Hey, everyone! My fourth year of university has just started and I just wanted to share some study tips that have really helped me improve my grades. I study engineering but I’m sure these tips can be useful for any kind of major and high school studies as well.
USE A TIME-KEEPING METHOD. You don’t have to do this forever. It really worked for me when I hit a massive procrastination wall. It helps you develop a study rhythm to get you up and running. I don’t use it as much anymore because it already helped me have a natural balance between work and rest. The Tide app was the best one I found which follows the Pomodoro method. It’s also great because it has white noise playing in the background like rain or the beach and even a library!
SAVE ONE AFTERNOON OR ONE MORNING A WEEK FOR INTENSIVE STUDY. Use it as a time to catch up, organize, and summarize the week’s topics so studying near exams won’t be too much of a hassle. DON’T LET IT PILE UP ON YOU!
MAKE A LIST OF EVERYTHING YOU NEED DONE IN A STUDY SESSION. Preferably on a separate piece of paper or a notepad. It’s easier to track your progress and it’s not as overwhelming to look at compared to a planner where you can see all your tasks for the week.
STAY ORGANIZED. Make sure all your notes and study materials are organized. I like to separate my stuff into “packets” per subject so that when you need to study a certain subject, you don’t have to rummage through all your papers. You can just start studying right away. And it’s easier to study for finals as well since all your notes, papers, and answered problems are all in one place already.
WRITE YOUR QUESTIONS. Write questions that come up when you study and ask your teacher or friends or even just research it by yourself later.
STUDY FIRST, THEN HOMEWORK. If you do homework first, you’ll feel accomplished and that you’ve done enough work for the day and put off studying. This is very important especially if there is a test/exam you should be preparing for.
DO ALL YOUR OWN WORK. You get NOTHING from copying someone else’s homework/problem set. It defeats the purpose of having a homework in the first place. Always make an effort to do it on your own (unless it’s a group work of course).
IT’S BETTER TO DEEPLY UNDERSTAND A LIMITED AMOUNT OF MATERIAL THAN TO HAVE A VAGUE IDEA OF THE GENERAL TOPICS. Trust me. I do not remember the number of times where I felt complacent in knowing the “basics” of everything and when someone asks me questions I have no idea what they’re talking about. It’s important to really understand what you’re studying, especially if it’s already your majors.
HAVE AT LEAST ONE DAY A WEEK WHERE YOU DON’T STUDY OR DO ANY HOMEWORK AT ALL (IF POSSIBLE). Don’t burn yourself out! Pick a day where you don’t have anything due the next day and watch a movie, binge watch a series, or even just catch up on some sleep. Taking time for yourself is always important.
NO AMOUNT OF STUDY TIPS IS GOING TO HELP YOU IF YOU’RE NOT WILLING TO PUT IN THE WORK AND EFFORT. The most important thing is to just start. :)
Good luck, guys! I hope this was helpful and that this semester will be your best yet. Stay positive and never stop improving yourselves!
sun-flower-studies || 08-10-2018
