Hi, itâs Claudia! Itâs currently finals season for me so I thought maybe this could be helpful to everyone taking their finals soon as well! Iâll try my best to make it short and simple.
Basic tips:
-Consistent work throughout the whole semester is going to help you. You donât have to do detailed notes but at least study your material.
-Attend your classes (unless you really canât) and pay as much attention as you can. Â I jot down (messy) notes in class to keep me concentrated. I know some lectures are completely boring, but the action of going to class can help you feel productive, and it can help you remember the syllabus.
-Be patient and kind to yourself. If you canât understand a topic, take it slow. Donât bash yourself for it. Google, YouTube, ask your seniors, go to the library. Relax, breathe, continue on. Youâve got this.
-Take care of your body & your environment. Stay hydrated, eat your meals, make sure your living space is habitable/somewhat organized. A change of space can help too, so you can visit a café or the library.
-Stay off social media for a while. If youâre uncomfortable of leaving your phone locked away like me because of some responsibilities, maybe just turn off your internet.
*thereâs probably more to add, but these are just a few things I would recommend. Add your own recommendations if you want!*
The actual studying process:
1. Print out material: Personally, I study better if I have the physical copies of notes  to read them non-digitally.  Sometimes throughout the semester I misplace notes/donât print some chapters, so during finals, I compile all my lecture slides and print it and bind it so I have it all to study for. You can ask from notes from seniors, and you can pass yours down too.
2. Type your own notes: For reading intensive classes (for me, classes like psych, historyâŠ), typing my own notes help a lot. Sometimes the lecture notes are too lengthy and detailed, and the typing process helps me study too. I print them as well afterwards.
3. Highlighting: I find highlighting to keep my concentrated, and the action makes sure Iâm sort of absorbing the material because I need to focus to see whatâs important that needs highlighting. For b&w notes the pop of color helps me concentrate too.
4. Writing concise notes: Usually throughout the semester I write notes in notebooks so I can keep up with whatâs going on. When itâs exams season, I rewrite the notes but I do it super concise, and usually get to write the whole syllabus in just a couple pieces of paper. The writing helps you study, and the conciseness makes sure youâre studying the right stuff. You can highlight these as well to help study.
5. Actually read your notes (sometimes out loud): I usually do this maybe a day or two before the test and on the day itself. I like to read it out loud to help it stick in my head.
6. Study with a friend: I like to study with friends because they can keep you accountable. Also, itâs good to ask friends questions and better yet to teach them something because that helps you learn as well. You guys can test each other too, which is great.
7. Refer to resources: This doesnât just mean textbooks. Of course, borrowing the basic text for your class is helpful, but I mean, ask your seniors for help, ask friends, and refer to podcasts or videos online too. For my politics and history classes, Crash Course helped a lot. Looking up exercises online helps too.
Further tips on how to study:
-Study strategically. Know your coursework marks, and how much you need to score in your finals in order to get your target grade. Study accordingly. Ask your lecturer for the format of your exam, sometimes they give you key topics for the essay sections which is super helpful, so make sure to ask.
-Understand your topics as much as you can. I know some subjects you need to memorize, but seriously, donât just memorize meanings. You can memorize, e.g., the 5 steps in x process, but donât memorize what each step means.Â
-Prioritize your subjects. Donât study one topic youâre already doing comparatively better at because itâs easy or because it comes first. Itâs sometimes not best to study equally for each subject because there truly are some harder/easier classes, and it all depends on yourself.
I would like to clarify that this is what works best for me and what I would suggest to other people if they asked for my advice, but also remember that things do work differently for different students, so try to figure out what works best for you, preferably not just a few days before your finals. IÂ hope this has been helpful. Good luck!
ellievsbear
