Well, y’all its almost that time of year, I have written 7 of my 8 midterms and have less than a month to go before finals begin. Over the years I have come up with a number of study hacks that help me be efficient & productive during my study time and I thought now would be the perfect time to share them.
1. Make a to-do list – I find that especially if I’ve got a number of big projects to work on writing down a to-do list, particularly breaking the project up into manageable steps helps me feel less overwhelmed when it comes to completing the tasks. Additionally, it has been proven that you’re more likely to keep working hard on something if you feel like you’re making progress so being able to check things off as I go is a really helpful strategy for me
2. Schedule it out – I have found that going into a weekend with nothing but a to-do list can be a little bit of an overwhelming feat, it helps me to plan study blocks for when I’m going to work on particular parts of a project. Sometimes this can include booking time to work with your group if necessary but I will even do this on my own. Make sure too when you’re planning out a timeline you’re adding in breaks for meals, workouts or time to relax!
3. Clean up – Before I go into a big study session I always make sure I’m working it an organized space, I will take 10 minutes before I start my homework to get everything off my desk that I don’t need
4. Get Prepared – I also like to make sure I have everything I need before going into a study session. I have found in the past that as soon as I sit down and get going I’ll get up to go to the bathroom, get water, a snack, etc. It’s helpful to get this all out of the way beforehand so you can settle into a good routine.
5. Mute your phone – everyone says it and girl PLEASE do it! It makes such a difference if you don’t feel the need to pick it up every few minutes. Sometimes I will even put my phone in another room to resist the urge to check it regularly.
6. Set an alarm – I started doing this last year and it made it so much easier to get a lot done. I found that the ideal time was about 50 minutes and I would set an alarm and not get up or look at my phone during that entire period. After the alarm went off I would take a couple of minute breaks, refresh and then do it all over again.
7. Mix it up – I often find that after spending the whole day sitting at my desk it can be really hard to do that again the next day. I like to mix it up and go to cute coffee shops to change up the scenery. I also find that I am sometimes less distracted when I go somewhere else to work instead
8. Get ready for the day – As much as I LOVE being comfy, I find that getting ready for the day, putting on a cute outfit and doing my makeup can make me feel so much more productive.
9. Make a study sheet – This works better for some class rather than others but I like to take all my lecture and textbook notes and combine them into one sheet which contains any and all definitions and formulas I may need to know. I personally like to do these by chapter but that’s just what works best for the classes I am in.
10. Study with others – I was hesitant to include this because it is not always productive, but I have found that studying with other people, especially if you are studying for the same class can be helpful. Studies show that being able to explain things to others is an extremely effective study tool, so practicing this way can be good. Additionally, I find that studying with other people can help me stay on track more because I don’t want to distract them.
Be sure to let me know what your favourite study hacks are!
XO Cassidy Hannah
Cassidy Hannah 