After losing all my NDA attempts, I was left with more motivation and determination than before. It was time to execute Plan B.
Class 12th boards were approaching fast. I was trying hard to concentrate, solving as many questions as I could, hoping to avoid last-minute problems. My school decided to take a final pre-board exam to test our readiness. I did fairly well in Physics and Mathematics, but Chemistry—well, that was still my weak link.
The hustle continued until finally, the boards arrived and were done with. For a moment, I felt lighter, but then all those sleepless nights, discussions with seniors, and sessions with retired officers came flooding back into my head. I requested my father to let me enroll in a crash course for JEE Mains.
The idea was simple: appear in JEE, secure a decent percentile, and ensure admission into a good college. That way, even if NDA didn’t work out, I’d still have other entries like TES or 10+2 B.Tech Navy open.
The first day at coaching, everything went over my head. The teachers were more focused on NEET aspirants and students who were already ahead in the syllabus. Honestly, I felt like giving up and taking a drop. But dropping a year was never an option for me.
So, with dedication and hard work, I started preparing for my first JEE attempt—just 13 days away. I picked up resources like HC Verma and CENGAGE, solving as many problems as possible.
The big day arrived. I gave the exam with all I had. Two weeks later, the results came—53 percentile. The lowest in my coaching.
I was also giving private college exams like BITSAT, VITEEE, SRMJEE, and KIITEE side by side. Meanwhile, in coaching, things went downhill. The teachers stopped showing up after the results because of some unknown clash with the management. With the second JEE attempt around the corner, I had to somehow prepare on my own.
This time, I secured 59 percentile. Not great by any means. Many people would call it another failure. But for me, it was still an improvement, however small.
Leaving JEE aside, I finally got admission into KIIT University, Bhubaneshwar (Odisha). Life started moving again. Then came the Durga Puja break—and with it, the much-awaited notifications for TES and Navy 10+2 B.Tech Entry.
I immediately filled the forms and prayed for a chance. And then, one fine day, while casually scrolling through my Gmail inbox, I saw it—an email from joinindiannavy.gov.in. My heart skipped a beat.
I had been shortlisted for SSB at 33 SSB, Bhopal, scheduled for 25th October 2022.
My happiness knew no bounds. Finally, a chance to prove myself.
Preparation began in full swing. With the help of a known mentor (let’s call him Mr. X), I started working on my psychology tests. During the day, I wrote SRTs, TATs, and stories on random pictures, sending them to him over WhatsApp. In the evenings, I prepared short speeches on geopolitical issues and national interest topics. He, being an SSB aspirant himself, gave me feedback every night.
It was boring at times, but I knew it was important. Meanwhile, with my father’s help, I also got in touch with a retired officer. Through him, I was guided by one of his coursemates—currently serving as an Interviewing Officer at an SSB. That insight gave me confidence.
From the very beginning, I knew my biggest challenge would be GTO (Group Testing). But with college going on, proper SSB coaching wasn’t possible.
As the SSB date drew closer, I was filled with excitement and nervousness at the same time. Questions kept haunting me:
👉 Will I make it?
👉 Or will I have to wait 4 more years for another chance?
These questions would be answered soon enough.
For now, all I can say is—the journey is just getting started. And maybe, many of you reading this will relate to my struggles, my failures, and my small victories.
Let’s find out what lies ahead—together.
See you in the next one.
Bye.
Jai Hind 🇮🇳
