HOW TO PREPARE FOR CLAT – COMPLETE CLAT PREPARATION STRATEGY
Every aspiring lawyer in India aims to make it to one of the top 26 NLUs, considered by many to be the launchpad for an illustrious law career.
But getting there, the pinnacle of the best law programs in the country, is a challenging route. You don’t just need to have the aptitude for law, but you also need to put in the hours of dedicated hard work that CLAT, the premier law entrance exam, demands. In the blog, we have mentioned How to prepare for CLAT – complete CLAT preparation strategy
Get ready for the CLAT with our FREE Mock Tests guided by our experts.
What is the CLAT 2025 exam pattern?
How to prepare for CLAT is a question that can only be answered after you’ve gotten familiar with the exam pattern. This enables you to focus on sections that matter more. You can allocate time and energy to the right sections, questions, and answers.
- Exam mode – Pen-paper-based test
- Exam duration – 120 minutes
- Total questions – 120 questions
- Total marks – 120 marks
- Marking Scheme – +1 and -0.25 is the marking scheme.
| Subject | Number of questions | Percentage weightage |
| English Language | 22-26 questions | 20% |
| Current Affairs, including General Knowledge | 28-32 questions | 25% |
| Legal Reasoning | 28-32 questions | 25% |
| Logical Reasoning | 22-26 questions | 20% |
| Quantitative Techniques | 10-14 questions | 10% |
What is the CLAT exam 2025 syllabus?
The CLAT test doesn’t require you to have any prerequisite legal knowledge. It’s essentially a general aptitude test designed to assess how well your critical and analytical faculties operate. It wants to check if you’re ideally suited for the problem-solving requirements of a high-level law career.
It also affirms your communication skills in English – how well you can transmit your ideas, defend your opinions, and critically break down arguments. Here are the topics that you should cover during your CLAT preparation strategy.
| Sections | Topics |
| English | Comprehension passages, Grammar, word meanings, incorrect/correct sentences |
| Mathematics | Algebra, profit and loss, time and work, average, speed and distance, permutation-combination and Venn diagrams, statistical estimation, Mensuration |
| General Knowledge & Current Affairs |
|
| Logical Reasoning | Logical and Analytical reasoning skills |
| Legal Aptitude | Study of law, Research aptitude, Problem-solving ability, Questions based on hypothetical situations, and Important court decisions |
Know more: HOW TO READ A NEWSPAPER FOR CLAT PREPARATION?
How to prepare for CLAT?
Recognise your current level:
Most aspirants begin their CLAT preparation in the 11th or 12th standard. So should you. But before you start, it will be prudent to understand your current aptitude level. Identify where you stand right now by giving a diagnostic practice test. You can outline your preparation strategy based on your scores in the different sections.
Designate a target college and score for yourself:
Choose which college is a reasonable option based on your current aptitude, logistics, location, affordability, and passion for law. Do you wish to study in your city and region? Or go to a larger city? Can you and your parents afford the fees of the most expensive NLUs? If not, is an education loan an option?
Are you willing to do the hard work required to top CLAT and get into the best NLUs?
Answer these questions, shortlist plausible colleges, and match them to the score you require in CLAT.
This will be your target score, and your entire focus will be on reaching this score. Nothing more. Nothing less.
Identify and collate all your resources.
You should list all the available content at the beginning of your prep. Books, videos, previous years’ papers, practice questions, and notes from toppers should be part of your list.
While your coaching institute will provide a lot of content and cover most topics, you should also invest in self-study books.
Make a timetable for yourself and stick to it.
Once you’ve understood your syllabus and the material you must finish, it’s time to allocate time.
Find out the number of hours you can dedicate to CLAT preparation daily. Ideally, it should be 3-4 hours per day. Don’t overburden yourself, and include ample breaks in between. Keep your weekends free for extracurricular activities and hobbies to rejuvenate yourself.
Fix a specific period for daily study and revision. Studying during the same period every day is advised to condition your mind correctly.
Remember, the goal is not to burnout with studies but to find the right balance between your books and rest.
Join a renowned coaching institute.
While many aspirants prefer self-study, most choose to attend leading coaching institutes. Coaching programs provide curated content, access to the best teachers, practice sessions, and mock tests, ensuring that you are best prepared to face the rigours of CLAT.
With coaching, you can instil a sense of discipline in yourself and give your CLAT preparation strategy the required edge. It will also bring a structured approach, curated learning pathways, and comprehensive material.
Make the most of your prep.
