My major rule was no homework Friday and Saturday nights unless there was a final exam the next day.
Although this method doesn't work for everyone, I found group study with a core group of people to be extremely effective for studying. Not only does it help you if you don't understand something, but I found that if I could teach someone else the concept then I had a pretty good handle on it myself.
As inefficient as this may sound, taking a break from study or an assignment after a couple of hours and playing a video game, or going for a coffee, or something social really helped to keep me interested and on track during my study sessions.
I also found that having something fun to look forward to (ie: ball hockey) forced me to use my time as effectively as possible to ensure I completed my assignments with enough time to do fun things.
I guess what it comes down to with me is make sure to balance your academics and fun time to ensure you don't get burned out for when it really counts.
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