Here I am after more than a month of vacation. I have thought a lot about the past academic year during this summer. It was a tough one, and it challenged me a lot.
In the university that I attend, exams are very close and, to do all of them in time, you must study for two or three exams simultaneously. It requires the ability to prioritize, to dedicate the right amount of time to every subject.
Prioritizing was not immediate to me, and I had to train myself. Here are a few tips that I use when planning the study of multiple subjects at the same time:
This technique is good if you are preparing exams of different importance and complexity. Identify the moment of the day in which you are more productive, and dedicate that time to the most complex subject. Then, give time to the second most productive moment for a less complicated exam. If you have a third subject, split the day into three parts, and so on.
For instance, I am more productive in the morning, a bit more distracted in the afternoon, and way less active in the evening, so I base my plans on this scale.
To know the time of the day in which you are more productive, I advise the chronotype test. We all are classifiable as four animals, with different features and routine inclination. For example, I am a dolphin, so I am more productive late in the morning, after some workout and a cold shower. To find your chronotype, do the test here: https://www.doctoroz.com/quizzes/whats-your-chronotype. After having done the quiz, you will periodically receive emails deepening your chronotype.
Also, splitting the day makes studying less boring. I tend to fall asleep if I spend long hours on the same topic while switching from a subject to another waken me up. I would not be able to study for eight hours for the same exam, while I can study four hours for one exam, three for another and one for a third one. By the way, this point is very individual: if you do not fit into this type of planning, look at point 2.
This is good whether you are studying for exams of the same importance, or if you prefer to dedicate all day to the same subject.
Dedicate every day of the week to a different exam. You can choose to assign more days for one exam rather than another, based on their complexity.
I use this technique a lot during classes when I do not have all day to study. When I still have to get familiar with the subject, I prefer to give it all day, without any time limit.
Generally speaking, the semester's exams have criteria. You are likely to have similar subjects, or at least with some points in common. Identify the repetitions and the joint topics, and study them together. It will make you save time and have a complete view of that specific argument.
This is all! Let me know if you have some more suggestions that you would like to share. Good luck to all of you with your exams 💪🏻
