The Türk Student

i’ve compiled a masterpost of tips that i have reblogged over the past few months and i thought it would be easier to have it all in one place. none of these posts are by me! huge thanks to everyone that has created these tips.

exams

finals: survival guide for the brave

pennyfynotes’ guide to exam season

study tips for exams

tips for doing well on exams

how to

how to accept and grow from failure

how to avoid education burnout

how to be an efficient test-taker

how to cope with exams

how to get straight a’s

how to get straight a’s 2

how to overcome failure

how to study effectively

how to study as a busy student

how to study when you don’t want to

how to utilise your studyblr

how to do well in a class taught by a crappy teacher

improve your handwriting

improve your life

productivity

5 easy productivity tips

7 productivity tips

productivity 101

the no bullshit guide to getting your shit together

school

4 tips for delivering a perfect presentation

a self care masterpost to help you get through school

school cheat sheet

back to school

back to school advice

habits of successful students

search google like a pro

useful things for those going back 2 school

study tips

6 things people don’t always tell you about studying

effective note taking

memory tips

my 3 steps in studying

memorisation tips for different types of learners

random study tips

study habits

study methods

study smarter

study tips

strategies for writing good conclusions

things not to do when studying

tips + tricks for learning a language

types of study breaks for every situation

unconventional study tips

when to use

work smarter, not harder

misc.

four rules for a disciplined life

self discipline tips

self soothing techniques

small gestures of self-love

some essays i’ve got from school, most of the books and some essays r from beautiful people on the internet

/hugs/

Firstly, cry. Let itout. Screw motivational quotes, self help books and keeping composure.  Curse, scream, yell. Put on your comfiestoutfit and park yourself in bed with a book, movie, music, youtube - anythingthat isn’t study.

There’s nothingwrong with taking a time out.

Its not like thenext few hours will change your mark - so do what’s in your power right now,that being, taking care of yourself.

Resources 

I’ve written abouthow I deal with failure on this studyblr before. See:

Dealing with Failure

Shit Grade? Feelingbetter after a terrible exam

This response

And this one 

The first two postsinclude a list of resources, ranging from working professionals sharing theirexperiences and strategies for dealing with failure, to music recommendations,study tips and goat remixes. Something for everyone - call it my failure first aid kit.

3 Steps 

To summarise, Icycle through three broad steps: 

1. Immediately after the exam (aka ‘Fuck everything’)

Considerwhat you can do immediately after the exam. Nothing can get you back those fewhours you spent in the exam room. You’re not obliged to discuss yourperformance with your peers, comparing answers won’t change what you’vewritten.

Takesome time off from studying - rest, recuperate, reset.

2. Upon receiving results (aka ‘getting down tobusiness’)

Reviewmy exam: what areas did I do well in? What areas do I need to improve, wheredid I lose most of my marks? Was it a procedural error (e.g. the style ofquestion and time limits) or was a substantive error (e.g. I didn’t understandthe concept they were testing, did we evenlearn about titration).  I usethis review to structure my study for my next exam.

Formal avenues of Review: was there anythingthat affected my exam performance? If so, am I eligible for a remark or resit?Has the assessment been fair?

Ask: approach teachers, lecturers to ask for feedback. How can I do better? Whatwas a model answer?

3. Shia LaBeouf it

Usingthe strategies and information I have gathered above, its time to bite thebullet and study for the resit or my next exam.

IfI have to cover similar content, I’ll find a new way to study the content (e.g.audio, video, mindmaps)

Ratherthan go through all the content, I’ll target the areas where I lost the mostmarks, whether this be by content or a particular style of question (e.g. shortanswer, essay)

A few things I like to keep in mind: 

Effort can betray you 

you can work hard and still fail. You canput in hours and hours of work and still pull up short. However, this doesn’tmean you shouldn’t continue to work diligently. The worth of hard work (the‘process’) goes beyond the result you achieve. The result doesn’t invalidatethe means.

Success is not a predetermined route

There aremany ways to achieve your goal. This assessment, no matter how much itsweighted, no matter how many people tell you ‘it’s the only way’ is notnecessarily the only way to achieve your goal. Life isnt a series of dominoswhich collapse once you fail this exam. Success isn’t linear.

Self Confidence

Its difficult to untanglefeelings of self confidence from academic performance, particularly if you’vededicated the majority of your life (so far!) to school etc. School is anartificial pressure cooker of constant assessments, scrutiny (and competition).Remind yourself of who you are outside of ‘being a student’ - you are a friend,a kick ass baker, master procrastinator with the endurance to pull all nightersto marathon episodes of friends. Dedicate yourself to pursuing somethingoutside (and completely independent of) school and your 'future career’. Remindyourself that you’re human.

