Did you know every year, there is a disaster that hits college students twice a year in May and December? Without warning it sweeps in, disrupting lives of thousands of people. Some people don’t make it, and the people who do survive would rather forget the whole experience and look to the future.
Sound familiar? No, I’m not talking about tsunamis or hurricanes.
I’m talking about finals!
Do you think of finals like this? If so, it might be a good idea to face the pain and look back to see what you could have done better. What you might discover is that if you had done a few things differently earlier in the semester, the apocalypse called “Final’s Week” would have been a cake walk!
To do really well on your finals, you really have to start preparing on the first day of class. That way, instead of cramming for your finals next semester, you’ll only have to do a nice little review the night before. Sounds pretty sweet huh?
If you want to ace your finals, spend less time cramming for them, and have zero fear come final exam time, read these 6 tips and apply them to your studies next semester.
1) You didn’t really forget it all.
One thing most students don’t understand about memory is that it’s not like a textbook. You can’t go to the table of contents, look up the location of the memory, and turn to the right page.
It is also not like a chalkboard. You don’t erase memories to make room for new ones. They’re all still there!
So don’t sweat it if you feel like you have “forgotten everything.” Chances are the knowledge is still there in your brain somewhere. You just have to do some reviewing to refresh it.
2) Learn it the first time.
If you start reviewing and you still don’t feel things clicking, it is because you didn’t learn it right the first time, not because you forgot it.
If you were getting Cs and Ds on your exams leading up to test time, you probably were not doing a very great job learning the stuff during the semester, were ya?
3) Do well on tests.
Your tests will give you the best “sneak preview” you can get for your finals. So do your best on them. And hold onto those suckers! They’ll prove very valuable come finals time.
When I get my graded exams back, I always do two things:
1. Go back and look up answers for questions I got wrong.
2. Hold on to them!
Old tests are the best thing you can use to study for your finals. Better than your notes, better than your instructor’s Power Points, and better than your textbook.
4) Be consistent.
Some people, (like myself) do just fine without taking notes in class. Other people would rather not read the textbook. That’s fine, but do not change your habits half way through the semester unless you really believe you must.
If you keep switching things up every week, you will never find a good “groove” that works for you, and you will still be confused as hell during finals week.
Having good study skills requires that you know how to study. If you don’t know how to study for your course by finals time, you did something wrong.
5) Stay organized
Keep separate folders and notebooks for each class and keep all your old tests and notes in these folders. That way, the night before the final, you won’t be scrambling to find materials to study from.
6) Make friends in each class.
I have always been the type to do things on my own and this tip I learned fairly recently.
Making a few connections in each class will pay off down the road. Especially when you start taking courses for your major. You will inevitably find a few of the same people in each of your classes. Make them your allies! There are a lot of ways you can help each other out.
Sometimes in one class you will find someone who had already taken a class that you are currently in. Most people are more than willing to give you advice on how to do great in a class and if you’re really nice, they might even give you their old materials (notes, study guides, and even old tests!)
So here’s a recap of the 6 steps to preparing for your finals next semester:
1) Realize that you can’t forget everything you learned
2) Learn it right the first time.
3) Do well on your exams and hold on to them.
4) Be consistent.
5) Stay organized.
6) Make friends in each class.
I cover a lot of these steps more in depth in my other posts, so look around, but these might get you started.
Wouldn’t it be cool if you could walk into your classroom on final exam day without worry and ace it? Bookmark this post and read it again in August (if you can remember!) If you start preparing early your finals will be a breeze.
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