There is a very common myth in the medical community that you need to crack your postgraduate entrance exam on your very first try to be considered a truly brilliant student. But the reality of medical exams in India is completely different. These exams test your emotional endurance and your persistence just as much as they test your clinical knowledge. 

Dr Sairaj Mane proved this reality by securing a massive All India Rank 8 in the highly competitive INI CET exam. What makes his story incredibly inspiring is that this was his third attempt after finishing his internship. His journey is the perfect example of how studying smartly, analyzing your mistakes, and staying fiercely consistent will eventually bring you to the absolute top of the list. 

Securing a single digit rank in an exam that sees thousands of the brightest minds competing for limited seats is no accident. Dr Sairaj did not rely on luck, and he certainly did not try to read textbooks all day. He used a highly calculated, practical approach to his preparation. 

If you are a medical student tired of reading endless notes and not seeing your mock test scores improve, grab a notebook. Here is the exact strategy, the mindset shift, and the daily study setup Dr Sairaj used to conquer the exam. 

Want to hear the full story from Dr. Sairaj Mane in his own words? Watch his complete interview right here:  

Why Just Reading Notes Fails 

The biggest trap medical aspirants fall into during their preparation phase is the illusion of reading. When you sit at your desk with a fresh highlighter and a massive textbook, reading feels incredibly productive. You spend ten hours flipping pages, and you go to sleep feeling like you have conquered the syllabus. 

The problem with only reading notes is that everything seems important. Your brain simply stops actively thinking. You never realize your actual weak areas until you sit for a test and all four options look exactly the same. 

Dr Sairaj realized early in his journey that just mugging up facts was not going to work for a tricky exam like the INI CET. The exam does not just test your memory anymore. It tests your ability to apply a concept to a twisted clinical scenario. He knew he needed a system that actively exposed his weak points and forced him to understand the core mechanism of a disease. 

As he said in his own words: 

“Mugging up things did not work out well for me. The real game is all about building strong concepts”   

The MCQ First Approach 

The biggest change for Dr Sairaj was stepping away from basic reading. He shifted his focus to solving multiple choice questions (MCQs) every single day. He adopted a daily routine known as the retrospective study method. 

Many students divide their day by keeping 80 percent of their time for reading notes and only 20 percent for solving questions. Dr Sairaj completely flipped this rule. He maintained a strict ratio for his daily schedule. If he read theory for three hours, he would strictly spend six solid hours solving MCQs. 

Why is this so effective? Because solving questions is a diagnostic tool. When you are reading notes, your brain assumes it knows everything. But when you are forced to choose the right answer among four very similar options, your true preparation level is exposed. 

By solving questions for six hours a day, he found out exactly which concepts he was repeatedly forgetting. Every time he made a mistake, he went backward. He opened his notes to clear that specific concept. This retrospective method meant he was only spending time reading the exact things he did not know, rather than wasting hours rereading things he had already mastered. 

Furthermore, he noted that aggressively solving MCQs automatically leads to multiple revisions without you even realizing it. Every time you solve a mixed subject test, you are forcing your brain to recall old information, keeping it completely fresh for exam day. 

How DocTutorials Helped His Journey 

To execute this heavy MCQ strategy and build his core concepts, Dr Sairaj trusted the DocTutorials platform. He used a very smart mix of recorded video lectures, daily testing tools, and specialized revision series to stay on track and save massive amounts of time. 

1. Falling in Love with Weak Subjects: Every medical student has that one subject they absolutely hate. For Dr Sairaj, Biochemistry was his weakest link. It is a notoriously dry subject filled with volatile cycles and complex enzymes that most students simply try to cram at the last minute. But after watching Dr Priyansh Jain Biochemistry video lectures on DocTutorials, his entire mindset shifted. The focus on clear, logical concepts helped him completely fall in love with the subject, and it eventually became his absolute favorite. 

