10 methods to study before an exam

Several techniques and strategies to get the most out of your study hours.

In most countries' education systems, the exam is that moment when our learning becomes an all-or-nothing task, the exam is that moment when our learning becomes an all-or-nothing task.. 

Days or even weeks of class attendance and self-study can go down the drain if we fail when it comes time to take the tests we are given. That's why mastering good study methods is so important when it comes to getting the most out of our knowledge and abilities.

Facing difficult exams

Spain is a country with a serious problem in its education system; both in primary and secondary school students are not taught effective ways to study, something that should be key in the learning process. In my first year at university, I was limited to memorizing, a task that became very tedious, so I began to look for other methods to study for exams. so I started to look for other methods to study for the exams..

As soon as I had mastered these new methodologies (since there is no single infallible one) my grades improved a lot; in most subjects I went up to more than three points (in exams out of a maximum score of 10). The truth is that I doubt I would have gotten such good grades without these study techniques; University is hard and at that time I had to understand and assimilate a lot of information. It was clear that the study methods worked for me, and I think they can be I think they can also be useful for anyone who needs to pass exams.. That is why I have decided to share them.

The best study techniques and methods

The tips I will explain will be useful for any subject: exams for competitive examinations, English, etc. However, these study methods are not a panacea for laziness: effort and perseverance are the basis for success!

1. Rewards

The thought of having 2-3 hours of study ahead of you is, shall we say, not very... stimulating. But there is a way to make it less of a chore:

Take a break every 50-60 minutes and do some activity that you enjoy for 10 minutes.watching TV, reading, exercising, etc. It is a matter of knowing that the effort is not going to be superhuman, quite the contrary; it is about combining the effort dedicated to the study with pleasant or leisure activities, so we unconsciously associate the study with something positive and bearable.

2. No distractions!

Are you the classic student who is in class looking at facebook every minute or scribbling in the notebook? Don't worry, there are many of them. They are the same ones who study 1 hour out of 4.

This is because it takes about 10 minutes to reach a full state of concentration. At this point, if by active or passive means this concentration process is interrupted, you will have to restart the process.

And what can we do to avoid getting distracted? Avoid social networks, hide your cell phone or turn it off, stay away from the TV, etc.etc. These are small details that, although they may seem insignificant, matter. This study method can be summarized as follows: when it's time to rest, rest and don't complicate your life, but when it's time to study, don't do anything else.

3. Music to concentrate

We will agree that playing heavy metal or electronic songs to study works for very few people... but despite the popular belief that when it is time to study you should not listen to music... there are certain melodies and sounds that can help you concentrate, there are certain melodies and sounds that can help you enter into a state of relaxation.. You can try, for example, pieces of music for meditation.

Other tips about music when studying:

• Avoid playing the typical catchy songor one that you like a lot.
• Choose a playlist of at least 50 minutes, so you won't need to listen to it.so you won't have to search for songs after a while.
• The radio is no good. The voice of the presenters can be irritating when studying.

4. Study in advance

When I was in college, I never studied the day before the exam, nor the day of the exam itself.. Nor for the most important exams such as finals. The key is to study months in advance, a little bit every day. If you study for an exam you have two months from now for an hour or two a day you are guaranteed success.

The information will be structured in your mind for the long term.It will be retained for a long time and you will be able to make use of it when you need it. If you study in a hurry the day before, or two or three days before, you may pass, but the knowledge will not be well fixed and you will end up forgetting it. Things will be difficult for you in the future, when teachers assume that you remember the contents of previous lessons.

5. Mind maps

A mind map is a schematic image used to represent words, ideas or concepts linked around a topic.ideas or concepts linked around a central idea. Mind maps are a great way to memorize information. I recommend it!

6. Do physical exercise

Although it may not seem like it, exercise can be part of the study methods. According to a study by the University of Illinois, doing 20-30 minutes of exercise before an exam improves concentration.. Many times, before an exam I have gone to the gym to de-stress, after all I had studied well in advance and could afford the luxury (as a reward).

From my point of view it is a big mistake to think that the day of the exam or the day before you have to spend it studying until the last minute. You have to give yourself a margin to rest and train your muscles to be in the best possible physical condition before submitting to the pressure of an exam. We are human!

7. Change the places where you study

If you change the places where you study, you will improve your concentration and you will be able to retain more data.. This is because studying in the same place, actively or passively, ends up irritating us. Introducing new variables in the study breaks that routine and gives us an oxygen balloon to study.

A good option would be to alternate between your home and various public libraries.

8. Eat well and healthy

Hunger will make you lack energy and be distracted.. I recommend that you eat something before studying, especially almonds (containing phenylalaline, which stimulates neurons) and beets (uridine monophosphate helps improve cognitive abilities).

9. Keep a positive spirit!

A positive mindset is a great help in getting good grades.. Many classmates, by giving excessive importance to the results, worry excessively about what they do and experience outbursts of anxiety before the exams, which conditions them and keeps them distracted (the self-fulfilling prophecy). That's why it's important to stay calm and have a positive attitude.

In addition, being pessimistic about the results we are going to get gives us an excuse to stop making an effort. It is a phenomenon similar to what is known as learned helplessness.

10. Take mock exams

Mimicking a mock exam is often more useful than reading or underlining.. You rethink possible logical questions (which will possibly coincide with those of the real exam) and you will help regulate the previous anxiety, because the "real" exam will only be one of many.

In addition, taking mock exams is one of the most useful study methods, because it helps you discover gaps and weaknesses in your knowledge.