5 Tips on Studying for Finals

5 tips on studying for finals for those that want to end the year like a BOSS!

Ah it’s finals season. The dreaded weeks for many middle school, high school and college students. From late night coffee runs to mid-day naps just to be awake enough to study that night, it’s no wonder where the stress students are feeling right now comes from.

But not all hope is lost! I have developed a list of tips and tricks for surviving the finals season. Don’t worry, no coffee was harmed in the making of this post.

1. Good rest
   • No matter how well you study, without a good night’s rest, all your studying will go down the drain. It is proven that during a portion of our sleep (the REM state if you’re curious) we fill away and process everything from the day into long term memory. When taking less than the minimum, our minds won’t be able to process everything. So all those long hours of intense studying would be useless without the proper sleep.
2. Breaks (How to take them properly)
   • Through the process of trial and error, along with science, it has been proved that our minds can truly focus and absorb information in 30-50 minute intervals. Why do you think class periods are about 40 minutes long? The key here is to time yourself in your studies and make sure to take breaks in between, I recommend a 10 minute break max!
3. Methods
   • One well known method of studying is re-writing your notes multiple times. Yes, I know this isn’t a favorite method among everyone, but it works. Even just writing your notes by hand instead of typing them has been proven to help you really take in the information better.
   • Another method is repetition of your notes with speech. Verbally saying your notes out loud allows for your mind to process them in a different way, allowing for a better chance of remembering important information.
   • Some people learn from reading while others need a more visual approach to learning. Learning through Visual Arts/ Videos (for example, Crash Course Videos) allows us to link an image with the information.
4. Organization
   • Organizing your notes is a key factor in making sure you truly can understand the information. When you have messy notes, it can be hard to see what is missing and how everything flows. One easy way to organize your notes is to place the dates on every new paper/document. Another way is to write down in your notes when you are absent/missing some information so you can go back and find them later.
   • Organizing the papers and worksheets handed by the teacher/professor with their notes can be such a helpful tool. Keep them handy and go over the material and learn from any mistake. They also happen to be the best study guides for upcoming test, like finals.
5. Planning/Time Management
   • When packed with tasks, it can be hard to know just where to start. That’s when I create what I like to call an “Importance List”. This list is designed to help you plan out when tasks should be handled. To start off, I brain dump everything I must do on paper. Then I analyze each and every task determining which are more important and should be handled first. Finally, I number them off in order of when they should be handled. And that’s it. That’s how to create an Importance List.
   • Spacing. Your. Studying. Is. Important! Trying to cram a whole years worth of materials the night before finals is not a good idea. A much better idea is to space out your studying. How? Simple, plan at least a week in advance to start going over the materials one by one. What I do is separate my studying by units, and then split them up by that week; for example, If I have 14 units and 7 days, then I study 2 units a day and spend most of my time on the last day reviewing everything.

Comment below and let me know if i missed any amazing tips you guys have developed over your years of study! Let’s get the conversation started on the comment section below. And remember, know your flow of work and what works for you.

Paloma Lopez

Hi! I’m Paloma, CCC (Creative Content Creator) for My Sweet Zepol. I’m a college student, love the outdoors – especially if it includes water – and experimenting with new things; whether it’s new classes or new recipes. You’ll find me enjoying a slice of cake or ice cream while brainstorming the next fashionable outfit or post ideas.