Before you start anything: get an overview. Write down when you have your exams, read your class syllabus, prepare.
Now think about the time. We all know that starting early is way better than cramming the night before a big exam. Maybe it helps you to make a structured plan for your studies to stay focused. Some may prefer to do it completely unstructured. Find your way. But keep in mind to take it slow. You know best, how many hours you can study before having a break-down. And only because others study for 8 hours straight doesn’t mean you have to do the same. Also keep an eye to the day form. I’m a huge fan of waking up early and doing my stuff so I have some free time at the end of the day. In addition to that I’m more a morning than a night person. After 9pm I can’t concentrate properly. Listen to your body!
1. Mind-Mapping: helps with ordering the topics and finding connections and links between your notes.
2. Flashcards: for definitions and vocabulary. Still the best method for learning nomenclature ;) I like to use quizlet and the normal paper ones.
3. The Loci-Method: anyone familiar with Sherlock’s mind palace? You can actually learn anything with it. Even the first 100 decimals of pi. Takes a lot of effort and you have to take care of it, otherwise you will forget everything.
4. Drawing: great for nearly everything! Doesn’t have to look pretty. Make it quick and fun.
5. Mnemonics: I don’t know what I would do without them! Making them is so much fun, especially because the crazy ones you will never forget again in your life.
6. Study groups: might not work for everybody or only in certain classes, but explaining your notes to others or discussing certain difficulites can help you a lot!
7. Less rewriting more action: I know, having beautiful notes and flashcards is this ideal everybody wants to achiev, but in reality there are way better techniques to memorise stuff. You have to get invested into your studies. Ask yourself questions, do old exams, watch videos, explain it to other, anything but sitting passivly in front of your desk simply rewriting your notes.
8. Start with the topics you’re bad at: I know. It’s hard to start with the complicated topics. It’s so much easier to review the first topic which was so easy and clear. But this won’t help you in your exam. Before each study session ask yourself which topic is the most complicated for you and start with it!
And then there is this thing called motivation… I haven’t seen her in a while… I guess she’s hanging out with my discipline. Ok, so the thing with motivation is, you don’t have it always. That’s impossible. But there are some ways to get her: think about why your doing all this stuff. The reason can be as big as “I want to be a doctor and therfore I have to learn these chemistry formulas to pass this goddamned exam” or as small as “after the exam I’m going to eat a big icecream and hang out with my friends”. When you don’t have the motivation to start a certain topic, give yourself 5 min working on it and decide then if you want to finish it. Sometimes starting is the worst part and after some time into it you might find it interesting. And sometimes you have no other opportunity than getting your shit together and ask discipline to take over!
Ok, apart from that a short paragraph about food. During your finals your probably studying and doing a lot. Over all this stress pls don’t forget to drink enough and eat well (I know, it’s easy to say that…). Eat your fruit and veggies, but don’t forget that extra chocolate bar at the end of the day, you deserve it! Exercising is also never bad. It gives you a break from the work your brain has to do and it’s much easier to sleep in the evenings.
