Hello everyone! Haven’t posted a masterpost in a long time! Hopefully this will be helpful to all of you in the following semester! I’m posting this now and not in the middle of finals week because some of these tips actually require of you to plan ahead so don’t be lazy, start the summer semester right!
The tips are organised more or less chronologically through the progression of the semester.
Disclaimer: This masterpost is aimed mostly at college students, seeing as we sometimes take big exams with 1000+ pages of study material, but I believe these tips could be helpful for anyone else! So let’s get started!
[check out my other masterposts here]
1. Start on time
Starting with a big one. Start. On. Time. The earlier you start with revising and going through the material, the more time you’ll have to do practice test which are one of the most important aspects of your revision (more on practice tests below!)
What this includes:
Going to lectures - this is an important step in gaining passive knowledge about the subject, by paying attention to what your professor says, you are already saving some of the concepts in your short-term memory [find about more about short-term vs. long-term memory here]
Taking notes during the lecture - doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just follow the main concepts of the lecture and write down main points - do not write down every single word you hear!!! this has no effect and you just become a human tape recorder. [this makes you pay attention and has your brain actually process information it’s hearing instead of just recording it]
Make your notes such as they are editable, meaning either use a computer or binder paper so you can insert additional pages and add content from different sources (textbooks, past papers, etc.)
Revise your notes after lecture - this takes just up to 30 minutes every day and for me it would be colour coding the notes I made in class. [colour coding your notes during the class simply takes too much time and imo takes a lot of time, at home you can take time to colour code and sort the material so your brain doesn’t only remember recording the information, but now sees it as an organised unit]
2. Have a life outside of school
Make friends, join a sport club, join the chapel choir, go jogging every weekend, go clubbing on Fridays, whatever you like!
Personally I like learning Swedish, going to dance parties whenever I can and taking long walks along the river. I study Microbiology and Genetics so learning a language is a nice way to “stimulate other parts of my brain”, so to speak. The different the hobby from your major, the better!
I am very aware that during the finals week, you’ll probably have to cut some time on some of these activities, but keep in mind that just because you’re at Uni, you don’t have to abandon every other aspect of your personality.
This also includes:
Taking breaks
Treating yourself with some nice things whenever you reach a goal
Dating!! (if you want, of course)
3. Take care of your (mental) health
This is a tricky topic, but I am fully aware that a lot, and I mean A LOT of students struggle with mental health issues, some of us have had this struggle even before starting college/uni.
After having a horrible first semester mental health-wise as a student abroad AND a queer female student in the STEM field that already had a life long history of depression, this January I’ve realised how much of my potential is wasted on horrible panic attacks when I should be studying and dreading existential depression when I should be going out and exploring the city. I reached out to my Uni therapist and asked for help. I’ve been visiting the organisation for two months now and it is completely FREE. I am still struggling but just ASKING FOR HELP has helped me so so much. I thought there are no free options for me and I’d have to waste a ton of money on just getting help, but if you use that magical lil thing called google, I’m sure you’ll find many options for students in your area.
This also includes:
Taking care of your physical health - no school subject should make you get sick because you sleep too little or make you loose a ton of weight because you think you don’t have the time to eat healthy
Taking care of your reproductive health!!! - if you are sexually active and live in a college campus/alone away from your parents, chances are, you are in great risk of getting an STI or unwanted pregnancy. I think this isn’t mentioned enough but check in with your insurance company about the coverage for things such as IUD, birth control pills, nuva ring, etc. as well as other contraceptives that prevent STI’s (female and male condoms, etc.)! If you don’t practice heterosexual intercourse, here’s an important link, also here. When in doubt, talk to your doctor!
What does this have to do with big exams?
Well, many students I know seem to ignore their health and sacrifice their sanity, just to get “a good grade”. Emotional, as well as physical health is crucial for being happy and satisfied with yourself. I also mention reproductive health because it is often overlooked as something “people should know already”, but people often overlook the consequences of getting an STI or getting accidentally pregnant. Having a panic attack over a weird growth on your genitalia or missing your period and wondering whether it’s from stressing about exams or getting pregnant is the LAST thing that should be happening to you when you need to thinking about your education. Also letting your mental issues building up and then having a nervous breakdown the day before your big exam probably isn’t a good idea.
4. You are probably not a night owl
Before I get bombarded with hate for this one, I do think that, YES, some people are night owls! But I also believe that some people, SOME people simply have little to no self-control and/or organisational skills and therefore end up staying late at night finishing that last-minute assignment or studying the night before the test. I AM this person, I do this. But when I do manage to get my ass out of bed at an appropriate time and get a good nights sleep beforehand, my productivity is OUTSTANDING. Try rebooting your sleeping schedule and actually getting stuff done in the morning, you might be surprised in realising you are, in fact, a morning person! If you truly try and again fail, then congratulations, you are indeed a creature of the night!
By actually getting myself to be productive in the morning, I managed to have 0 allnighters for my last exam and pass it as well!
Here are some interesting links on the topic:
The AsapSCIENCE video
Sleep and good grades
5. To coffee or not to coffee?
This is also a complicated topic but IF you feel like you are well rested, fairly focused and you usually do not need to drink coffee! If you are like me, the additional caffeine will just send you into anxiety mode and for the rest of the day you’ll feel like someone spiked your drink with DMT. Not joking!! It is also important to remember that drinking too much coffee too early in the morning can indeed affect you negatively in the long run so be careful! The last thing you need during your finals week is to have painful stomach ulcers, yikes.
While there are negative sides to drinking too much coffee, there are also findings that show coffee helps with your memory!
If you find yourself literally OD-ing on coffee and not getting any results, try drinking tea instead. Fun fact: tea leaves actually contain more caffeine than coffee, but by diluting them while prepping your beverage, the effects are weaker.
All things in moderation, especially when preparing for a big exam!
Here are some links:
20 Harmful Effects of Caffeine
Perk Up Your Memory with Caffeine!
Caffeine and anxiety
6. Practice tests!!!!
Do. Practice. Tests. It doesn’t only prepare your brain for the exam environment, but it also makes you actively learn things.
My usual practice for big tests is 1 month of hardcore studying (going over the materials) and 1 week of going through past papers or practice tests as some call them. You can also do 5 days of going through the material and then 1 day of doing exam questions, but this is mostly up to you, as everyone is different and no person can study the exact same way as you! The uni usually has an entire server of these and a good tip is to join some facebook groups of older students and politely ask them to send you some old questions/give you tips on the exam you are taking! Most of them are usually happy to help.
An interesting study about practice tests
And lastly, don’t forget that your grades aren’t everything and as a college student, you probably won’t be able to get through all of those 1000+ pages of study material and that is okay! Usually the main thing you will be graded on is understanding the concept and applying it to a real-life situation in the field. Focus on the big picture and don’t stress too much over small details! I tried to be as general as possible, as to have this masterpost applicable for anyone and I am fully aware that your studying strategy will differ depending whether you study linguistics, history, computer science, or something completely different!
If you think that I forgot anything or have any questions, feel free to message me and I’ll make sure to answer to you as soon as possible!
Have a lovely Monday!
