“I have always wanted to do something in the field of biology. Now more than ever, during the pandemic, we are seeing how important a doctor’s service is to the community. I’m a bit nervous and excited for what’s in store,” said the 18-year-old, who is hoping to get into the Madras Medical College.

Sanjana has been preparing for the past two years, from the time she was a Class 11 at PSBB, KK Nagar, and underwent coaching at Marvel Educare in KK Nagar.

“It was a little difficult preparing during the shutdown because the exam got postponed repeatedly. I feared that I would forget what I studied earlier. But I kept taking tests and got feedback on my performance, which helped me stay sharp,” she said.

When things got tough, Sanjana took to painting to take her mind off things, with water colour as her medium of choice.

“NEET is just another examination. Students should know how to manage stress better and should be given the space to relax. If you fail, just know that you can try again,” she said.

Those with a score of 400 and above would secure seats in top medical colleges in the State such as the Madras Medical College, Government Stanley Medical College and Government Kilpauk Medical College.

“Each question has two theoretically correct answers out of four. The NTA has its ‘best answer’ and marks are awarded accordingly. Many questions that I discussed in my coaching institute conformed with my answers though NTA gave a different answer to it,” said S Dhanvanth, who scored 406.