Joanna James
As most students are bound to agree, exams can be stressful indeed! Of course, with proper planning and preparation, one can look to alleviate this pressure somewhat and feel more prepared to take on the challenge. Here are some tips that will help you get started.
You can have a million things running through your head but come study time, you need to stay focused and get rid of any digital distractions too! Being organised is one thing that will help in this process and everything from coming up with a study plan to having a neat study area can be of assistance; some need music in the background while others thrive on total silence, so find a space and environment suitable for you.
Rather than being faced with a mass of text to memorise, it can be helpful to use various diagrams and charts to help you study; see if you can break down the information into easy to read and remember diagrams. You can look to utilise such visualisation techniques by also using different highlighter colours for different sections or areas of study as well as having acronyms for certain words which can be creative as well!
Preparing for an exam not only entails how well you study, but how well you know the exam format as well. The best thing for this would be to go through and practice past exam papers. You will not only get familiar with the format but also learn how to allocate appropriate time for each question or section; a good way to do this is to practice completing these papers in keeping with the time given.
Organising study groups is a good way to help you study and can be beneficial for even those who usually prefer to study alone. Effective study groups will provide you with answers to questions you may not know how to tackle and aid with the material you cannot understand. It can also provide diverse perspectives you may not have thought of before; for example, if you are following a hospitality management degree at institutions that have international students such as the Asian Institute of Hospitality Management, you are likely to be exposed to various ways of thinking; this, in turn, can lead to a more enriching studying experience.
Prolonged study sessions are not the way to go and can, in fact, lead you to be less productive. With that in mind, look to plan short study periods for about half an hour or so and then take a quick break where you can get away from the books for a bit. Follow that up with another short study session and a break. Additionally, find the best period of studying for you; for some, it’s in the morning while for others it can be at night. Also have some “brain food” (blueberries, seeds, nuts, yoghurt, fish, etc.) and eat healthy during your study period and day of the exam.
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