11 Best Study Tips Every College Student Should Know
Are you wanting to know how you can prepare for an upcoming exam? In this blog post, I share the 9 best study tips every college student should know.
Maybe it’s exam season for you or maybe you’re just wanting to learn how to study in general. By reading this blog post, you will discover the exact strategies that I’ve tried in University and has helped me build an effective study routine. After reading this post, you will learn tips and tricks that you can implement in your study routine.
This post is all about the best study tips for college students.
9 Best Study Tips You Should Know About
1. Make a study plan and STICK with it
The first thing you need to do before you even open up your textbooks and get cracking is to sit down and make a study schedule.
Be realistic with what you can commit to every day and every week. Getting organized early on and planning ahead will give you much more clarity and it will make it easier to navigate how you will fit your study plans into your daily schedule with other life commitments.
2. Prepare A.S.A.P
The last thing you want to do when you have a big exam coming up is to procrastinate. I know that sometimes we’d rather put off studying at a later time, but trust me, you will never regret studying early for big exams.
Avoid cramming as much as you can! Again, easier said than done but you’ll thank yourself that you got a head start as you get closer to exam day.
3. Create a study environment that works for you
I’m a firm believer that your study space and environment makes a HUGE difference on your ability to focus and stay productive. A messy desk full of clutter can make concentrating difficult.
Tailoring your study area according to your aesthetic and needs can help maximize your overall functioning for exam preparation. It’s important your study area is comfortable (but not too comfortable that you fall asleep) and quiet that has minimal distractions.
Having an aesthetic study space makes me a lot more motivated and productive to get work done.
4. Start with what you don’t know first
Are you someone that re-reads all of your notes as a way to review for exams? There’s nothing wrong with that but a way to save time and get the most out of your study sessions is to start with the material you don’t know or not quite understand just yet.
Figuring out what you already know versus what you don’t know is a smart way to determine which areas of the course you need to prioritize. Not only will this help you feel more prepared for test day, but it will save you a lot of time too.
5. Teach the material to someone else
One of the strategies that has truly helped me in the past when preparing for a big exam is to pretend I’m an instructor giving a lecture to a group of students.
Doing this helps you figure out if you really know your stuff or if you need to spend more time reviewing certain concepts/topics.
6. Take good care of yourself
Do you ever just feel mentally drained after studying for long periods of time? I know you want to ace that exam but don’t get too caught up with studying that you’re neglecting your mental and physical health.
A few helpful tips
7. Quiz yourself
You can do this by yourself or you can have someone else join you, but this is so helpful to recall what you’ve just studied. Testing yourself can help you determine gaps in your knowledge of the content material, and where you should spend more of your time on.
8. Try the Pomodoro Technique
I love using the “Pomodoro Technique” myself because I easily get distracted. If you haven’t heard of the Pomodoro technique before, it is basically working in intervals.
You set a timer for 25 minutes, and within that time period, you will focus on studying. Once the 25 minutes is up, you are allowed to take a 5 minute break. You can also take longer breaks which lasts from 15-20 minutes.
TIP:
Step away from your study area during your breaks. Use this time to stretch, get some water, go for a quick walk, and most importantly breathe. Depending how long your break is, allow your mind and body to relax so that you can re-focus once you come back.
I have always resorted to the Pomodoro technique for heavier lectures. The reason being is because it helps divide up the content into increments, making things less overwhelming.
9. Repetition is key
The more we practice something, the better we get at it.
The same goes for studying – the more we review a concept, the more we will gain a better understanding of it.
Something that has helped me in the past was familiarizing myself with lecture slides by going over it everyday. I’m a visual person, so I used highlighting as a tool to focus on certain concepts / points. I would also annotate on the lecture slides by taking the notes I wrote from class and writing on the slides.
10. Do practice questions
Another tip to test how much you know is doing practice questions. I know with majority of my textbooks, there were practice questions at the end of each chapter. I took advantage of using those to benefit my own learning. If you don’t have access to textbooks, Google has a ton of helpful resources to further supplement your learning.
Also some universities have exam bank/ registries where you can review copies of past exams. Definitely look into this and if your school offers the same service!
11. When in doubt, ask for help from your professor(s)
Never be afraid to ask for extra support when you are just feeling lost (no shame, we’ve all felt this way).
Every professor is different. However, there are some really nice profs out there who are willing to set aside extra time for office hours to help you out. They may also be able to provide you with extra resources. There’s no harm in asking for help.
This post was all about the best study tips for college.
Love, Veronica xx
