: Has law been your primary choice? If yes, then why did you not opt for other careers?

Ashwij: Yes law has always been my primary career choice since 10th standard. I did not opt for a plan B or C because I have seen many of my friends taking up too many options and ending up clearing none of them. I thought it would be wiser and safer to channelise all my concentration in one direction and I guess it paid off.


HTC: When did you decide to focus on law as a career option?

Ashwij: I seriously began scouring for a career choice in my 8th standard. I spent the entire year buying and browsing through brochures of IITs, AIIMS, law colleges and many other streams trying to make up my mind on what exactly I wanted to do. Then when I seriously consolidated my personal strengths and compared the potential of the stream when it came to providing employment and opportunities for growth; I was sure by the mid of my 9th standard that law was going to be my career choice.

HTC: Most important factor for getting the 1st rank in AILET 2012.

Ashwij: I have always had God's grace and my elder's blessings on me. And along with this, I think that my resolute time table which was a carefully engineered combination of hard work and smart work played a crucial role. The role of more than a hundred mock exams should also be taken into consideration, as it prepared me to tackle the paper in a systematic manner and keep my cool in case of confusing or difficult questions which the question paper usually offers.

(Take free mock tests for AILET here)

HTC: Did you prepare for Legal GK?

Ashwij: Yes I did. The main sources I referred for legal GK were:

• Tata McGraw Hill
• Arihant publications
• CLAT essentials by Abhinav Srivastava
• LST/ Sriram/ CLATPossible modules
• Universal guide to LLB
• Lexis Nexis (to some extent)
• Previous years’ question papers

HTC: According to your mentors, you’re extra-ordinarily good when it comes to GK. What is your success mantra for this section?

Ashwij: There is just one mantra when it comes to mastering GK: Practice, practice and more practice.

I referred to dozens of GK sources, which included regular reading of The Hindu, monthly magazines like Pratiyogita Darpan, year books like 'Upahaar Panorama' year book and several online sources like post.jagran.com, jagranjosh.com, bbc.co.uk, compendiums from clatgyan, leadthecompetition.com, theonlinegk.wordpress.com, the 100 GK quizzes conducted by Mr Rajneesh Singh sir in clathacker.com etc. Some books like '1100 MCQs for CLAT' by Harsh Gagrani, CLAT essentials by Abhinav Srivastava, daily GK doses from coaching institutes etc.

For static GK I referred to previous years’ papers, gktoday.in, Pearsons, Arihant GK guide etc.


HTC: How did you prepare for the logical reasoning section? Have you been inherently good at it or is it a lot of practice that did it for you?

Ashwij: I seriously think that AILET or CLAT are not exams which you can ace only by your inherent talent. They require loads of practice. Likewise my rational thinking skills were probably natural but I honed them to a great degree using many sources like Tata McGraw hill LSAT guide, GMAT guide, CSAT book on logical reasoning by Rajneesh Singh, modules by coaching institutes, previous years’ question papers, MK Pandey, RS Agarwal to name a few. Constant practice in logical and critical reasoning was part in my usual course of thinking as well. And I mentioned earlier the books on military strategies I used to read also sharpened by skills of analysis and critical thinking.

HTC: What study material did you rely on for English & Maths?

Ashwij: For English I diligently went through every single page of Wren and Martin to get my fundas cleared. Then I went through books like 'Objective English' by Pearson, 'Objective English' by S Chand. The worksheets in my coaching institutes and an English exercise book by team Satyam were really very helpful. To improve my reading speed, I never missed out the Hindu editorial pages, 4 pages of Outlook and 8 pages of Frontline every day, which not only helped me increase my reading skill but also my vocabulary. To strengthen my vocabulary even more, I used to go through 8 pages of Oxford English dictionary and learn all the words.

For Maths I referred to Objective Quantitative Aptitude by S Chand, MB Trya book on Quicker Math, and Arun Sharma book on Quantitative Aptitude for CAT. And of course modules and class-sheets from coaching institutes.

HTC: How long have you been preparing for AILET & other law exams?

Ashwij: I began my preparation after my 10th exam. I’ve been preparing diligently for my exams for the past two years.


HTC: Which do you feel is the toughest among all the law entrance exams? (AILET, CLAT, SET & others)

Ashwij: Well I have appeared only for CLAT and AILET and I felt that in general AILET is more difficult than CLAT especially the English and Legal reasoning section. GK is also considerably harder in AILET because it mainly focuses on static GK which includes literally everything under the sun, while CLAT concentrates more on current affairs.

HTC: How much did your preparation strategy vary for each of these law exams?

Ashwij: CLAT and AILET required different strategies for preparation. The major difference was in the GK section. Since CLAT concentrated only on current affairs, daily newspapers, monthly GK magazines, yearbooks and a plethora of online websites took care of the preparation. Whereas AILET consisted of static GK as well, for which I additionally had to go through books like Pearson, Objective GK websites like leadthecompetition.com, gktoday.com etc

Next is the Legal section, where CLAT concentrates only on legal reasoning while AILET demands legal knowledge as well. While my coaching modules and 'CLAT Essentials' by Abhinav Srivastava took care of legal reasoning part, I had to go through books like Tata McGraw Hill, Lexis Nexis for legal knowledge.

Even when it came to tackling the exam, both of them required different strategies. I kept Math for the end in AILET 2012 as it was only for 10 marks and compared to other sections, the relative time taken would be considerably higher. However while attempting CLAT 2012, I took up Maths right after GK because those 20 marks can make a lot of difference. Moreover Math is the only section in law exams where an aspirant can hope to secure full marks.

HTC: Did you take mock tests? How many mock tests would you have taken?

Ashwij: I have taken pretty much every mock exam that I could find including LST, Sriram Clatpossible, IMS legal edge etc. I just wanted to get the hang of solving as many mocks as possible so that I could get acclimatized to the exam conditions. I can safely say that I have solved more than 100 mock exams.


HTC: Did you take up any coaching/ class room training?

I am placed in a small town Davangere (around 300km from Bangalore) which does not have any coaching centres so classroom training was out of question. I did take a crash course from LST, Bangalore.


HTC: Where you see yourself 10 years down the line?

The main reason I chose law was to bring about a political efficiency and transparency in our country, which I seek to achieve by becoming a permanent executive(like IAS), so ten years down the line it is quite likely that you'll see me as an influential bureaucrat who has had many people-centric contributions and achievements.


Once CLAT 2012 results are out, which all law schools via CLAT would you choose if you get selected? Will you leave NLU Delhi?

I would opt out of NLU, Delhi if & only if I make it to NLSIU or NALSAR.


Any message for law aspirants?

Ashwij: Like all other exams, law entrance exams like AILET & CLAT entail hard and rigorous toil. But along with that, they also require smart study, since they include subjects like GK and vocabulary where your preparation can never be complete. We need to make a note of what to study and what to skip. I would suggest you all to set a time table which goes right up to the hour you write your exam and to stick to it. And to be completely at home while writing the exam, one has to take as many live mock exams as possible.

I personally feel that one live mock is equivalent to ten online mocks. And going by my experience in CLAT 2012, I think the students should be clear with the concepts relevant to law (legal knowledge) even if the pattern explicitly says it is not required. That will prevent a student from being stumped on seeing an unexpected paper.

(Also read: CLAT 2012 Shocks Law Aspirants; Deviates from Notified Pattern, CLAT 2012 Results by 28 May 2012)

As told to Nishatha Abraham Bijeesh

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