In the JEE Mains exam, covering the complete syllabus is a time consuming and difficult task which most students struggle with. A single day in the life of a student preparing for the JEE Mains comprises 24 hours only. These hours are utilized for studying and other activities which may or may not be important. It may be said that knowing which tasks are important and which are not helps create an effective study strategy for JEE Mains.
To study smart, careful planning and accurate strategies are needed. Knowing what is the 80/20 rule in JEE Mains is an important step towards building a solid strategy for success. The table below represents the answer to what is the 80/20 rule for JEE Main? It is important to know that the 80/20 rule varies for each aspirant and serves as a guideline for successful attempts rather than a full-proof preparation strategy.
Join this free JEE Prep Group to Get Free Study Material, Preparation Strategy by Toppers, Latest Updates and More!
| 80/20 Rule for JEE Mains Preparation | |
| Aspects | Details |
| Also Known As | Pareto Principle |
| Meaning of 80/20 Rule for JEE Mains | 80% of a students’ JEE Mains marks are achievable by focusing on 20% of the JEE Mains syllabus. |
| Focus on 20% of syllabus | A student preparing for JEE Mains must not intend to cover the entire syllabus. Instead, identify high-weightage topics and recurring questions from previous year papers and focus their energy on learning this 20% part of the syllabus. |
| Eliminate 80% Unimportant Tasks | Now that the 20% important tasks and areas are figured out, eliminate the remaining areas which are not important. This does not mean you skip the topics, it means you set aside a few hours for covering such topics which are not important but do not waste time on them. |
| 80/20 Rule Applicability | The 80/20 rule applies to JEE Mains preparation as it is a guideline which may be followed rather than a full-proof formula for success. Toppers and experts recommend using this approach for maximum results with a smart JEE Mains preparation strategy. |
How to Apply the 80/20 Rule JEE Mains?
Theoretical understanding of the 80/20 rule for JEE Mains preparation is not sufficient. Students must know how to apply the 80/20 rule to JEE Mains preparation to achieve their desired results. Here are the key steps which need to be taken to ensure correct application of the 80/20 rule for effective JEE Mains study strategy. It’s crucial to be mindful and strategic while applying the 80/20 rule for success in JEE Mains.
- To apply the 80/20 rule, first collect all the relevant information such as previous year question papers, test modules, expert guides and so on.
- From the available material at hand, find the main topics from the JEE Mains syllabus 2025 which are highlighted in all these resources.
- Now, an aspirant must be clear on their goals to be able to set accurate priorities and allocate time wisely. These priorities may change over time so be ready to adjust your strategy accordingly.
- When applying the 80/20 rule in your studies, remember to cover other topics too as they are also a part of the JEE Main syllabus but have a low-impact on the exam pattern.
- Lastly, it is important to regularly revise to remember and retain important information for success in the JEE Mains exam.
How to Break Down the 80/20 Rule for JEE Mains Preparation
The below section breaks down the 80/20 rule to help students understand both sides of the coin and develop a strategy which helps them succeed with ease. To identify the 80% of the guideline or rule, it is important to understand the 20% of the rule/guideline.
How to Know my 20%?
The 20% is the amount of effort you need to put toward producing a result of 80%. Studying for the JEE Mains is not just one kind of effort, there are a million other tasks or activities which are hidden in the major set of tasks during one’s study hours. Now, the question of how to know my 20%? is important to ask considering that a student is about to apply the 80/20 rule. The table below breaks down different aspects of the answer to the question: how to know my 20% efforts needed to get 80% results?
| How to know the 20% of the 80/20 Rule to Study Smart | |
| Steps | How to Find the 20% Effort Area? |
| Identify Your Goal | Before moving with the deeper analysis, the primary examination should be around your goal. Know your goal or objective first. |
| Find the 20% Efforts | To find the 20% of your tasks which will produce maximum output, start by analyzing your study routine or related tasks and segregate the trivial tasks from the important activities through either tracking results, or impact. |
| Focus on Your 20% | Cut down the low impact activities and focus your 100% on the 20% of the tasks which yield maximum results or high impact. |
| Reevaluate & Adjust | As one gets closer to the JEE Mains exam, the goals and priorities may shift, as a result, it is crucial to reevaluate your 20% and adjust it as per the changed objectives of your study plan. |
How to Identify my 80%?
After figuring out your 20% comes another significant concern among students, how to identify my 80%? To identify the 80%, students must first be able to figure out and understand their 20% of the efforts which lead to the highest results. Within the 80/20 rule, 20% efforts are key to success while eliminating extra efforts for 80% tasks which are not high-impact. Such a technique streamlines your study approach and helps you achieve your goals the smarter way. Here is a step-by-step guide to help an engineering aspirant know how to identify their 80% in the 80/20 rule.
| How to Identify the 80% Tasks That Are Not Important | |
| Steps | Detailed Explanation |
| Find low-impact tasks | Within a student’s daily, weekly or monthly schedule, a large number of activities consume time and yield low-results. Examples may include finding a suitable JEE Main preparation course online, downloading material, saving PDFs, organizing study space, etc. |
| Reduce Inefficient tasks | After figuring out what occupies 80% of your study time, assign limited time to such tasks to save extra hours for focused learning. |
| Delegate 80% tasks | Since 80% of your tasks throughout your day may not be relevant to fulfil your primary objective of scoring good marks in the JEE Mains exam, find ways to delegate or automate these 80% tasks. |
| Readjust Strategy | The 80% ineffective tasks are not going to remain constant, as a result, you must find ways to readjust your strategy and allocate time to making the 20% efforts while ensuring the 80% tasks which are irrelevant at any given time are not causing you to lose time. |
Is it Better to Study Smart and Not Hard for JEE Mains?
Unlike all other times, if students always end up choosing the harder way to study leading to more stress, clutter of information and difficulty with retention even for JEE Mains, it will not help. Instead, asking questions like is it better to study smart and not hard for JEE Mains are the right way to move ahead. Here are the benefits of studying smart and not hard for JEE Mains 2025.
- Studying smart by using techniques like the pareto principle or the 80/20 rule helps study faster by eliminating time consuming tasks.
- Students may easily focus on the high weightage or maximum priority topics.
- Consider short study periods with more efficiency rather than long hours with less results.
- It is always considered better to study smart and not hard for JEE Mains as having a solid preparation strategy saves more time for revision and creates a focused environment.
Click Here to Enroll to JEE 2026 Course!
How to apply the 80/20 Rule JEE Mains – FAQs
The pareto principle or 80/20 rule for JEE mains is a preparation strategy that prioritizes important topics and helps students master the core concepts rather than memorizing everything.
The 80/20 principle will help in your JEE mains preparation as it will allow you to focus all your energy on the important parts of the vast syllabus which in turn helps manage time through effective learning.
It is better to apply the 80/20 rule for JEE mains preparation because it helps students study smart and not hard. In other words, instead of learning or memorizing everything, this rule eliminates extra work adding more time to focus on the high-impact topics that matter the most.
