Eight tips to help you study and succeed during midterm season.
Let’s face it: exams are stressful for practically every student on the planet. To help ease your stress, here are eight midterm studying tips.
Do not procrastinate
Do not procrastinate. Seriously, do not! Please make it easier on yourself and start studying early for your tests. Starting early allows you to prepare for your exams bit by bit without cramming all the information in your head the night before.
Pay attention in class
Stop online shopping and playing Roblox in class. Yes, the class may be boring and the lectures may seem like a waste of time, but listening to them introduces you to the content that will be on the exam. Use that time to absorb information like a sponge and review after class. This will help the content stick with you.
Make a priority list
Some classes are harder than others and require a lot more studying time. Before you start your hardcore studying sessions, identify which classes require the most attention so you can focus on those. Do not spend 50 hours reviewing for your History of Puppets test that is going to be open-note when you have that Spanish written and oral midterm in a few days.
Make a schedule
With several exams on the way, it is important to have an idea of what you are going to study and when. Planning when you are going to review will let you fit those study sessions in around classes, work and whatever other commitments you might have. It also ensures that you end up paying attention to all of your midterms and not just a select few.
Read over the review sheet
Many professors will post a review sheet for the exam or host a review session. Take advantage of it! Use the review sheet as guidelines for what to study. Check off the topics that you are confident about and highlight the ones that you are not so certain on. Overall, review sheets are an excellent way to keep your studying organized.
Active Recall: a super effective studying method
Have you ever tried re-reading or re-writing notes and it just doesn’t stick? Same here. Simply going over the material is not the best way of making it stick. Active recall is a studying method where you routinely stop and recount what you just reviewed while studying. Ask yourself both broad and specific questions while reviewing a topic to stay engaged with the material and avoid zoning out.
Have a cutoff time
With so many deadlines approaching, it is easy to get overwhelmed. To maintain a healthy study schedule and hopefully get adequate sleep, pick a designated cutoff time from school work. You will have some peace of mind knowing that you will be done for the night at a certain time.
Wind down each night
Another reason to implement a cutoff time is so you will have some time to wind down each night. Allowing yourself some time to relax by the end of the day can help avoid burnout. Pick something enjoyable to end the night with like watching Netflix or working on a hobby.
Good luck with your midterms everyone! Do not slack off or Goldie will be disappointed in you.
