This semester is coming to an end which means finals season is rapidly approaching. Although finals can be the most anxiety-inducing part of the semester, it is possible to finish the semester strong.
Use these tips to keep your stress levels down and your grades up this exam week!
1. Attitude is everything.
Don’t let yourself feel discouraged and always leave room for growth. Instead of saying, “I can’t do this” say “I can’t do this… yet.” Don’t sell yourself short or get too frustrated. Everything is possible through hard work, even though it may initially feel unconquerable.
2. Use your resources!
If you don’t understand something, you’ve got a whole world of resources available to you. Form study groups with your friends, email your professors, visit walk-in tutoring centers at your university, or even look up videos on YouTube.
3. Exercise before, during, or after studying.
Exercise reduces stress levels and improves memory retention, so take a break from your studying to go on a walk. If it’s crunch time and you have no time for breaks, try studying on a treadmill or an exercise bike.
4. Make the material interesting.
If you’re studying something really boring and can’t keep yourself focused, change the subject. Relate the material to real life or swap out boring examples for your passions. Instead of studying economics with fruit as an example, why not pretend the example deals with sports cars or the album sales of your favorite musical artist? You can also make a review game out of anything. Use Jenga, Uno, online Jeopardy, or anything else you may have lying around to make the material more fun.
5. Don’t cram or pull all-nighters
You’ll retain information better over the long run if you study over long periods of time. Instead of studying ten hours the night before the test, study two hours a day for the five days leading up to it. Being able to sleep on the information will help you retain it better because your brain processes everything you learned that day while you’re asleep! Sleeping literally helps you learn, so treat yourself to a night of rest.
6. Study in a multi-sensory environment
Incorporating more of your senses into studying will help you remember information better. Use different colored pens when you take notes, listen to the same kind of music, or eat the same candy while studying and before a test. Have something in your hands to fidget with while studying.
For more information about these tips or others, give John Medina’s Brain Rules a read!