During the immediateaftermath of a bad exam result, its difficult to simply 'get over it’. It feelslike it is the 'be all or end all’ because you’ve invested so much time andeffort into studying, and up til now, the direction of your life has been definedby reference to your academic journey. 

I try to keep thingsin perspective, for the sake of my sanity. This exam is only one in a series ofexams I’ll ever take. That exam only reflected my performance at one specifictime, at one specific place. It doesn’t tell the examiner who I am outside 9am-11amon a Monday morning in exam hall B. It has no bearing on my ability to be agood friend, reliable employee, awesome pet owner.

When I struggle tokeep things in perspective, I find this 'Life Calendar’ by Tim Urban helps,and the Tim Minchin speech referenced in one of the links above.

 Heck, I still cry. There’sdays where I spend the entire day in bed. Sometimes, my recent failures seemjust as bad as that stupid quiz I failed back when I started high school - andI’m in my final year of university now. Failure at any stage is difficult becausehere’s the thing - you don’t have the luxury of hindsight to tell you 'thingswill be ok’.  

But that’s ok.

Because I’ll get upthe next morning and try again. 

And again. 

And again. 

And eventually,things will change. I can’t promise that they’ll get better, but they’llchange.

january: fresh journals, black and white notes, bullet journals filled with motivational quotes, cold brew coffee, loves writing letters, finishes everything on time, a daydreamer, seems laid back but really they’re stressed about everything

february: doodles in the margins of notes, the person who lends you their pens, sloppy handwriting, loves motivational speeches and classical music, finishes easy assignments early but writes their essay the night before its due,

march: straight A’s, study playlists, the teachers favorite, color coded notes, everyone thinks they’re naturally smart (but really they’re spending every night studying), forgets to eat sometimes, hasn’t slept for what feels like years

april: open windows, listening to the rain and thunder, tea pots full of earl grey, a functionally messy desk, fairy lights, always losing their pens, a huge nerd, afraid to raise their hand in class in case their answer is wrong

may: cramming for tests, lives in the library, highlighters and sticky notes everywhere, drinks espresso, would definitely consider bringing their coffee pot to school, messy desk, if an assignment is due at 9:00 they’ll submit it at 8:59

june: late nights, smoothies for breakfast, hanging out with friends, takes notes on their laptop, minimalist, organized, says they’re studying but they’re actually on studyblr, tries to study everything at once and gets distracted

july: staying up late to read, learning new languages, focuses on the learning and not the grade, watches documentaries for fun, loves the classics, owns a thousand pens, takes studyspo pictures, hundreds of unread emails,

august: stationery shopping, getting ahead in class, iced drinks, spending weekends with friends, takes very little notes but does well in class anyways, a relaxed personality, healthy snacks, the master of self care

september: a morning person, new pens and folders, a perfectionist, audio records classes and re-writes notes, over works themselves, loves the smell of new books, competitive, “i’m gonna fail!” but ends up getting A’s and B’s

october: chai lattes in travel mugs, will study for three days straight and then not study for a week, snacking in class, uses washi tape and stickers, sleeps for eight hours but is tired anyways, terrible at accepting compliments

november: gratitude journals, mental health days, the baristas at their local cafe know their name because they’re always studying there, study groups, loves to travel but never travels, cinnamon in their drinks, trouble sleeping, sweet smiles

Math 1: Professional procrastinator, messy hair and dimples, cycle the only five shirts he has, Lo-fi music, gets spacey occasionally, messy handwritings, gaming all night.

Chemistry: Attentive, detail-oriented, poker face 24/7, study-groups and piled up worksheets, beaming with curiosity, neat hair and clothes, earbuds in, always walking quickly in the streets.

ED Design: Digital arts, laid-back, has the brightest smile you’ll ever see, floral button-downs and shorts, tattooed arm, party nights, McDonalds at 2 AM, gets defensive over things he is passionate about.

Economics: Has casual but trendy style, studies one night before a test, fancy pens, has a lot of friends, gets sleepy easily, towering city lights, smooth talker, impeccable taste in everything.

Accounting: Jazz music, leather-bound planner, cloudy skies, analog watch, three cups of coffee every morning, has the dreamiest tired face, plans everything beforehand.

Math 2: Practical fashion, black and white aesthetic, scattered graphs, uneaten energy bars, smart demeanour, pencil behind ear, modern architectures, soft and clear skin.

Psychology: sensitive, likes deep talks, asking questions during lectures, cut-out quotes, big bookstores, a major dog-person, admirable ambitions, low key worries about his friends.

Physics: minimalistic folders, sport events, stubborn at times, doing homework during period breaks, long drive, action movies, hates essays, rock music, smells like rain.

Media and Communication: old movies, loves to cuddle, charismatic, freshly made doughnuts, festival popcorns, fake optics, patterned socks, doodles on notes, flannel shirts.

I don’t usually share a whole lot but THIS IS INCREDIBLE