Study methods

[flames_fan13]

I know many people are in universities or colleges on this board. Just wondering how people study for midterms, exams etc.. I usually just read chapters and take notes before the professor covers the subject and then once again before the exam. However this hasn't really helped me in retaining information so was wondering how other people study.

[Weiser Wonder]

Study the notes before a test. If that's not working for you, you might want to put in more time. Study until you know you have retained the material. Study in a group and test each other on the knowledge. Most of the time the professor gives a study guide for the test. Just make sure you know everything on the study guide.

That's what I do anyway. It works.

Also, don't stay up all night studying. If you have to cram, drop everything the day before and study all day. Sleep. And then study until the exam. Or start a week in advance.

[Jude]

Originally Posted by Weiser Wonder

Study in a group and test each other on the knowledge.

Probably the most effective method as long as you aren't studying with people who try and make it a social event and waste time

[REDVAN]

Depends what kind of classes you are taking.

Eg/ English classes are much different from theatre, which are much different from business, and science too.

[Phanuthier]

I studied engineering which is a little more formulated and predictable, so for us, just study the homework and previous years tests. Rarely if ever did I touch a textbook - Wikipedia kept things in laymans terms for us.

Now to see if Wikipedia will get me through a masters the same way it did for me in undergrad

[Lucky boy]

Previous year exams!!!!! You would be surprised at how many people can get As in university and still have no idea what the course is about. Took me way too long to figure this out ...

[HelloHockeyFans]

I'm finished school now, but here was my method when I was in university: Study what you covered that day in all your classes at the end of the day some time. Do this every day. At the end of the week, study what you covered the entire week in all your classes. Do this every week. At the end of the month, study what you covered the entire last month in all your classes. Do this every month.

This method worked wonders for me and I found that come midterms and finals, I was breezing through material when studying because I was re-reading through stuff I've looked over already. Stuff was in my long-term memory already by then and I didn't find myself studying for hours and days on end trying to soak up an entire year's worth of material for the final exam.

Try it out. Sounds like a lot of work, but it actually isn't 'cause you're slicing things up into smaller chunks.

[Rathji]

I use 2 methods.

Study in groups. Unless you already understand everything perfectly, chances are someone else will understand something better than you. Even if they don't, explaining things to other people is one of the best ways to understand stuff yourself.

Summarize notes. Do it a week before a larger exam or a couple nights or before a small quiz. Make sure that when you are doing your studying that all the information is in a small bundle of papers so you dont waste time looking for it. Also, the act of compiling it all in your brain and then writing it down helps you understand and peice together smaller concepts into a big picture. If you can't summarize it properly, you still have time to see a prof or another student to help you understand it.

[CaptainCrunch]

Drank a bunch of beer, put the textbooks under a pillow and passed out and let Osmosis do the rest.

[pepper24]

Originally Posted by HelloHockeyFans

I'm finished school now, but here was my method when I was in university: Study what you covered that day in all your classes at the end of the day some time. Do this every day. At the end of the week, study what you covered the entire week in all your classes. Do this every week. At the end of the month, study what you covered the entire last month in all your classes. Do this every month.

This method worked wonders for me and I found that come midterms and finals, I was breezing through material when studying because I was re-reading through stuff I've looked over already. Stuff was in my long-term memory already by then and I didn't find myself studying for hours and days on end trying to soak up an entire year's worth of material for the final exam.

Try it out. Sounds like a lot of work, but it actually isn't 'cause you're slicing things up into smaller chunks.

Yeah, I did the same and it worked really well with me. You get results. It's the old analogy of take a few minutes to tidy your bedroom daily or take hours at a later date cleaning. Craming for tests doesn't work well. Besides the unnecessary stress you also don't retain much after the test. I also found reviewing notes before bedtime helped as for some reason when you sleep you retain better especially when it's fresh in your head.

I still do the same thing at work with daily and weekly reviews of my work to keep me organized and on top of things. Take a few minutes before I jet for the day to get ready for the next day.

[Titan]

Originally Posted by HelloHockeyFans

I'm finished school now, but here was my method when I was in university: Study what you covered that day in all your classes at the end of the day some time. Do this every day. At the end of the week, study what you covered the entire week in all your classes. Do this every week. At the end of the month, study what you covered the entire last month in all your classes. Do this every month.

This method worked wonders for me and I found that come midterms and finals, I was breezing through material when studying because I was re-reading through stuff I've looked over already. Stuff was in my long-term memory already by then and I didn't find myself studying for hours and days on end trying to soak up an entire year's worth of material for the final exam.

Try it out. Sounds like a lot of work, but it actually isn't 'cause you're slicing things up into smaller chunks.

This is excellent advice. If you can get into the habit of doing this your exam prep will be much easier. I would also add that if you can preview what the prof will be talking about that day you will understand it much better. Also, set an amount of to study, do what you have to do then take some time to relax. Work out if you can as it is a great stress relief and a healthy body is a healthy mind. Just my 2 cents but I do have 3 degrees!

P.S. As long as you are doing okay enjoy the university experience. Join clubs, get involved with the Student Association go to the pub, just get out there. Don't be a mushroom in your room or the library and you will look back on the experience with much better memories. Once you are done and working you will realize how little the specific knowledge matters but the learning how to work and think are what will hold you in good stead.

Farg I feel old all of a sudden.

[Titan]

Originally Posted by Phanuthier

I studied engineering which is a little more formulated and predictable, so for us, just study the homework and previous years tests. Rarely if ever did I touch a textbook - Wikipedia kept things in laymans terms for us.

Now to see if Wikipedia will get me through a masters the same way it did for me in undergrad

Anyone else a little scared that an engineer is using wiki to get through? Hope he's not structural. j/k. a little.

[SweetDoc]

I've had success by making sure that I have a general understanding of the materials and topics covered in the course. Once I've done that, I make lists of key words, time lines, and any other information I might find pertinent. I take the lists and memorize them from the night before the test until the test, taking 5 to 20 minute breaks in between memorizing periods and switching up the order of the lists to make sure that I'm not memorizing by repetition.

[shane_c]

Rip out the pages and eat them.