As midterms are approaching, I realize it is a time of year that a lottttt of us college students start to panic. In some ways it is worse than finals, because 1) you still have normal class work going on and 2) you still have many weeks of classes left after you finish. Never fear though, here are some tips that can help you be on your way to studying like a superstar.
Get organized and plan ahead
For me, being organized is one of the best things that I do. It makes it a lot easier if you can take all of the tasks you have to do and lay them out in one place in an orderly fashion. The thing that I have found to work well for me is to take all of my assignments and tasks from each class and put them into Google Calendar, which is synced up to your Gmail account. I color code each class, that way I can take a glance and quickly see what I have due tomorrow, next week, even months from now. This helps me to gauge what weeks have a lighter load, and which weeks will be heavier and require a lot of my time. From there, I can plan ahead to make sure I get the work done on time.
Snacks – before, during, or after
Some people need to eat before they can study; they simply can’t study on an empty stomach because it is too distracting. Others, like me, like to snack while they work. There are also people who won’t eat until after they have finished studying, sort of as a reward. Like I said, I like to pick on little things while I study because then I’m not too hungry and it helps make the studying a little less painful.
Block out distractions
This is another area where people vary on what works for them. Some like to listen to music or have a show on in the background, while others need total silence. Either way, it is important to block out distractions. This also includes prioritizing studying and school work over things that don’t NEED to happen. Not to say you shouldn’t have fun and enjoy yourself! You should! But being a student means that your education comes first most of the time. When you sit down to study, do whatever you need to focus better — whether that means playing music or sitting in silence.
Start in advance, don’t cram
Don’t be a Phoebe with no “pla”. Plan ahead!!! When you know you have a big quiz or exam coming up, don’t simply wait until the day before or day of to try to study. Chances are that you won’t actually absorb any information, and you risk freaking yourself out if you don’t really know anything. You should sit down at least 3 days in advance and start to study. If you start early, you have plenty of time to go through the information multiple times and let it soak into your brain. Save the day before/day of for reviewing the information you should already know by then, as a refresher before the exam.
Start general, end specific
Start with bigger concepts and make sure you get the general ideas, and make your way to more specific details. If you start with the wider view, it helps you to understand the major concepts that you are supposed to have learned. Once you have those down, add in the more specific information, such as terms that need to be memorized. You can use your knowledge of the big ideas to connect all of the smaller ideas, making a sort of web. It can help you to maximize your understanding of a topic.
Use flash cards for memorization
I always liked using flash cards to study definitions and things that require memorization. You can test what you know, and make a pile of the cards you don’t know as you come across them. Then you can study the “don’t know” pile a little extra until you know them well. In the past few years, I’ve started to use Quizlet more. You can take your “note cards” anywhere since you can access them on your computer or phone, and you can even play little games or quizzes to help you learn the terms and test yourself. Not to mention, it IS more environmentally friendly since you don’t waste any paper. Instead of throwing out tons of note cards when you’re finished with them, you can simply delete the study set.
Don’t forget yourself
Everyone always says this, but it is true. It is super important to make sure you are taking care of yourself! This means making sure you eat healthy, balanced meals. Get enough hours of sleep. Exercise to promote the release of endorphins in your body, making you feel happier. If you want to really spoil yourself, do a facemask and sit in a bubble bath with candles lit around you. Treat yo self.
Ultimately, everyone has different studying techniques that work best for them. The points I listed here are simply suggestions, things that I have found to work well for me. That doesn’t mean they work for everyone, so don’t be discouraged. Try them out, but find what suits your learning style best! Good luck and may the exam odds be ever in your favor.