If you have six months, you have something very valuable: time to build properly.
Do not begin by trying to memorise everything. Start with the syllabus and unit-wise notes. Move systematically through the Law syllabus, while giving regular attention to Paper 1.
But there is one habit I strongly recommend from the beginning: do MCQs alongside your study, not after it.
Every topic you study should be followed by questions. The purpose is not merely to see whether you can get the answer right. It is to force yourself to retrieve what you have just learned. Research by John Dunlosky and colleagues identifies practice testing and distributed practice as two of the highest-utility learning techniques.1 Karpicke and Blunt similarly found that retrieval practice can produce stronger learning than simply studying material again.4
Use the site’s 9,000+ MCQs, explanations, notes and PYQs as part of this cycle, not as separate resources.
Study → Attempt MCQs → Understand mistakes → Revisit the concept → Attempt again
As you progress, introduce PYQs and then mock tests. Your six months should gradually move you from learning the syllabus to being able to retrieve it under examination conditions.
You do not need to know everything on Day 1. You need to make sure that, six months later, what you studied can be recalled when the question appears in front of you.
1What your priority should be
- Understand the whole map firstRead the syllabus once, unit by unit, so nothing later surprises you.
- Test every topic the same dayMCQs alongside study. This is retrieval, not just a check.
- Give Paper 1 a fixed weekly slotSmall and regular beats large and late.
- Let revision come round more than onceReturning to a unit at widening gaps does more than one long session.
2How to use this website
Everything below already exists on this site. I’m only showing you the order I would use it in.
- SyllabusRead each unit’s topics once to see the whole map, then tick topics off as you finish them. The tracker saves your progress in this browser.Open syllabus →
- Unit-wise notesStudy one unit at a time. Read actively, then close the notes and say what you remember.Open notes →
- MCQsAttempt MCQs the same day, topic by topic. Don’t wait until the unit is finished.Practise MCQs →
- ExplanationsRead every explanation, including for answers you got right. Note the ones you missed.Law 058 modules →
- PYQsFrom month 3, see how the exam actually frames the topics you have studied.Open PYQs →
- RevisionReturn to the notes only for topics your MCQs and PYQs show are weak.Revise notes →
- Mock testsSectional practice in month 5; full timed mocks in month 6.Take a mock →
- Performance analysisAfter each mock, sort errors into ‘didn’t know’, ‘confused’ and ‘careless’, and fix each kind differently.Review a mock →
3Your preparation cycle
For each topic I would do something like this. It is a guide; adjust it to your life.
- LEARNNotes
- PRACTISETopic MCQs
- RETRIEVERecall, then check
- TESTPYQs and mocks
- ANALYSEError log
- REVISEWeak units
- REPEATNext cycle
Study → Attempt MCQs → Understand mistakes → Revisit the concept → Attempt again
- Mon–ThuA new topic: read the notes, then attempt its MCQs the same day.
- FridayRe-attempt the week’s missed questions. Read the explanations again.
- SaturdayA Paper 1 set, plus mixed MCQs from earlier units.
- SundayRevisit one earlier unit lightly, so that old work doesn’t fade.
Don’t do this
- Don’t collect endless study material.
- Don’t postpone MCQs until you finish the syllabus.
- Don’t repeatedly read notes without testing recall.
- Don’t take mocks without analysing your mistakes.
- Don’t completely change your resources in the final weeks.
- Don’t spend two months only reading before you test yourself.
- Don’t leave Paper 1 for the last month.
4A simple progression
Tick items as you complete them. They are saved in this browser only.
Months 1–2
Map the syllabus and make the habit
Months 3–4
More volume, first revision
Month 5
Second revision and diagnosis
Month 6
Exam conditions
THE EVIDENCEWhy MCQs sit at the centre of this plan
Two of the best-supported ideas in this literature shape the six-month plan. The first is retrieval practice: Karpicke and Blunt (2011) found that students who practised retrieving what they had read learned more, a week later, than students who made concept maps while studying.4 Roediger and Karpicke (2006) had earlier found a similar pattern when comparing a test with re-reading.2
The second is spacing. Cepeda and colleagues’ reviews found that spreading study over time generally beats cramming, and that the best gap depends on how long you need to remember.7,8 Six months is long enough to use both properly, which is why every unit comes back more than once. For an accessible overview, see Make It Stick.13
What this does and doesn’t show. These studies are mostly laboratory and classroom experiments on memory. None of them tested a UGC NET strategy, and none can promise a result in the exam. This pathway is informed by evidence on retrieval practice, practice testing and distributed learning. It is guidance, not a guarantee.
Full references are listed below.
IF YOU NEED TO SETTLE A DOUBTStandard reference works
These are well-known texts I would consult when a note or an explanation leaves a doubt. They are not a new reading list. Use them to resolve a question, then go back to the cycle.
- CONSTITUTIONAL LAWM. P. Jain, Indian Constitutional Law; D. D. Basu, Introduction to the Constitution of India; Granville Austin, The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation (1966).
- JURISPRUDENCESalmond on Jurisprudence; H. L. A. Hart, The Concept of Law (1961); R. W. M. Dias, Jurisprudence.
- PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAWIan Brownlie, Principles of Public International Law; Malcolm N. Shaw, International Law.
- CRIMINAL LAWK. D. Gaur’s textbook on criminal law. Check that your edition reflects the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
- CONTRACT AND TORTSAvtar Singh, Law of Contract and Specific Relief; Ratanlal & Dhirajlal, The Law of Torts.
- FAMILY LAWParas Diwan, Modern Hindu Law; Mulla’s Principles of Mahomedan Law.
- ENVIRONMENT AND IPRP. Leelakrishnan, Environmental Law in India; Cornish, Llewelyn & Aplin, Intellectual Property.
- PAPER 1C. R. Kothari, Research Methodology; R. S. Aggarwal, A Modern Approach to Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning.
REFERENCESSources cited on this page
- Dunlosky, J., Rawson, K. A., Marsh, E. J., Nathan, M. J., & Willingham, D. T. (2013). Improving students’ learning with effective learning techniques: Promising directions from cognitive and educational psychology. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 14(1), 4–58.
- Roediger, H. L., & Karpicke, J. D. (2006). Test-enhanced learning: Taking memory tests improves long-term retention. Psychological Science, 17(3), 249–255.
- Karpicke, J. D., & Blunt, J. R. (2011). Retrieval practice produces more learning than elaborative studying with concept mapping. Science, 331(6018), 772–775.
- Cepeda, N. J., Pashler, H., Vul, E., Wixted, J. T., & Rohrer, D. (2006). Distributed practice in verbal recall tasks: A review and quantitative synthesis. Psychological Bulletin, 132(3), 354–380.
- Cepeda, N. J., Vul, E., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., & Pashler, H. (2008). Spacing effects in learning: A temporal ridgeline of optimal retention. Psychological Science, 19(11), 1095–1102.
- Brown, P. C., Roediger, H. L., & McDaniel, M. A. (2014). Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning. Harvard University Press.
Start with the Syllabus →
Use the syllabus as your map, then go straight into the notes and MCQs.
Start with the Syllabus →Prefer a different timeline?
Exam-style practice. Not affiliated with NTA or UGC. For dates, eligibility and exam rules, see the FAQ and the official NTA notice.