Posts filed under 'study tips'
The last few days before a final always seem to creep up on us way too quickly, but when it’s time to cram, don’t just head to the library and drive yourself crazy. Here’s your finals week guide to effective studying.
Evaluate. I’ve written a lot about studying practices in the past, and now’s the time to honestly evaluate which style works best for you. If you work best alone, skip out on the study groups. If you’re a daytime studier, don’t waste daylight hours sleeping! And if you remember things better when you write them out, turn off the computer and pull out your pencil. Now’s the time to get serious.
Plan. I’m a huge advocate of making a study schedule–it will not only help you stay on track, but also helps you feel more in control during a very stressful time. Plan to focus study for your closest tests first, but intersperse your days with different subjects to keep your brain fresh. If you can, give yourself an extra couple of days for overflow in case you get behind.
Study. It sounds simple, but it’s not. Finals week is prime time for procrastinating (I used to excuse myself from studying by cleaning my room, rationalizing that it was so productive). So log out of Facebook, cut off your chatting, and if you can, turn off your internet connection completely. Don’t make excuses, just study.
Move. Exercise is an awesome tool. It helps keep your brain active (while giving it a rest from all those flashcards), lets your body stretch, gives you a kick of adrenaline and endorphins, and is even thought to help ward off depression. When you take your study breaks, be sure to get up and move, even if it’s just taking a brisk walk outside for a few minutes.
Rest. Sleep deprivation is already a problem in college, but finals week it gets exponentially worse. If you don’t feel you can afford a full 8 hours (which is optimal for most people) indulge in some naps during study breaks to keep you going. Sleep helps keep your brain sharp and lets your body recharge (for a new day of grueling studying…).
Nourish. Your body needs energy–especially when you aren’t letting it sleep enough–so don’t give up lunchtime to study. Eating healthy, regular meals and snacks will help you get more out of your study sessions, so head over to the caf (take your books if you must) and get your three meals a day.
Hydrate. One of the symptoms of dehydration is sleepiness, so kick that extra drag on your energy by drinking lots of water. Stay away from sugary drinks or coffee, which give you a rush of energy and then a potential energy crash, and (obviously) alcohol, which actually dehydrates you (in addition to dulling your studying skills!).
Good luck!
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December 6th, 2010
Well my honey is making his way through the first year of med school, and I do NOT envy him his workload. But at least his study techniques are useful! Check them out:
“Pimpin’” It
So when the hubs came home from school on Monday he casually asked me, “Have I told you about pimping?” You can probably imagine the look I gave him after that weird question, but he quickly explained that it is an actual term med students use for one of their study techniques–explained to him by his 40-something class moderator (and she is a serious and respected ER doctor who just finished her second residency).
The basics of “pimping” are simple: You go over your notes and study alone, and then get together with someone you work well with and take turns firing off questions at each other, one after another. It is fast paced and intense, and really gets your synapses firing.
The way my sweetie and his study comp do it is to simply say something like, “Tell me about keytones.” The questioner lets his partner start off with a simple description, and then fires off questions until the discussion continues. They spend hours doing this, but hopefully your major doesn’t require that much “pimping.” 
Become the Teacher
Another method that works really well for a lot of the study groups is to take turns being the teacher. One of my sweetie’s study groups gets a small room in the library and each take a topic they’re familiar with to re-teach to the group. They discuss problems, hypotheses, and questions together, go over anything confusing from lecture and of course mess around cracking jokes and stuff, which helps them all stay sane on full-day study dates. Then they swap teachers.
The group gets the benefit of going over notes again, while the teacher gets to really focus on wrapping his or her mind around their teaching topic.
Solo Study & DIY White Boards
While group and partner studying are both awesome ways to dig deeper into material, you first need to have the foundation of solo-study. For tips about how to study on your own, check out these memory tips and consider these thoughts on how to kickstart your study habits. (Still not getting anything done? Time for some ridiculously easy ways to kick distractions.)
A new tip we picked up from a second year med student this year was to DIY a whiteboard (shown above!). It is really easy and ridiculously cheap. We found a huge sheet of whiteboard at Home Depot and cut it down to fit on our desk (they have a saw available for free there). We got four desk-sized pieces for only 10 bucks, so the extras got passed on to other students. Now the hubs slaps down his computer and notes on the whiteboard, and writes down chemical reactions, internal processes, and all kinds of things I don’t understand, like the stuff he wrote in the photo you see up at the top there…
Bonus points if you know what’s going on in that photo. It is a super-intricate process of creating ATP… And such. Haha.
Even if you aren’t a science student, this could be a great tool for brainstorming essay ideas, diagramming sentences, time-lining historical events, and making a note-to-self so you retrieve laundry before it gets stolen.
February 26th, 2010
If you’re feeling a little under-prepared for exams to begin, take it one step at a time–and start with these.
Spend Some Time at the Office
You veteran readers will already be pretty familiar with this one–and I’m not talking about heading to your job. That office can wait! You need to get to “office hours,” that hour or two each week when your professors and TAs are available to talk and help you work out problems.
This is your opportunity to get face-to-face with the person who best knows what you need to study for the test–and he/she can even help you figure out the tougher concepts of their class. After all, they love the subject enough to teach it!
And don’t think you’ll be bugging your teacher–many professors complain that no one ever shows up to their office hours!
Go to Work
Okay, this time I am talking about your job. Studying for a big test like a midterm or a final can be stressful. Throw in the pressure and commitment of a job, and you could have a recipe for a migraine.
If you have a job (or other regular commitment, like volunteering at a hospital, etc.), take a little extra time one day to discuss your upcoming exam schedule with your supervisor. If you’re going to need to work a little less the week of the test, plan that ahead. Also, if your test is being held at a different time than usual class so that it interferes with work, make sure you notify your superiors of that, too.
Remember, you’re a student first, but most offices are willing to work around you a little so you can keep the title of employee, too.
Test Yourself
One of the best ways to really learn the concepts and info that just won’t stick is to take a practice test. You might have access to practice tests from your professors (you can always ask for one, or a previous year’s test, from your prof at office hours!). If you don’t you can quiz yourself or make up flash cards.
I’d definitely recommend flash cards if they make sense for your subject. They’re easy and cheap to make, you can start paring them down to the concepts you are really having trouble with, and they let you study whenever you have a few spare minutes on the bus or between classes.
For more tips, check out these handy study-tip posts:
September 29th, 2009
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