He also relied heavily on the Medicine faculty to build his clinical base. He specifically pointed out Dr Rahul Rajeev and his ability to brilliantly simplify the CVS and CNS modules. When expert teachers make your core concepts clear, you stop relying on pure memory. You can logically figure out the right answer directly inside the exam hall. 

2. Building Discipline with the Daily Dose: When you are studying alone for months, maintaining discipline is the hardest part. To keep his brain constantly engaged, Dr Sairaj made the DocTutorials Daily Dose tests an absolute rule in his routine. 

The app provided him with 10 fresh questions in the morning, 10 in the afternoon, and 10 in the evening. This constant, low pressure testing provided a much-needed adrenaline rush throughout the day. Taking these small tests helped him constantly brush up on volatile topics he might have otherwise forgotten. This daily habit ensured he never lost touch with his older subjects while focusing on new ones. 

3. Smart Final Month Revision with RDx: In the last month of preparation, time is your most precious asset. You cannot afford to spend an hour reading a long text explanation for every single mock test question you get wrong. 

During the critical final weeks for the INI CET, Dr Sairaj focused entirely on the DocTutorials RDx Series. The RDx is specifically designed to push students to their maximum potential. But the biggest advantage for him was the online video solutions provided for these tests. Instead of reading detailed text explanations, he just watched the video solutions. This saved him massive amounts of time and allowed him to catch the exact thought process of the faculty, teaching him how to eliminate wrong options instantly. 

The Exact Study Plan 

Dr Sairaj used a highly systematic approach to his studies. He treated his preparation like a clinical protocol. Here is the exact blueprint you can copy for your own study plan. 

The Mindset Shift and the 20th Notebook 

A major concern for many students is how to manage their exam preparation while doing a busy internship. Dr Sairaj offered a very realistic view on this. He noted that out of the entire year, only two to three months of hospital postings are genuinely exhausting. For the remaining months, the postings usually last around four to five hours a day. 

His advice is simple. Do not wait for a perfectly free day to start studying, because that day will never come. You have to steal time. Whenever you get a free hour in the hospital, open your phone and watch a video lecture or solve a quick block of questions. Starting from day one of your internship is the key to staying ahead. 

For people who feel stuck at a certain score, his biggest advice is to strictly limit your study material. Whatever source you have chosen, stick to it with total faith and ensure you revise it at least two to three times. Changing books in the middle of your preparation is a guaranteed way to confuse your memory. 

But the most critical piece of advice Dr Sairaj shared is the absolute necessity of creating a 20th Notebook. 

Medical PG preparation usually requires making individual notebooks for all 19 subjects. But the 20th Notebook is different. This is a highly customized, personal notebook filled only with the tiny details, volatile facts, and specific concepts that you personally get wrong in your daily tests. It should not contain basic concepts that you already know. 

When the actual exam is just four to seven days away, opening huge textbooks or your main subject notes will only create a huge mess and cause extreme panic. You simply cannot read everything in a week. Your 20th Notebook should be fully ready for those final seven days. Because it contains only your specific weaknesses, revising it ensures you will not lose silly marks on the things you tend to forget the most. It becomes your ultimate exam savior. 

The Conclusion 

Securing Rank 8 in one of the toughest medical exams in the country does not happen by accident, and it certainly is not restricted to first attempt candidates. It is the direct result of shifting your entire focus from blind reading to active MCQ solving. 

Dr Sairaj Mane proved that persistence always wins. If you want to replicate his incredible success, you need to change your daily habits. Stop trying to memorize every single line in your textbook. Focus heavily on understanding the core concepts. To make this journey easier, trust DocTutorials to build your clear concepts and streamline your daily practice. Our structured video lectures and targeted tests give you the exact edge you need for a flawless final revision.  

Use the right video lectures, take your daily mock tests seriously, and stay persistent through all your attempts. Your top rank is waiting for you to claim it. All the very best. 

Want to hear the full story from Dr Sairaj Mane in his own words? Watch his complete interview right here: [Interview Link]