Finals season is fast approaching, meaning many students are feeling stressed and unmotivated as they head into the end of the semester. This, of course, is a totally normal way to feel around this time — juggling assignments and study plans, along with everyday life stuff, can be a lot to handle. If you need a source of study motivation to get you over the finish line, look no further than the Kay Chung method trend on TikTok.
Since Monday, March 25, TikTok influencer Kay Chung has been *all over* my FYP, providing intense — yet somehow still fun — study inspo through her mini-vlogs. The majority of her videos provide a raw, honest look into what it’s like to study while balancing her social life. Not only does she document the glamorous moments, but also the times when she’s struggling — like when she shows herself reviewing over 700 flashcards in a night, skipping class to work, falling asleep mid-study session, or finding it hard to stay motivated.
Many of Chung’s 1.1 million viewers have come to admire her work ethic so much, they’ve dubbed her go-to study process the Kay Chung method. Some are also saying the sudden motivation Chung’s videos have given them has caused them to enter their Kay Chung era.
Who is Kay Chung?
Chung is basically the Hermione Granger of our time. She’s a second-year dental student at UCLA who rose to TikTok fame in March 2023, when she posted a video about the stats that got her into dental school. Since then, she has been posting vlogs depicting her day in the life as a dental student — including her hardcore studying routines and the results of her hard work.
What does the Kay Chung method entail?
When it comes to sharing her study habits, Chung is the opposite of a gatekeeper — she documents her whole process in her videos. Before she starts studying, Chung reads over her lecture slides two to three times to let the material really soak in. She then tries to remember everything she just read from the slides through a process called active recall. If there’s anything she cannot remember, she writes it down in a notebook and reviews it some more. When she finally understands everything on the page, she goes to another blank page and writes out everything again from memory.
However, the Kay Chung method might not refer just to her study system, but also the seemingly relentless dedication with which Chung studies — often consuming caffeine and pulling all-nighters to get it all done. While her devolution to her academics is definitely admirable, this is where students should tread with caution: If you use her videos as motivation, remember to allow yourself time to rest and avoid overexerting yourself. Pulling all-nighters may seem necessary when you haven’t studied, but research shows all-nighters are far from healthy. Lack of sleep is linked to anxiety and stress — along with a host of other health conditions — which are pretty much the opposite of what you need when prepping for an exam. Even Chung is aware of this; at the end of some of her videos, she encourages viewers to not cram like she does or follow in her exact footsteps. In fact, despite how hard she works, Chung seems to make it a point to show in her videos that she indeed prioritizes her social life and self-care amid all the studying.
Basically, on top of crushing it at school and at home, Chung is out here inspiring legions of students to work hard. If you’re also entering your Kay Chung era, be sure to have fun with it — and take care of yourself as well.