NIFT 2018 topper shares Tips, Information, Insight

An interview with Sirigowri Kambalimath where she tells us about the NIFT entrance, this remarkable young girl has passed the exam with flying colours and secured an impressive rank. The interview will tell you all that you need to know about the topper.

Q. What is your name and which school are you from ?

A. Sirigowri Kambalimath. I’m from Sri Kumaran Children’s Home, Mallasandra.

Q. Did you expect to top the exam with an exceptional rank?

A. No, absolutely not!

Q. Can you please tell us your score and rank ?

A. Overall score- 89.6. Common merit rank 2, Category merit rank 2.

Q. Let’s talk about your family, what do your parents do?

A. My family consists of my parents and my 9 year old sister. They’re such an amazing family. My father is a Senior Director in Herbalife Nutrition and my mother is a homemaker.

Q. What are your hobbies?

A. I love sketching, painting, writing poems and stories. I also love reading books and watching movies.

Q. What was the NIFT entrance like, the GAT (General Ability Test) and CAT (Creative Ability Test)?

A. The written exam was very easy. I was able to finish it on time. GAT was fairly simple and CAT was honestly very interesting. I enjoyed answering that part.

Q. What kind of role did DQ Labs play in your preparations?

 A. Most of my preparation was from DQ Labs. I attended the classes regularly, so most of my preparation was done there. DQ labs has a website(DQ Edge) wherein previous years questions are given so this is the material I used at home. It was extremely helpful. I referred to a few books for aptitude and would solve them in school during my free time. I was actually more focused on NID so my NIFT preparation was a part of my NID preparation. I spent the entire winter break on this. Solving the past years paper with the timer also helps.

Q. How would you suggest NIFT aspirants manage time?

A. When you are preparing always make sure you are keeping a check on the time. Put yourself on a timer. Many people face a shortage of time during these exams and thus tend to panic during the end and rush their answers. During preparation we tend to solve questions at our own pace and this is what slows us down during the actual paper.

Q. Is there anything else you would like to add on or suggest?

A. Another thing I would suggest is not giving too much importance to GK. It is important, but since it is so vast many people spend excess time on it. The thing with GK is you can never be 100% through with it. There will always be something you don’t know. I would suggest giving more importance to the other areas such as English, Math and Mental Ability as these are solid scoring areas. The biggest mistake you can make is losing faith in yourself. Stay calm and motivated during the preparation period and take care of your health.

Q. How did you hone crafting skills that helped you ace the situation test?

A. As mentioned above, most preparation was from my coaching institute. We would have material handling classes almost every weekend.

Q. Now that the exam is over, what do you feel about it?

A. NIFT is not difficult. Honestly speaking, it’s a very fun test and I enjoyed taking it. The situation test is very interesting and you won't even feel like you’re taking an important exam.

Q. Tell us about what happens on the day of the situation test?

A. The situation test is the second round of the exam. It takes place at the NIFT campus of your choice. You just enter the campus and check your roll number and find out which room you are in. Then wait until they allow you to enter the room. You will have to leave your bag and electronics outside and just carry hall ticket and the instructed materials.

Q. How many seats are available in each college?

A. Honestly not sure about that. Not more than 150 though.

Q. Tell us more about the situation test, did all of you get the same questions?

 A. This year the situation test happened on two days. Both days had different papers, but they were similar questions. On the same day, everyone gets the same paper and there are choices between the questions. You can select any one. There were multiple rooms based on roll numbers.

Q. Were you given feedback in the situation test?

A. Not really. We are just asked to clear the desk and leave our model and a writeup.

Q. Are there any other design entrance exams you’ve taken?

A. Yes I gave NID, UCEED, MIT, Srishti, PES, Woxsen, Symbiosis. They were all design exams.

Q. Now that you’ve topped the exam are you going to opt for Fashion Design?

A. I was keener on taking Visual Communication design. As of now, I’m still considering fashion design as an option. I will decide after the counselling session. Design is a dynamic and wide field. It’s difficult to decide right now.

Q.Would you mind suggesting preparation tips to all those who want to crack the NIFT exam?

A. Tips to prepare-

· Get as much creative inspiration as you can. I recommend Pinterest, it gives good ideas on model making and related things. You can also opt for DIY’s on youtube.

· Practice at home. Grab the first 10 materials/objects you see and try to make something out of it.

· Familiarize yourself with different materials. Most materials would be common ones, but make sure you know what they are and what they can do.

· Do a quick read up on paper folding and origami. This may help you create more variety of things. It helped me.

· Everyday, take a common object and list various other uses for it. It will help you look at objects differently and help you be more creative.

· But most importantly, practice. The key to this is being good and familiar with materials.

Q. What do you suggest the upcoming candidates keep in mind during the course of the exam?

A. As soon as you receive the material, analyze it carefully. Think about the properties of the material, whether its strong, flexible, sharp etc. Understand the strengths of each material. MAKE SURE YOU NOTICE EVERY MATERIAL.

· Once you are allowed to open the cover in which the materials are packed, lay them out on your table. Keep every material in sight. There are many small materials that may go unnoticed so I would suggest having everything placed in view.

· Figure out which materials are going to be your base. Keep them right in front of you.

· Make sure your own materials such as glue, tape etc are in good working condition.

· Once you get your question paper, read it carefully. Be very very clear on what they are asking. Don’t go out of topic.

· Work fast, but maintain neatness. Try to find the fastest way of building.

· MAKE SURE YOUR MODEL STAYS IN PLACE. It must be sturdy by the time the examiners inspect. Don’t use materials that would make your model unsteady or flimsy.

· Keep the last 15 minutes to describe your model. DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT WRITEUP. Even if your model isn’t finished by the last 15 minutes, stop and explain your idea on the paper. Make sure they understand what's in your model. If there's something special about the model that may not be seen at first sight, please mention it in the write up.

· Keep a constant check on the time, don’t hesitate to ask examiners the time constantly.