Thinking of dropping a year for NEET preparation?

Choosing the medical profession demands a lot of hard work, commitment, and effort. Many aspirants are confused with the question whether they should take a year off or not. The answer to this is, “Ask yourself and evaluate your current level of preparation and be assured about its benefits and drawbacks.

Drop year definitely improves the scores and ranks of several NEET UG aspirants as it helps them to work and focus on their weak areas. Though drop years come with lots of advantages and disadvantages, it is advised to go through all its good benefits and downside before making an informed decision.

What is meant by a Drop Year?

A drop year is basically a gap year in which the students take a gap year and do not actively pursue any higher education. Generally, a gap year is taken in order to improve the performance of the students in any competitive exam. 

However, when a NEET aspirant takes a drop year, it refers to the year when the student commits an entire year to prepare for the NEET UG exam.

Why is taking a drop year necessary?

• Taking a drop year provides more time to finish off the syllabus and solve more questions to score higher marks.
• When a student is determined to take a drop year in order to prepare in a much better way, the bigger picture must be in mind. The gap year provides one with a considerable amount of time towards preparing for the exam, by postponing other career aspirations.

What are the advantages of taking a drop year?

A drop year comes in with a lot of benefits. They are:

• A better rank: If a NEET aspirant wishes to enhance their marks or aim for a better rank in the NEET UG exam, he/she may decide to take a drop year during which they can prepare with their utmost dedication. 
• Consistent and Focused preparation: Many students find it difficult to manage their board exams with their NEET preparation. As a result of which, they are unable to put in their full effort and concentration. By taking a drop year, they can devote their full attention and time to their NEET exam, which will guarantee them a successful preparation.
• Builds a competitive edge: Students who take a drop year get a good rank in the NEET exam, which can provide them with an advantage over other NEET UG aspirants during admission to the top prestigious medical colleges in India. To get a competitive advantage over the other students and enhance their chance of getting into the best medical colleges, many students prefer taking a drop year.
• Provide more time to prepare: One of the most significant advantages of taking a gap year is the chance of getting an entire year specifically dedicated to NEET UG preparation. This extra time period ensures more practice, revision and a better coverage of the NEET UG syllabus, leading to a better understanding of the core concepts.
• Makes the base foundation stronger: By having an additional year to prepare, the aspirants can enhance their understanding and knowledge and build a strong base in the topics that are majorly important in the NEET UG exam. Students can focus more on the difficult topics, ensure effective revision and grasp the complex topics easily.
• Focus on time-management skills: Taking a drop year, improves the time-management skills of the NEET UG aspirants as they can focus more on managing their time effectively while answering questions by ensuring a consistent practice of mock sample papers and previous year papers. The students can improve their speed and accuracy and their analytical and logical skills while familiarising themselves with the format and structure of the NEET exam.
• Fill the gaps: On the first try, the students who had difficulty understanding and analyzing a particular topic get a chance to fill the knowledge gaps in their drop year. They can prepare more efficiently by identifying their areas of weak points.

Disadvantages of taking a drop year:

Besides the advantages, the drop year also comes with a lot of drawbacks. They are:

• Taking a drop year does not ensure you of your selection in the next attempt. Thus it's a myth that you will have a 100% chance of getting success in your drop year. You will have to work hard every day in your drop year and be consistent.
• You will be demotivated when you will see your friends and peers are joining colleges instead of taking a drop. You will have a feeling that you are alone in this battle. You need to be strong enough to decide whether you are ready to put in your 100% in your drop year.
• Taking a year out of your career might result in a lack of momentum and pace, and it will be difficult to refocus and find the motivation to re-prepare for NEET.
• You will be under a lot of pressure to do exceptionally well in your exam as you have taken a drop year for your preparation.

FAQS:
1. Is it worth taking a drop year to prepare for NEET?

Many aspirants feel that they are unable to focus on their NEET preparation during their first attempt due to the school work commitments and board exam curriculum. Hence by taking a drop year they can devote their entire time, energy, and effort to their NEET Preparation.

2. Is it a good idea to take a drop year to re-prepare for NEET?

Taking a drop year provides the medical aspirants with a great opportunity to solidify their preparation, boost their morale and increase their chances of securing admission into the best medical colleges in the country.

3. How many drops are enough to crack NEET?

Many students crack NEET in their first attempt and some of them crack the exam after 2-3 attempts. So, how many drops are enough to crack NEET entirely depends upon the capability and the level of preparation of the NEET aspirant.