Which is better for IIT JEE and NEET preparation — integrated coaching, offline coaching, or online coaching?

The last couple of years has transformed how we impart education, all thanks to the pandemic. Now, after two years, we find that our approach towards learning itself has undergone a paradigm shift, maybe forever. Riding on this wave of change, online coaching classes have seen a surge and a great demand. We try to decode what works best for aspiring students of IIT JEE and NEET. Is it integrated coaching, offline coaching, or online classes? Read on to know the merits and demerits of each.

Pros and cons of an integrated coaching, offline coaching, or online coaching:

Let’s begin with integrated coaching and explore its pros and cons

Pros of integrated coaching:

• It’s a time-saver — This is one of the biggest merits of this mode of learning. Since classes are conducted on location, you do not have to commute between your school/college and the coaching class. This saves you time and energy as you do not get tired in the travel.
• It saves you effort and research — You do not need to do any research for a good coaching class as your school/college provides the same. This also saves you the effort of searching for one.
• It’s a definite cost-saver — Since integrated coaching is associated with your school/college, the coaching fee is usually combined with the fees of your institution. This is generally less than what you would pay for a separate coaching class, hence a cost-saver.

Cons of integrated coaching:

• Fear of burnout — Since most integrated coaching happens almost immediately after regular school/college hours, you are more likely to suffer from burnout. Since you are neck-deep in studies, which leaves you no time to take a break, you may feel overloaded and stressed.
• Lack of quality tutors — Being taught by the best faculty can be a problem in this mode of coaching. Since those who provide integrated teaching associate with several schools/colleges, they are unable to always provide their best tutors. This is because they have to use them for other online coaching classes and institutes as well.
• No choice of faculty — Mostly, in integrated coaching, you cannot test the faculty on their method and quality of teaching. This is because your school/college provides this facility and you trust it without conducting your own research. Hence, you are compelled to depend on the tutors in this mode of teaching.

Pros of online coaching:

It saves time — It goes without saying that online coaching scores when it comes to saving time. You do not have to travel to a coaching class and attend all classes from the comfort of your home. Hence, you save time and naturally, money that you would otherwise spend on the commute.

It offers flexible a schedule — A convenient schedule is another advantage of online coaching classes. You can take them according to your timelines as most online classes are pre-recorded sessions. Also, many classes take place in the evening after school/college hours, thus giving you time to complete other tasks.

A good faculty — This is a benefit of taking online classes. Most of the tutors in online classes are qualified and even experienced IITians, i.e., lecturers and professors from prestigious institutes. Hence, you are assured of the quality of your teachers, who are the best in their field.

You get personal attention — Since most batches in this mode of learning are restricted to a limited number of students, you are assured of personal attention. Most of the batches stick to 20 students, thus having a healthy student-teacher ratio. Besides, with the restricted number, it is easy for tutors to monitor the progress of students as well.

Free demo classes — When it comes to online learning, most classes offer a free demo class. This helps you in gauging the quality of education and filter classes as per your choice. This way you can choose what suits you and what is the best according to your experience based on the demo class.

Besides what we have stated above, you get continuous help from subject matter experts, regular counseling and customized sessions, and even attractive scholarships at online coaching classes. Moreover, since you are learning alongside students from almost every part of the country and at times even outside it, there’s scope for better evaluation and global benchmarking.

Cons of online coaching:

Uncertain technology — You may be surprised, but nonetheless, this is a reality. True, technology has many benefits, but at times it can be a bane as well. System failure, network issues, etc. are some of the technical glitches that happen in online coaching. Coaching class providers do hold technical sessions for students beforehand, yet technology can malfunction.

However, here we would to add that some coaching classes provide a recording of the live online tutoring, and if at all there is any technical glitch, you can access the recorded session at a later date.

Attention and interaction — In online classes, you may find it difficult to focus and pay attention as you are not in a regular classroom setting or even integrated coaching. Also, you are unable to interact with other students and your tutors in an online setting.

No personal touch — Since everything is virtual, there is a distinct lack of personal touch. This may be a hindrance when you are preparing for a competitive exam such as NEET or IIT JEE, as personal interaction with your teachers and fellow students is essential and helpful.

Self-study and motivation — Another demerit of online coaching is that mostly, you have to engage in self-study. Your coaching institute will certainly help you, however, it is up to you to create and stick to a study schedule. Plus, you will have to motivate yourself to follow your study plan and be extremely diligent and sincere with it.

Pros of offline coaching:

Better faculty — The traditional method of imparting education does boast of a good faculty, which is dedicated and perhaps more efficient than especially, integrated teaching. This is certainly a huge advantage for you as a student.

Free demo class — In the offline mode of learning too, you can choose to take a demo class to assess the teaching quality. You need not commit immediately and pick an institute. You can wait and choose the one that you feel suits you the best. This way, you are not tied up with a particular faculty as in integrated learning.

Easy to stay motivated — In offline coaching, since the teachers are present physically, they ensure that you are always motivated and follow a schedule while keeping up with the class. Besides, you are learning in a certain environment, which is conducive to always staying motivated and sticking to the study schedule.

Better competition — Since you will be learning along with students from different schools/colleges, you stand to benefit. This is because you will be competing against students who are serious and sincere about appearing for IIT JEE or NEET. Thus, you are pitted against quality students.

Cons of offline coaching:

No personal attention — Unlike live online tutoring, in offline coaching, a single batch consists of about 100 students. This is detrimental, as your tutor will not be able to give full attention to every student. Hence, without personal attention and counseling, assessing each student’s performance can be difficult, in turn, making it a disadvantage for the students.

Lack of quality tutors — In an offline mode, you may not always get the best faculty to teach. This situation is aggravated if you are unable to secure a seat in the toppers’ or rankers’ batch as students are divided into batches. The best faculty and resources are reserved for the toppers’ batch, whereas the rest have to make do with average tutors.

Exorbitant fee structure — In offline coaching, the fees are quite high and at certain places, students are also charged for food, rent, and other resources. Thus, you may find this coaching more expensive than integrated or even online coaching.

To conclude, we can say that each method has its distinct advantages and disadvantages. However, you have to assess and judge for yourself, the method that will suit you the best. Do remember that, whether online coaching classes, offline coaching, or integrated learning, you must get a holistic and well-versed approach to learning. It should guide, help, motivate, and push you to do your best for the competitive exam.