Study tips: The 21 best study tips for final exams (2023)

FAQs

Study tips: The 21 best study tips for final exams? ›

One of the most effective ways to prepare for exams is to practice taking past versions. This helps you get used to the format of the questions, and - if you time yourself - can also be good practice for making sure you spend the right amount of time on each section.

One of the most effective ways to prepare for exams is to practice taking past versions. This helps you get used to the format of the questions, and - if you time yourself - can also be good practice for making sure you spend the right amount of time on each section.

To make the most of your flashcards, maintain a fairly large deck of flashcards and avoid passively reading through the cards. Instead, pause to test your memory before checking the answer. Then, leave each card in your deck until you have successfully recalled it multiple times; once or twice is not enough!

A general rule is to spend two hours on homework or studying for every hour that your class meets. For example, if your economics class meets for an hour, three times a week, you might expect to spend six hours a week on homework or studying for your upcoming econ exams.

One of the most impactful learning strategies is “distributed practice”—spacing out your studying over several short periods of time over several days and weeks (Newport, 2007). The most effective practice is to work a short time on each class every day.

Simply put, 20% or less of the studying you are doing is leading to the majority of your results. Furthermore, 20% or less of your course content comprises the majority of the content on your exams. Remember, professors (whether they know it or not) are applying the 80-20 rule to their exams.

How can I study on my own? ›

What is the 7–3–2–1 method? It simply means 7 days, 3 days, 2 days, and today. Let's say you learned something you want to remember in the long-run. Now, what you should do is read it today (1), tomorrow (2), the day after tomorrow (3), and then on the 7th day from your first reading (7).

Revise a topic, then revisit it the next day, after three days, and after seven days. This is thought to be the perfect amount of time to help your brain remember information.

Best time to study according to science

According to science, there are two windows of time the brain is most receptive to new material: 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, and 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

BRAIN FOCUS & CONCENTRATION FACTS & STATISTICS

The human brain is able to focus up to two hours, after which it needs a 20-30 minute break. The average American spends about 9 hours a day at work. According to the NeuroLeadership Institute, work focus equals about 6 hours a week.

Systematic reviews are generally considered as the strongest form of evidence as they summarise and synthesise the findings of multiple studies identified in comprehensive, systematic literature searches.

How Does The 80/20 Rule Apply To Our Studies? When we are looking at this principle in relation to our education, the primary factor we should consider is that 20% of the time you spend studying will be leading to 80% of the results you see.

To try this technique, review your material in spaced intervals similar to the schedule below: Day 1: Learn the material in class. Day 2: Revisit and review. Day 3: Revisit and review.

How can I improve my memory before an exam? ›

If we had only one sentence to tell you the secret, it would be this: The secret to doing well is testing yourself on what you've studied — asking yourself questions, retrieving the answers, going back and restudying what you didn't know, and testing yourself again and again until you learn the material.

Trouble concentrating can relate to things going on around you. Common causes include interruptions from co-workers, distractions from your roommates or family members, or social media notifications. But it's also possible for concentration difficulties to relate to underlying mental or physical health conditions.

Low motivation may be experienced either for certain subjects, or across the board; some of the common causes of it include: You are tired and stressed, with too much to do. There are other, more interesting things to do. You find the subject boring, or don't enjoy it for some other reason.

The 50/10 Rule mandates that you stay on task when studying during the 50 minutes, then go on a multitasking, multimedia bender during your 10-minute break. Mix and repeat.

One way is to study smarter! According to an article in the Huffington Post, it is recommended that students take mental breaks approximately every 45 minutes. This is due to the fact that the brain is only able to maintain true focus for around 45 minutes before it begins to lose steam.

If you're feeling a lot of mental resistance, or you just can't get yourself to stay focused for 25 minutes, try a 15-, 10-, or even 5-minute pomodoro. For most people most of the time, the sweet spot will be in the 25-50 minute range for peak concentration with a 5-15 minute break.

You could be feeling the effects of difficulties in your family or the world at large. Maybe you're having a hard time focusing or feel like your goals are too far away. It's normal to feel unmotivated sometimes, and you'll deal with that feeling off and on throughout your whole life.

How do I get my brain ready for studying? ›

One of the biggest causes of mental blocks is a lack of focus and feeling overwhelmed. If you're feeling tired, stressed, or anxious this can all contribute to a lack of motivation. Throughout your studies it can be easy to compare yourself to others, but you shouldn't.

Flashcards are effective because they promote active recall in your brain, which is the process by which we retrieve a memory. Seeing a term and then actively attempting to remember the meaning helps to move it from short-term to long-term memory.

Modifying and Adding (PUMA) is a teaching-learning model that focuses on communication among students rather than emphasizing programming language grammar in an online education platform. The Network-based PUMA model consists of four steps: preparing, un-coding, modifying and adding.

While understanding and learning a person tends to finish the concepts in one-go, but in case of the rule; one should learn for half of the time and share what they have learned in the other half. Sharing can be in anyway. The learner can write the key points, or can explain to someone a friend, or a family member.

Why am I slow to understand things? ›

It might be related to other physical problems such as lack of adequate sleep or reaction to medications. It might also be part of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), learning disorders, and/or emotional factors. We'll take a look at some of these possible causes.

Start early. If you always start ahead of schedule, you'll never be cramming the night before an exam. You'll almost always perform better in doing so! Attend the review session.

Study groups and asking your teacher for advice also helps. Two weeks is a short amount of time, but if you really stick to your schedule you'll be fine! Just don't overwork yourself because sleep is extremely important, especially before an exam!

Taking practice exams before taking a real test is a helpful test-taking strategy. Practice exams give you insight into the type of questions you may answer on the test and can help you determine your areas of improvement.

Ideally, studying should start at least five days in advance of the exam to allow students an ample amount of time to go over course concepts and materials, and reach out to their instructor or peers if they find they have any questions.

Start studying for finals a few weeks before the first exam, and figure out how much time to set aside each day for each subject. Be realistic about how long it will take to, say, memorize the dates for all the Civil War battles. You need to fit in brain breaks, too!

What's the best time to study? ›

Best time to study according to science

According to science, there are two windows of time the brain is most receptive to new material: 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, and 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

On Days 1-4 you will prepare one section of material (preparation strategies from previous page). On Days 2-5 you will review the material you prepared the day(s) before (review strategies from previous page). On Day 5 you will only review and then self-test over all material.

Going hand in hand with getting good sleep, don't pressure yourself to stay up all night to study. Studying late may burn you out and make you more anxious, so set a good cut-off time so that you have time for a healthy dinner with some time to wind down and relax before bed.