Oh, we remember how hectic finals week was! Whether you’re in high school or even nearing the final stages of your college career, most would agree that any type of exam will rattle the nerves of the most confident and prepared student.

One of the worst things some students will do is prepare for a multiple choice exam when they should be studying for an essay exam. Knowing and studying the format of an exam can be really key to preparing for an exam.

Similarly, there are many unique ways to memorize material while studying! Following a couple of simple tips can make the exam a little easier and yours can make your life less of a hassle.

Before we start, our most important TIP for final exam week is to STUDY A WEEK EARLY!

This prevents any stress, negative mindset, burnout, etc. to arise knowing that you have had adequate time to study.

1. Don’t study things you already know.

The BIGGEST mistake we have seen students make when they start studying for their final exam is reviewing course information they already know, such as the topics covered in previous exam 1 and 2. I hope you can agree with me that there is a lot of information that needs to be covered in each of your courses… Don’t waste your time and effort going over basic understandings or concepts that you should have already learned as common sense.

Sit in a quiet area with your class notes and on the table. Next, highlight any chapters you don’t understand. This is the initial step in the study… This way you can focus and prioritize your time on the areas you need to review.

Be sure to take a look at the textbook (the chapter test covers) or the PowerPoint slides provided in your course. By doing so, you should be able to gain a firm understanding of the sections you need to attack the most.

At this point, evaluate the material and compare it to the study guide or exam review provided by your instructor while trying to cross off any topics not covered in the exam review.

The chapters that are not crossed out are the ones you need to focus your time on. Reducing the amount of information that must be studied within the week leading up to the exam allows more time to be allocated to more difficult topics.

2. Stay active and eat.

Lying on the couch in your favorite sweatshirts may seem like the best way to study… But it’s not! Being too comfortable can easily result in fatigue, naps, and daydreams. It is best to try to study while you are standing, notes in your hands and review when you walk.

Find a clear classroom and use the whiteboard to your advantage. Images (concept maps, diagrams, and graphs) can revitalize the research session and add some humor to the learning process.

Make sure you eat! Eating carbohydrates allows the brain to think clearer, more focused and without fatigue. However, junk food may be inexpensive and may seem like it saves you time and money, but it does nothing to help your brain retain information. Avoid processed and junk foods like fast food restaurants, salty snacks, or even soda.

Pasta, sandwiches, milk, vegetables, and fruit are wonderful sources of carbohydrates and should be incorporated into your diet while studying for an exam. Particularly the night before and also in the morning. Never study hungry, it’s impossible to concentrate when your stomach keeps growing! Then the mind focuses on wanting food and not on learning.

It is also vital that you sleep regularly. Having your brain fatigued during an exam will exponentially reduce your performance on the exam, although staying up all night is okay and very common, be sure to set limits or take 30-minute naps. Don’t drink too many energy drinks, sugar can make your body crash the next day, limit yourself to two drinks maximum, if not less.

It’s also smart to get the body pumping and moving before the test. Take a brisk walk. Studies show that exercise gets your blood flowing, allowing your body to generate an adrenaline rush while increasing endorphin levels (in your body). It’s also a common way to deal with anxiety and stress!

3. Know the Purpose:

Why am I studying this? We often have a common symptom called “information overload” while studying… That’s why it’s often hard to remember the material afterwards. Make sure you know the purpose of why you are studying, what motivates you to keep going?

– Know a certain concept or idea.

– To improve in a particular area

– Know why someone did something in particular

– Answer the questions of the assigned academic studies.

Having a purpose in mind while you study can drastically help you focus only on the relevant information and remember it better.

There are an almost endless number of reasons why you might be studying something, make sure you know what yours is.

4. Study before going to sleep and immediately after getting out of bed

The most ideal time to review or learn something is just before going to sleep and immediately after waking up. Throughout the day, the mind becomes overloaded with a lot of useless information and continues to try to filter out what is useful and worth remembering and what is not.

Make sure you don’t brush your teeth in the morning. Strange, but certain studies show that when you brush your teeth, you’re telling your brain that you’re ready to brush. Because of this, your brain starts to feel rushed when you try to study, but in the end, you are just skimming and trying to cram all the information in at once.

This makes it easy for you to forget things. Imagine if you were asked what you did yesterday after a long and difficult day, would you be able to answer? Yes, it is very similar to that. Before you sleep and after you get out of bed, your mind refreshes and secretes some chemicals that can help make your memory more concrete.

5. Remember what you have learned:

Try to spend 15 minutes reviewing what you have learned. If you’ve adopted some of these methods, you’ll be amazed at how much you remember, and you’ll also improve your confidence in your ability to remember. This improves the whole process and you will work harder to get out of bed the next day and get back to work.

Are you sick of procrastinating and then panicking to do things at the last minute? If so, you need to do proper planning.

Proper planning and using the correct methods will help you plan your day effectively. We fully understand how stressful it is to be a college student and submitting assignments and preparing for exams, but if you start studying from the beginning of the year, you should face fewer problems.

Conclusion:

The most prepared student can seem stressed and overwhelmed with the possible results of a test and there is always time to check it out. Getting a bad grade, failing an exam, or failing a class is not good for the ego, yet it happens. Don’t think this is the end of the world. Create a list of possible outcomes and organize all of them.

Talk to your friends and family and explain the problem to them. They are a great source of comfort and support. Getting a plan, even when everything doesn’t go exactly the way you want, is a great way to take the anxiety out of the test-taking situation.