Begin studying early
You can start thinking about the exam from the beginning of the course by listening for hints and tips.
Revise your notes after each lecture so you have a clear and complete set to study from.
Start doing more revising about four weeks before your exams.
Don’t cram the night before—it’s ineffective because you won't retain much. You’ll also be tired and stressed when the time comes to actually sit the exam.
Organise your time
Fill out a weekly study planner and use it to organise your time. Cross out the hours when you can’t study because of other commitments, e.g., lectures or work, then plan one-hour time slots to use for exam revision.
Make use of short study times. Fifteen minutes can be ideal for revising lecture notes or looking through note cards. Use time spent on the bus or train to review your course materials.
Don’t study for longer than 50 minutes without a break. It’s better to study for short intense periods with sustained concentration than long blocks of time when you are tired and not working effectively.
Work out when you can study most effectively. Are you more alert in the morning or evening? Schedule study times that suit your personal rhythms.
Don’t study when you’re really tired. It’s better to get a solid night’s sleep after a short study period than to push on until 2am. You won’t remember much and will be less effective the next day.
Organise your subject material
Gather the materials for each course. Make sure you have a complete set of course notes and copies of any handouts, slides or visuals. Make sure they correspond to the topics in the course outline.
If you’ve missed lectures, find out whether they have been recorded and catch up. Borrow copies of lecture notes from another student and review any lecture slides and handouts available. Make sure that you have copies of any extra readings or materials distributed in classes. Once you have a complete set of course materials, you can study by topic.
Rewrite your notes
Rewriting your notes helps you to remember them. Don’t just copy out your original notes. The key is to read and think about the contents of your notes, what you noted down and why, and how to summarise your notes efficiently and memorably. Then rewrite them in your own words.
When you finish studying a section of notes, ask yourself questions relating to the material to see if you remembered what you just read. It can help to answer your questions out loud as if you were trying to explain it to someone else.
Sort out what you don't understand
Clarify the meaning of any words or concepts you don’t understand before trying to study them. If you aren’t clear about what the information means, memorising it won’t help.
Prioritise the hardest subjects first in each study session. Allocate more time to studying the subjects you find most difficult.
Study hard BUT set limits
Set study periods. Short study periods (1.5 hrs) are best for sustained concentration.
'Chunk' information. Don't try to study the entire course in one sitting. Divide the subject up into topics and aim to study a 'chunk' at each study session.
Set study goals
Set yourself a goal for each study session to help you keep track of what you are revising. Write them down as soon as you begin your study session or set them at the end of the study session for next time. E.g. I will answer 5 question or I will rewrite my notes for one topic.
Study to suit your learning style
If you’re a visual learner, diagrams and pictures can help you remember.
Auditory learners might benefit from listening to lecture recordings or making their own recordings of notes they can listen to later.
Some people find it useful to explain key ideas aloud to themselves while moving around.
Explore different ways to help you remember key facts and to increase your understanding of the main concepts.
Form a study group
Form a study group with other students.
Swap practice exams and give feedback.
Drill each other on study topics.
Review past exam papers
Review any previous exam papers for your course.
Past papers are not available for every course, but if they are, work through them. Note how they fit into the course. Look at the wording of the questions and familiarise yourself with the clue words.
Practice doing the papers under exam conditions then carefully review your answers.
The hours before ...
Make sure you have a good night's sleep
This is the most important thing by far. If you are well rested, you will think more clearly, remember better, and be more able to solve problems and think creatively. Don't pull an all-nighter; you'll be fuzzy, stressed and irritable. Being alert is your greatest asset.
Arrive at the exam venue ahead of time
Establish the location of the exam venue well ahead of time. Make sure you know how to get there with minimum stress.
Visit the exam venue a few days before and familiarise yourself with the physical surroundings. Knowing where you need to be and arriving on time will allow you to remain calm and relaxed.
Bring all the materials you need
Pack your bag the night before.
For an open-book exam, bring your materials neatly organised; a jumble of notes isn't useful but effective organisation is i.e. notes in thematic, topic-based, chronological order, etc.
Bring several pens in case one runs out at the crucial moment.
Avoid panic talk!
You don’t want other people’s nervousness or stress to rub off on you before an exam; stand apart from the main scrum of students and keep calm.
Eat something
If you don't eat before an exam, halfway through the exam, you'll find yourself feeling tired and hungry, and losing concentration.
Eat some easily digestible, solid food like rice, bread, savoury biscuits or bananas. Keep coffee and chocolate to a minimum as these will only give a short boost. What you need is staying power.
In the exam ...
Don't panic
If you are too nervous, you'll be too agitated to concentrate. On the other hand, if you are too casual, you won't be alert. The target is somewhere in the middle; the right amount of stress keeps you on your toes, helping you think clearly and effectively.
Focus on relaxing yourself
Take a few long, slow deep breaths.
As you slowly exhale, relax your shoulders, hands, face and jaw.
Stay quiet for a few moments, then go back to what you were doing, only more slowly and smoothly.
This technique is useful either before or during the exam.
If your exam has a reading period, use it to your advantage
Get a feel for the exam as a whole. Read through the entire exam before you start. This gives you an idea of what you need to do, and the time constraints involved.
It is extremely important to understand the questions. Read carefully and slowly, and consider what you are being asked to do.
Few questions require you to write everything you've ever read about a certain topic, so look for the clue words in the question. These will give you a strong indication of how they want you to answer the question.
Identify clue words
If you are allowed to hold a pen during the reading period, underline the clue words in short answer and essay questions. Doing this will provide focus for answering when you return to the question later. If the exam does not have a reading period, still spend the first few minutes reading the questions.
Read the directions! There is nothing worse than getting to the end of the exam and suddenly realising that you were supposed to answer two questions in Part A when you had instead written just one masterpiece.
Plan how you will tackle the questions
During your initial read-through, locate the 'easy' and 'hard' questions. The golden rule is to start with the easy ones. Answering an easy question increases your confidence, helps get you thinking and triggers your memory. This might help you to remember information for those 'difficult' questions.
Allocate your time
As you read through the exam, look at how marks are allocated. The number of marks given to a particular question will give you an indication of how much time to spend on it. For example, in a 90-minute exam with 90 multiple-choice questions, you should average one question per minute. You may be able to answer some questions more quickly, buying extra time to devote to the trickier ones. Use a similar system with essay answers. Look at:
the number of marks per question
how they are distributed
how many questions you have to answer.
Ration your time accordingly.
It can help to make a note of how much time you should give to each question, including revision time. Once you decide on your time outline, stick to it. Watch the clock, and once the allocated time has elapsed, stop and move onto the next question.
If you haven't finished, leave lots of space in the exam booklet. Sometimes, you will answer the questions more quickly than the time allocated. If you have any extra time at the end (or during the revision period) you can return and answer it more fully.
Don't leave the exam early. If you have extra time, use it to revise or to think more deeply about one of the harder questions. Make use of all the allocated time—it's worth it.