With exams right around the corner, I wanted to share some tips on how I stay motivated and prevent overwhelming stress. This year especially poses a greater challenge because we have returned to in-person learning. With the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, courses were moved online, and so were exams. Now that we have to take them in-person once again, there are a few things that we need to keep in mind while preparing for exams.
1. Be sure you know the content.
In the past, a method that I typically used was memorizing everything! This can be useful in a time crunch, but you will be even more successful if you know what you are learning. Instead of just writing down the same concept over and over, talk about it. Tell a friend about what it is you are learning, or even just say it aloud to yourself.. If you can explain it in your own words, you can know it!
Since we are in-person, we will not have the luxury of referring to our notes. So if there is a concept that you do not understand, focus on that instead of memorizing the definition. The reason for this is to gain a better understanding of the concept at hand, so you can convey your knowledge in a limited amount of time. Inevitably, you will be under more stress and pressure on exam day, and because of that, you could forget what you memorized.
2. Take breaks.
This is probably the most obvious and repeated tip, but it is true. Your brain can only absorb so much. Eventually, you will reach a point where you are no longer mindful about the information being studied. It would instead be reading just to read or writing just to write. Only review as much as you can retain. Try taking ten minutes to yourself for every hour studied. I suggest going for a walk as a well-earned break. Taking breaks will help your mind stay fresh, and when you resume studying, you will be able to self-assess to make sure you have retained the given concepts .
3. Do your best.
If you put in the time and the effort, all you can do is hope for the best. The reason that people tend to become so stressed out is because they do not know the content well. Once again, if you understand the concepts and you can explain them in your own words, you will be able to enter that exam and kill it! Once you enter that room and take your seat, there is not much more you can do. You just need to hope that the work you put in will pay off. Remember that one bad grade is not the end of the world. Just keep doing your best; that’s all you can do.