Skip to content
Free shipping above ₹499
Oakspine Press

Entrance exams

CLAT preparation

Common Law Admission Test for the National Law Universities.

24 free guides·Conducted by Consortium of National Law UniversitiesOfficial website

About the CLAT exam

CLAT, the Common Law Admission Test, is how the Consortium of National Law Universities admits students to the five-year undergraduate law programmes at about two dozen NLUs. It is usually held in December. You need to have passed Class 12 with 45 per cent (40 per cent for SC and ST candidates), and there is no age limit. NLU Delhi admits through its own test, AILET.

The paper is 120 multiple-choice questions in two hours, on pen and paper. A right answer earns 1 mark and a wrong one loses 0.25, and there are no sectional time limits. Every section is built on passages: English, current affairs, legal reasoning, logical reasoning and a small quantitative section. Seats are allotted through the Consortium’s counselling, based on your rank and your NLU preferences.

The Start here guides cover the pattern, eligibility and the NLUs, the syllabus, the reading habit behind every section, one-year and six-month plans, time strategy and negative marking. Then go subject by subject. Legal reasoning has the most guides because it rewards method: apply the principle you are given, not your own sense of fairness. Current affairs needs steady monthly notes, because it cannot be crammed.

CLAT exam pattern at a glance
Paper120 MCQs, 120 marks, 2 hours; offline with an OMR sheet
Marking+1 / −0.25; no sectional time limits
Sections (questions)English 22–26, Current Affairs 28–32, Legal 28–32, Logical 22–26, Quant 10–14
EligibilityClass 12 with 45% (40% for SC/ST); no age limit

Patterns change. Confirm details in the latest notification on the official website.

Start here

New to CLAT? Read these first, in this order.

  1. 1The CLAT exam pattern explainedOne hundred and twenty questions, two hours, five sections, and every question tied to a passage. How CLAT UG is structured, how marking works, and what a reading-based exam means for the way you prepare.
  2. 2CLAT eligibility and the National Law UniversitiesWho can take CLAT UG, which universities admit through it, and why NLU Delhi is different. The basics to settle before you start preparing, including percentages, reservations and domicile seats.
  3. 3The CLAT syllabus, section by sectionCLAT's syllabus is described in skills rather than topics. What each section really tests, the background knowledge that makes you faster, sample question types, and a sensible order of study.
  4. 4Reading for CLAT: the skill behind every sectionEvery CLAT section is passage-based, so reading speed and understanding shape the whole score. What to read, how much, how to read actively, and how to measure and build your speed.
  5. 5A one-year CLAT plan with Class 12Most CLAT aspirants prepare during Class 12. A year-long plan that fits around school and board exams, builds reading and current affairs steadily, and peaks in December.
  6. 6A six-month CLAT planStarting in June or July still leaves enough time for a strong CLAT attempt. A month-by-month plan that puts reading, current affairs and mocks first, with a daily routine and clear targets.
  7. 7Two hours, 120 questions: time and attempt strategyCLAT has no sectional time limits, so the order you choose and the time you give each section are your own decisions. A minute-by-minute time plan, clock checkpoints, rules for leaving a passage and ways to test it all in mocks.
  8. 8Negative marking in CLATA wrong answer costs a quarter mark. The simple maths of when a guess helps, when it hurts, why the real cost of guessing is time, and why accuracy still matters more than attempts.

Subject by subject

Strategy

Guides on the pattern, eligibility and the NLUs, plans for Class 12 students and droppers, reading habit, mocks, time strategy, counselling and other law entrance tests such as AILET. There are no sectional clocks, so you choose your own section order and test it in mocks.

All 14 Strategy guides

English Language

22–26 questions on fiction and non-fiction passages of about 450 words. Questions test the main idea, inference, the author’s tone and argument, and the meaning of words in context, so reading quickly and accurately is the core skill.

All 10 English Language guides

Latest CLAT guides

CLATEnglish LanguageLiterary and fiction passages in CLATFiction and memoir extracts do not argue; they show. How to read for character, mood, point of view and figurative language, with an original literary passage, six worked questions and a practice extract. 9 min read·29 Sept 2026CLATEnglish LanguageBuilding word power for CLATA working vocabulary system for CLAT: collect words from your reading, use roots with care, watch for look-alike words and false friends, and revise on a spaced schedule. With a legal word list and a self-test. 7 min read·28 Sept 2026CLATEnglish LanguageGrammar in CLAT passagesCLAT English is mainly comprehension, but grammar still earns marks: in reference and usage questions, and in reading long legal sentences correctly. The rules that matter, worked examples and a practice set. 7 min read·27 Sept 2026CLATEnglish LanguageA worked CLAT English passage, question by questionA full-length original CLAT-style passage with six questions, the reason every wrong option fails, and a second passage to practise on your own. 9 min read·26 Sept 2026CLATEnglish LanguageVocabulary in context for CLATCLAT asks what a word means in the passage, not in the dictionary. How to use context clues, why familiar meanings mislead, the everyday words with legal second meanings, and an original passage with worked answers and practice. 7 min read·25 Sept 2026CLATEnglish LanguageTone and attitude questions in CLAT EnglishHow does the author feel about the subject? How to read tone from word choice, a working list of tone words, the close pairs that trip candidates, and original passages with worked answers and practice. 6 min read·25 Sept 2026