As much as you may not want to hear it, exams for College of Charleston students start one week from today. Chances are, you already know when your exams are scheduled. If you do not, check with your professors and review the final exam schedule.
Since exams are next week, we are going to share some study tips you may want to consider over the next week or two. Everyone learns and studies in a different style, but we think you will be able to incorporate some of these tips into your study style.
Study Tips
Make a study guide that you understand: flash cards, and outline, color coded charts / drawings/ diagrams. You can study while you create the study guide. Then, you can save time by not having to sift through the text, handouts, notes, and old test because you have all of the material in one place.
Use your friends or family. Teach it to them or have them quiz you.
Quiz yourself. Create questions for multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, and essay exams. Use blank diagrams or charts to test your knowledge of information. (For example, for Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, make a blank triangle divided into 5 parts)
If you know the format of the test, use that knowledge to consider how the exam will look.
If you have to study from a text, do not just read it. Read. Summarize. Outline. Check online (some texts have supplemental material available on the publisher’s website).
If you have to know terms, dates, or processes, consider flash cards or visual organizers.
- Create flash cards on index cards
- Create flash cards on Quizlet – it’s free!
- Arrange the material into a visual organizer .
If the exam is cumulative, think about how new information relates to previously material.
If there is a lot to study, consider a study plan that is broken up over several days. (See the Center for Student Learning’s 8-Day Study Plan for an example)
If you have to cram, consider the following:
- Identify all material that could be on the test
- Create a color-coded legend for: what you know, what you do not know, what needs review, and what is likely to be a large part of the test.
- Organize your time. Schedule in sleeping, eating (high protein, low fat), studying, and breaks.
