Heya!!! I've been in your situation before. I also did not take part in our internal uni moot in my first year because I chickened out at the last minute and thought there was no point in making a joke out of myself. I completely regret not trying out mooting in my first year, not because it caused me a disadvantage in the future (which it did of course) but because I didn't deal with my lack of self-confidence issues back then. Subsequently, in my second year, I was feeling very low as my peers were faring much better than me and I only got to take part in one moot with teammates who were not really enthusiastic about it. For a long time, I was extremely anxious about my lack of mooting achievements and no matter what I did, I somehow could not manage to do well in it - our college is also not very supportive in terms of providing attendance and funding, so that, of course, did not make things any better. My fellow classmates had already found their moot partners and I could not possibly ask them to moot with me. Despite this, third year was a complete game changer, I somehow managed to team up well, won a couple of national moots and an international moot. I'm not currently anxious about mooting at all, but I am very concerned about my placements. But just want to say that we are all on the same page or have been at some point. You might think your peers are faring much better than you when in reality, they also have their own issues to deal with. I am sure you know how to do well in moots, but you might not be able to execute it that well - this could be because of multiple external factors that may not really be under your control. Just know that mooting is quite arbitrary and that one shouldn't do moots merely to get a material outcome as such because it can truly be very disappointing when things don't pan out the way we want them to.

My only advice is that we all need to change the way we perceive mooting - it shouldn't be all about the outcomes. Yes, results matter but the kind of subject matter knowledge you get when you spend months diligently researching on it is just something else altogether. While I was working on the international moot I mentioned, I initially opted for it merely for the CV value it offered. But when I truly started working on it, I happened to really enjoy the process. The last 6 or so months working on it were truly a blessing - despite the lack of attendance, low CGPA, lack of internships etc.

Just don't worry - although not doing moots in the first year can cause some disadvantages, that is not something that cannot be changed. Make sure you put in your very best and work with people who are diligent and not just smart. Focus on doing moots where you will enjoy the subject matter and learn to enjoy the process. Do not be too harsh on yourself. I don't know who you are but I am rooting for you. I hope it all works well:)))

Did myfirst moot round in 2nd year. Paid close attention during the mooting workshop and made notes. Watched seniors who were Good mooters while they were practising and arguing. Did well and got allocated a domestic T1 moot that year. Semi finalist. Made friends and had a lot of fun. It's not impossible at all.

Im in my first year at an NLU. I got royally screwed over by my teammates in my uni internal moot rounds. As a result I had to drop out last minute and couldnt participate even though I'd done my research. Now i see everyone around me so into moots and I feel so sad. I really want to do moots, and good ones too!! Maybe get a fighting chance at the really nice international ones. But i feel like since I didnt start in 1st year, my chances are way lesser than anyone else to ever get selected for the great moots. If there's anyone here who started mooting in their 2nd year and still was able to develop their skills in mooting and achieve as a mooter, do let me know. Thank you