The second wave of midterms is around the corner, so why not start studying now? It’s hard to get motivated when our exams are several weeks off, so I’ve compiled some studying strategies that aren’t particularly invasive, but rather make memorizing and understanding material easier and less time-consuming. Small disclaimer: I have been slightly “nerd-shamed” for some of these, so practice at your own risk.Think about what you know. This may sound unproductive when you really start cramming, but if you consider what you do know several weeks before the exam date, you can start to really hone in on your strengths in the course; you can put less focus on these areas once the test approaches, ultimately saving yourself a bunch of time. It feels nice to know material, but you shouldn’t relish in that glory for too long, move on to what you don’t understand as well.
Make an outline of the course and color code! This code can be applied to what you understand versus what you’re still confused about, or certain topics of the course so far. Much of the time, an outline alone can show the innerworkings of the course and clear up points of confusion. If this is not the case, look over your notes one more time. If you’re still stuck, bring that outline and your questions to your professor. They should appreciate your organization and self-motivation.
Delete social media and distractions. Whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, or that one game you resort to for procrastination, these applications are the greatest culprits of distraction. I deleted Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter off my phone for the two weeks before my math exam and I found myself focusing on a new level. For some this may be challenging, maybe impossible. I know some people use social media for study breaks — which are super important … this is only a suggestion for those who really get distracted by social media. Personally, I enjoyed my break from social media. It gave me more time in general and I even went to bed earlier.
Note: It’s probably not a good idea to delete your Gmail app from your phone during this “cleanse.” You wouldn’t want to miss an important message about the exam from your professor!
Make your phone background/lock screen a picture of your formula sheet. This strategy can be applied to any course material, but I found that forcing myself to stare at a certain formula or group of formulas every time I looked at my phone (a lot) to be very helpful. This technique continuously reinforced the formulas and before I knew it, I had memorized them all. I especially like this technique because I hate sitting down and memorizing things — I don’t think it’s fun or particularly beneficial, which makes it hard to be motivated. Having formulas on my phone screen was an easy way to memorize material in an efficient and painless way.
I got teased for the social media cleanse and formula background, but they helped me in the long run. Studying is an important part of doing well on exams (for most people), so it’s important that we share our strategies and help each other out. Study up!