If you’re looking for some study tips for college students, then you’ll love this article.
Whether you’re cramming for a test, quietly studying in your bedroom or you live in the library, studying is one of the hardest parts of your education. We all know that studying is considered essential for acquiring good grades and useful for learning throughout one’s life. We need it for better grades to pass chemistry, physics. maths and so on.
However, have you ever felt lost when studying? No matter how hard you try to study your notes, they’re just not making any sense you reread the passage over and over again hoping that the fifth time you’ll be able to recollect what you’ve just spent over an hour studying.
You know how exciting it is to know every answer in a test and even more thrilling to pass a hard exam. I know it and so do you. So how do we get there?
Well, I’ll be sharing 10 awesome study tips that will guarantee you better grades, your studying will improve, become more efficient and productive as a result.
Study Tips For College Students
1. Have a dedicated study area
Don’t study where you indulge yourself in all manners of triviality. Your sitting room, a pub your playing area, where you cook or sleep – all these areas have their intended purposes so don’t lie to yourself that you can productively study where you watch TV or cook. Most of you probably study in your bedroom or the dining room and maybe others the living room.
The reality is that you can’t effectively study in the same place where you sleep and eat. Trust me, I know this. Somehow whenever I study in my bedroom I always end up convincing myself to indulge in a five-minute nap. I remember one time as a child I did this right before a history test I had the next day. At the time it seemed logically like the right thing to do.
I remember I was so tired I just came from soccer practice and studying for history was the last thing I wanted to do. Plus, the bed looks so welcoming and inviting, but boy, did I regret this? The night I was supposed to study I dozed off.
That five-minute nap turned into eight hours of beautiful sleep. I didn’t regret the sleep because I was so exhausted, but what I did regret was having to cram in between classes the next day and stressing so much about a history test I knew nothing about.
Andd the worst part is? What I actually did cram for never even came up in the test. As you’d probably imagine I failed that test. Luckily for me it wasn’t a major test, so guys don’t study in your bedroom or where you sleep, trust me. If you have nowhere else to study but your bedroom, buy a desk and make sure it’s facing away from your bed.
This is very important so that you’re not tempted to take a nap.
2. Buy a study lamp
Research has shown that if you have a study lamp on your desk when studying and the lights in your room turned off or dimmed, you’ll actually concentrate more, learn more effectively and be able to memorize and recollect more of what you’ve learned.
All this is possible because you won’t be straining your eyes when you’re studying by blocking all other distracting lights and focusing on what’s important – your notes. This method has been proven and I can personally attest to it.
3. Treat yourself
Treat yourself with entertaining activities during your breaks this will in turn instill positive affirmation towards studying. And thus make your brain elucidate studying as an enriching enjoyable activity which it should be.
SEE ALSO: How To Deal With a Bad Teacher: 19 Best Tips For Students And Parents
4. Break into sessions
Break your studies into twenty to thirty minute sessions, then between every session take a five minute break. Studying gets unproductive when we tend to focus for too long. That’s why long hours of studying is ineffective. You need to take breaks. Five minutes should be enough to give your brain time to reset, re-energized and keener to hit the books again.
As a result your studying will become more enjoyable and less daunting. Please note – don’t overextend your rest, anything beyond five minutes is a waste of productive learning time.
5. Turn off the music
You can’t effectively study while listening to distracting music. Maybe some you can but most often not. What you can do is listen to instrumental background music. Classical music and instrumental background music can lead to more productive studying (1) by elevating your mood and blocking all distracting noises.
6. Good night’s sleep
You need a minimum of 7 to 8 hours of sleep at night to process and digest what you’ve learned. Sleep is super important for your health. If you’re not getting adequate sleep your IQ will actually drop. It’s been tested and proven. That’s why people who pull all-nighters cramming a lot for exams usually don’t do that well.
They tend to just get by or do ok. This is because they won’t be able to think and recollect what they’ve learned as well as someone who had a good night’s sleep. Sleep better and you’ll do better.
7. Teach others
Teaching others reinforces what you’ve learned. Research has proven that 80% of your time is best used for reciting and teaching and the other 20% – reading.
SEE ALSO: How To Study Fast And Effectively In Less Time: 5 Best Brain Hacks
8. Form a study groups
Study groups are probably the most underutilized effective form of studying – I know this for a fact. Studying in a group can help you (2) collect new insights to enhance your learning experience. We learn a lot when we talk to others explaining lessons and sharing ideas about topics and asking questions or making them up.
If you’re in a study group make sure to show up with a clear agenda of what you want to accomplish. Questions you want to discuss, help you might need, areas of improvement and so on. Avoid unnecessary chitchat – I know this part can be really hard, but that’s why you must set your priorities as clear as possible.
9. Taking notes
This is vital. Ideally, after a class or during class write down flush out everything – all the details that you’re able to recollect. By doing so in your own words hopefully it will stick better and you’ll be able to understand and retain more of what you’ve learned.
10. Using flash cards and newspapers
Use flashcards, visual aids, go through old revision papers, snack on brain food and just have fun with studying. Be creative. At the end of the day it’s just about being self-aware and knowing what works for you.
I want to thank you for taking the time to read my article about study tips for college students. I sincerely hope its contents have been a good help to you.