To make the most of your CLAT prep, follow these steps:
- Skim through that day’s content 10 minutes before class begins.
- Pay extra attention during concept classes. Ask doubts and discuss issues with your mentors to thoroughly clarify your concepts.
- Solve all the in-class exercises and revise them again after a week.
- Solve all the at-home practice questions and revise them again after a week.
- Once a topic is covered, attempt a topic-wise test and analyse your score.
- Find your mistakes, discuss them with your mentors, and repeat steps 3 to 5 again.
Read newspapers regularly
The new pattern of CLAT is heavily focused on comprehension and reading. You must acquaint yourself with the language and the hours of concentrated reading required during CLAT.
Newspapers give you a two-pronged advantage:
- First, you brush up on your current affairs by reading the national, international, and judicial news.
- Second, you improve your reading speed and comprehension by reading the editorial sections.
Our mentors suggest reading The Hindu for its editorial, The Telegraph and Indian Express for their news coverage, and Times of India for varied perspectives.
Clearing the CLAT with good marks and getting into a top NLU opens the doors for a rewarding legal career in corporate offices, judicial systems, and PSUs. These pointers should help you answer the question ‘how to prepare for CLAT’.
Know more: How to Attempt Lengthy Passage-Based Questions by Improving Reading Comprehension For CLAT 2025
How to prepare for CLAT 2025 – Section-wise tips
CLAT English preparation
- Start reading more. Books, essays, editorials, newspapers, and articles will help you improve your speed reading, skimming, and comprehension skills.
- Start reading passages with a purpose. Instead of just reading and then moving on, make it a point to write down their synopsis. This way, you can judge your understanding of the passage.
- Underline the words you don’t recognise. Turn them into flashcards and write their meaning on the back of the cards. Revise these every day.
- Brush up on your NCERT grammar to remain up-to-date with the requirements of the grammar section.
CLAT Legal Reasoning preparation
- While you don’t need in-depth legal knowledge, reading about core concepts and terminologies will make the passages easier to crack.
- Start reading essays and articles on blogs like LiveLaw, BarandBench, and Politico. Even newspapers carry many legal cases, which can further your knowledge in this field.
CLAT Logical Reasoning preparation
- Learn to read sentences like you do math equations. In an equation, each variable and constant are defined by a fixed relationship. Moreover, this relationship doesn’t necessarily move in the order it is represented in. However, once you understand the relationship between the parts, you will realise that there can only be one subjective answer.
- Underline the different parts of the sentence and relate them to one another. Which one modifies the other? Who is the subject? What is the tense? What is happening in the sentence?
- A similar strategy can also be applied to critical passages. Underline essential phrases and sentences. Find out what the author wants to say. What are their primary arguments? What is the central premise?
CLAT Quantitative Aptitude preparation
- Begin with the basics. Pick up your NCERT and revise all the major concepts taught till the 10th standard.
- Practise basic questions to reinforce these concepts before picking up books like RS Aggarwal and AP Bhardwaj. Make it a point to practise a fixed number of quant questions daily to become faster and more accurate.
- Talk to your mentors to create a list of shortcuts—tips and tricks for solving problems faster.
- Learn the most commonly asked questions from arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and trigonometry.
Know more: CLAT Toppers Strategy – 9 Tips from CLAT Toppers to Ace CLAT 2025
CLAT GK and Current Affairs preparation
- Reading newspapers, monthly magazines, and periodicals should give you enough knowledge about current affairs.
- Brush up on your static GK from NCERT social science books.
- Sign up online for GK resources such as the one provided by GKToday. They have free quizzes across hundreds of topics to assess your knowledge level.
CLAT 2025 FAQs
- Can I prepare for CLAT in one month?
Proper guidance and strategy make it possible to prepare for CLAT in one month.
- Is quantitative aptitude easy if I needed to have maths in my +2?
Yes, the maths level required to do well on the quant section of CLAT 2025 is that of the 10th class.
- Does CLAT have a negative marking?
Yes, CLAT has a negative mark of 0.25 for every wrong answer.
- When should I start preparing for CLAT 2025?
Depending on your current aptitude, you should begin CLAT 2025 preparation 6-12 months in advance.
- How many hours per day should I study for CLAT?
You must put in at least 3 hours daily to ensure 100+ marks in CLAT 2025 and admission to the top NLUs.
- What are some last-minute tips to do well in CLAT 2025?
In your last days, revise the topics and take as many mock exams as possible. Sleep and eat well to avoid falling ill and missing crucial study hours.