How To Cram The Right Way, College Student Tips

Cramming is a common dilemma for students of all ages. With so many things happening in one’s life, it is common for students to miss priorities, especially when it comes to their studies. If you do not really enjoy studying or you are one of these avid procrastinators, cramming for a test or presentation is quite common. 

Failing to utilize your time wisely as a student, or having too much to do on your plate can stray you away from your studies and force you to cram. But do you know that you can still end up doing great in your exam even if you cram? 

Efficient Cramming Tips for College Students

Here are some effective tips so you can do it efficiently without having to lose your cool.

Gather All Your Study Materials

Remember, time is of the essence when cramming. The best thing you could do to make use of your time wisely is to have everything you need readily available and within your reach. Gather your books, your notes and other study materials essential for studying. Have enough pens and pencils on hand so you do not have to waste time in finding one when you need to. Get the most out of the time you have. If you spend your time going around looking for a book or your notes, you end up losing the time you could have used for studying.

Turn Off Social Media

Disconnect from your social media or might as well put your phone on silent. If you are cramming for a test and you still have the time to go over your Facebook wall, you’ll most likely end up unprepared for the test or presentation you have ahead. If you have one hour to study, turn off your phone for an hour. Focus and do not allow any distractions from taking away your attention to the task at hand. You can always catch up on your social media accounts after you are done with your exams.

Have a Timer Set

If you have more than an hour left to cram, say three or four hours before a test, you might as well divide your time. Spend 50 minutes focusing on reading and then the rest of the 10 minutes stretching or taking a water break.

If you have to deal with two exams with just an hour or two to prepare, divide your time into two. Although this can be quite stressful, you would rather want to at least equip yourself with knowledge to deal with both exams rather than prepare for one and end up clueless on the other. Aim for balance. Setting a time can help you in creating and building momentum.

Focus On Big Ideas and Key Details

With less time for you to prepare, it would be best to focus on learning the big ideas and key details or a subject you need to deal with. This is where your notes play a big role.

Stick with the basics and main ideas. Preparing for a math exam, memorize formulas but take the time to see these formulas in action. Dealing with a Botany exam? Familiar yourself with the keywords and key concepts. Different subjects require different areas to focus on. Spend your energy paying attention to key people, equations, headings of your lessons, vocabulary words and terminologies as well as explanations on major ideas. You can filter the rest to save on time.

Refer to Your Study Guide

Your study guide can be your notes or the syllabus from your professor. If you are cramming on an exam, focus on this guide to minimize your time on going through concepts and ideas that can be skipped. If you enjoy taking notes seriously, this is already a sufficient tool you can use to guide you through your review. It does not have to be neat and organized. The important thing is that you understand what you write and you can read them comprehensively.

Cramming can be avoided if you know how to prioritize and budget your time. But if you are forced to deal with such a situation, you should face it head on and be as productive as possible. After completing your exams, you can reward yourself with a cookie, or ice cream, regardless if you successfully completed the exam in high colors or not.