NORCET 11 AIR 21: Aniruddh Cleared Straight Out of College at 22

Quick answer: Aniruddh secured All India Rank 21 and SC Category Rank 2 in NORCET 11 Mains 2026. At 22, having completed his nursing at LLRM Medical College, Meerut, he cleared the exam straight out of college. He practised more than 10,000 questions, and is explicit that he was never a college topper — he maintained a CGPA of around 7.8.

---

Why he refused to wait

His argument for clearing immediately is practical rather than inspirational:

I could not have imagined waiting one or two years if it had not worked out.

Getting a government post right out of nursing, he says, removes an enormous amount of struggle. The alternative — private hospital work while preparing — is the loop Nandini Verma at AIR 288 warns about by name.

He is not a topper, and says so

This is worth highlighting because the entire genre of topper content implies you need to have always been exceptional.

He explicitly rejected the label for his college years:

I was a good student, not a topper.

CGPA around 7.8. Involved in the curriculum, but not standing out in merit lists.

AIR 21 and SC rank 2 came from what he did after that, not from a history of being top of the class.

Finding the exam in second year

Within a year or two of entering nursing he began researching which institutes and jobs ranked highest for nurses in India — which is how he learned about AIIMS, the central government institutes, and NORCET.

He found NPrep around the seventh semester, after a session at his college. His stated principle before committing is a good one:

I only believe a platform once I have checked it myself.

Which he did, before paying for anything.

Question practice as the main activity

The framing matters here. Not a supplement to lectures — the main thing.

He practised more than 10,000 questions, and both he and the interviewer pressed the same point for the audience: watch lectures from wherever you like, but the questions have to be done.

One preference that distinguishes him: he specifically valued that the Subject Tests carried slightly twisted questions, because straightforward recall did not challenge him. Most candidates avoid harder papers. He sought them out — the same instinct Muzzamil Ahmad at AIR 19 formalises as his level A / level B rule.

How he used each test type

Product	His use
Mini Test	His answer to low-motivation days. Away from the desk, or not feeling it — open the phone and give one, or refresh a topic
PYQ	Understanding the pattern, the level of the exam, and honestly where he stood
Subject Test	Complete a subject, test it, analyse it
Daily Test	He calls himself a devotee. Even on days he did nothing else, he gave at least one
Nashta & Pre-Board	Scale. With large enrolment, a realistic estimate of where he stood nationally

The Mini Test row is the one most candidates could use tomorrow. Having a low-friction option for bad days is how a streak survives them.

What he valued in the rationales

Visual memory. He singled out the image layout, arguing that once you have seen a diagram you can visualise it later and it returns to you in the exam. His practical point: you cannot draw a diagram for every single thing yourself, so having them supplied saves real time.

Standard references. He noted that rationales cite standard textbooks, naming KD Tripathi for pharmacology — and confirmed he had cross-checked those references once or twice and found them authentic.

That verification step is rare and worth copying. He did not take the referencing on trust.

A faculty favourite. He named Sayam Sir from Mental Health, praising explanations that feel like a conversation rather than a lecture, and the use of comparison to separate confusable terminology such as palilalia and echolalia.

His advice to juniors is not what you expect

Asked what first-year students should do, he refused to tell them to start grinding:

I still miss my college time. That freedom does not come back.

His actual advice is quieter and better: listen carefully to college lectures from the beginning. If the foundation is built during the course, the material returns to you when you reach serious preparation at the end of the degree.

Which is precisely what happened to him. The second-year research and the attention in class were the head start — not early cramming.

What to take from AIR 21

1. Clearing straight out of college avoids the private job loop.
2. You do not need to have been a college topper. CGPA 7.8, AIR 21.
3. Verify a platform yourself before committing to it.
4. Keep a low-friction option for bad days so the streak survives.
5. Seek out harder questions. Straightforward recall does not stretch you.

---

Frequently asked questions

What rank did Aniruddh get in NORCET 11? All India Rank 21 and SC Category Rank 2 in NORCET 11 Mains 2026, at the age of 22, straight out of college.

Do you need to be a college topper to crack NORCET? No. He explicitly rejected the label, maintaining a CGPA of around 7.8 and never standing out in merit lists, and secured AIR 21 with SC rank 2.

How many questions did he practise? More than 10,000.

How do you keep studying on low-motivation days? He used Mini Tests specifically for this — a low-friction option he could open on his phone when away from his desk or not feeling like studying, which kept the streak alive.

Should first-year nursing students start NORCET preparation immediately? He says no. His advice is to enjoy college and listen carefully to lectures from the beginning, because a foundation built during the course returns to you when serious preparation starts at the end of the degree.

---

Read the full list of NORCET 11 toppers who prepared with NPrep — 1 in 5 NORCET 11 Mains qualifiers came from NPrep: 2,178+ students qualified, 38 of them in the All-India top 100.