Tuesday, September 18, 2007

A Little Studyin' Never Hurt Anyone!


There is just something about being in a huge lecture hall around seven or eight o'clock in the evening with about two or three hundred other students, surrounded by dark or light, tiled or carpeted walls and feeling so cramped together than you can not even breathe. On top of all that, there are only about two or four doors to enter into and exit out of causing you to feel trapped, like you could possibly be stuck there for the rest of your life, or at least the next couple hours. Then you realize that you and all the others sitting in that room with you have one thing in common. You are all about to take an EXAM (dun dUN duN DUN)!!!!


At some point, most likely around the middle of the quarter, you will have to take college exams. What comes to your mind when you hear the word 'exam'? I'll tell you what I think. Back in high school, we used to have TESTS and then at the end of the semester we had final EXAMS. So when I think of a college exam (midterm), I think of end-of-the-semester-high school- exams, but in reality, these exams are really just like tests in high school. They don't cover as much material as a final exam does after an entire semester. No, they do exactly what high school tests do. The test you on a minimal amount of material that you have learned up until that point, and most of the time, you won't see that material on another exam until the end of the semester when it comes to finals. So if you freak out when you hear 'exam', don't stress out. IT'S JUST A TEST.



Sometimes you will end up having one or even three exams on the same day (trust me, I know). Welcome to college people! If you had good study habits in high school, chances are you will utilize those habits again in college and it won't be so hard for you to adjust. However, if you had poor study routines, I will help you to see what you can do to stay on track so that when an exam rolls around, you won't be too nervous or too stressed out. These tests really aren't all that different from high school tests.


The best thing you can do to prepare for upcoming exams (even if you don't know when they will be) is to study every evening and review the material you learned in class THAT day, but ALSO study the material learned in class on PREVIOUS days. It is usually easier to remember material if you cover it each day. You won't have to study or cram as much when its time to study the night before the test. And if you aren't going to take that advice, I highly suggest you think about this following strategy. When you figure out that you have an exam coming up in the near future, begin studying for it and look over the material (at least briefly) each night up until the exam (Ahh!! Will you stop saying that word already!!).


Well I hope this helps you out a bit. I can't waste anymore time helping you when I have to study for a biology exam that I have to take tomorrow!

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