It is a wonderful sight to witness a student’s hard work and perseverance rewarded with success in competitive exams. Meet Chinta Jyothi Swarup, an AP ICET 2023 topper, who bagged rank 4 and aspires to pursue an MBA degree to enhance his managerial skills and career prospects. He is a Mechanical Engineer with a 77 percent score. He hails from Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh. In this exclusive interview with Careers360, he shares his secrets of success in AP ICET 2023, his AP ICET preparation strategy, his challenges and achievements, and his future plans.
Careers360: Congratulations, You have done a great job in AP ICET! How did you prepare for the exam and what methods did you use to achieve this amazing result?
Swarup: The key strategy of my preparation is practising AP ICET previous year papers. I bought a book from a renowned publication(Vijeta Competitions) which comprises both AP and TS ICET previous papers. I used to practise paper in a day and rectify the mistakes.
Careers360: What is your educational background? What inspired you to go for an MBA?
Swarup: I completed B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering with 77 percent. My keen interest in managerial roles and career growth with an MBA degree has motivated me to pursue MBA.
Careers360: What other MBA entrance exams did you take? Your percentile or score in these exams?
Swarup: Until now I didn't take any other entrance exam. But this year I'm planning to give the CAT examination.
Careers360: What was your study schedule and routine? How did you plan and organise your preparation?
Swarup: As I was preparing for the CAT exam I didn't do any separate preparation for this exam. But I used to give mock tests everyday prior to 20 days before the examination.
Careers360: Did you join any coaching classes? What other preparation materials did you use and find useful?
Swarup: I did not take any coaching as I was already preparing for the CAT exam.
Careers360: What was your strategy for mock tests? What kinds of mock tests did you practise with, and how did they improve your performance?
Swarup: Mock Tests are the key to preparation as they help in evaluating your strengths and weaknesses.Rectifying mistakes after every exam improves the score gradually. I practised previous papers only. Initially i have written sectional mocks and started full mocks prior to 20 days before exam
Careers360: How did you cope with the difficulties you encountered while studying for AP ICET?
Swarup: Initially I found some difficulty in writing a two and half hour mock exam. After that I acclimatised to it.
Careers360: What were the most difficult subjects or sections for you in the MBA entrance exam?
Swarup: I felt difficulty in data sufficiency problems in the analytical ability section. So i focussed more on that.
Careers360: How did you plan your time during the exam? How long did it take you to finish a section? What are some time management tips that you would recommend for the exam?
Swarup: I used to start with the analytical ability section and complete within 45 mins and mark difficult questions for review.After that communication ability in 30 -35 mins and remaining time is utilised for solving mathematics and review questions. Since there is no negative marking, attempt all questions.
Careers360: How can MBA aspirants prepare for exams like AP ICET, CAT, XAT etc. and get admission in top b-schools?
Swarup: The only thing is to complete your syllabus as soon as possible. And try to give more mock tests before the exam.
Careers360: Which MBA specialisation are you planning to take up?
Swarup: Finance
Careers360: What are the main goals and outcomes you hope to achieve from the MBA program and the b-school of your choice?
Swarup: My aim is to join IIM . An MBA degree has to hone my skills and made me a future ready entrepreneur.
On Question asked by student community
Hi,
With a general rank of 13,964 and a local rank of 1,529 in bc-d category in au region, your chances of getting a seat in main campus universities like krishna university, acharya nagarjuna university, or adikavi nannaya university depend on the course demand. in 2nd counseling, seats sometimes open up in less-demanded specializations (like certain mba/mca branches), but popular courses may close earlier. i’d recommend filling as many preferred options as possible and also considering affiliated colleges to maximize your chance.
counseling info: https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/ap-icet-2025
Thanks for asking and good luck in the next round.
Hello,
If your degree college Transfer Certificate (TC) has a clerical mistake in the caste category that the principal manually corrected, with the correction properly signed and stamped, it is usually deemed acceptable for the APICET counselling process, as long as there is no discrepancy between the caste listed on your official caste certificate and what appears on the TC.
Nonetheless, as counseling authorities frequently favor documents that are pristine and devoid of errors, it is highly advised that you have an affidavit detailing the clerical mistake and the rectification done, in addition to your original caste certificate provided by a qualified authority.
Moreover, if feasible, ask your degree college to provide a new corrected TC to prevent any avoidable issues during document verification. Acting in this manner will guarantee a seamless counselling process and reduce the likelihood of document denial.
Hope this helps. All the best!
Dear candidate ,
The AP ICET 2025 counselling is scheduled to begin in the first week of July 2025 .
With your AP ICET rank of 5861, you fall within the 3001 to 10000 rank range, which generally aligns with Tier D level colleges for free seat admissions in Andhra Pradesh. Based on previous cutoffs and trends, here are ten MBA colleges where you have a good chance of getting a free seat during the July counselling:
Andhra University College of Arts and Commerce Visakhapatnam
Sri Krishnadevaraya University Anantapur
JNTU School of Management Studies Self Finance Kakinada
Nimra College of Engineering and Technology Jupudi
SVU College of Commerce Sri Venkateswara University
JNTU College of Engineering Self Finance Vizianagaram
SD College of Information Technology Tanuku
Aditya Degree College for Women Rajahmundry
RVR and JC College of Engineering Guntur
Rajiv Gandhi Degree and PG College Rajahmundry
Hello aspirant,
Here is the list of some colleges to expect with your rank,
For better prediction, use careers360 college predictor,
https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/ap-icet-rank-wise-college-list
I hope this helps you.
Regards
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