How to Study
"You can't control the direction of the wind, but you can adjust your sails."-— Hattie McDaniel
When you’re studying during the semester, sometimes finding the energy and motivation can make things really hard to even do when you’re trying to balance everything from all of your classes, to you’re job that you’re working full-time or even part-time, to trying to make sure you have a social like outside of classes. It’s all a handful that may feel pretty impossible to do, so here are some tips that could help you make sure that you are able to study efficiently.
Making A Schedule
I notice that when you’re trying to space out all of your class work, making sure that you eat, and make sure you have time to get ready for work, balancing all of it can seem like a huge task, but when you make yourself a schedule to kind of keep you on track seems to help, even if you don’t follow the schedule to a tee, you’re able to prioritize things better, making sure everything gets done in a timely manner. For me, I put all of my assignments into a giant document, but different things work better for others so it’s really up to you what you want to do. Section all the work over different days, prioritizing work that’s due sooner over others, do assignments in chunks over the week, it helps break everything up.
Take Breaks
When studying, sometimes you can start to feel yourself start to burn out and that makes it so much harder to focus on your work, so what should you do to help yourself not burnout as quickly? Taking breaks every hour or so can help your brain reset in a sense, being able to just stop what you’re doing, stand up and walk around, go to the bathroom, get a drink of water. These are all ways that will help you keep your focus going, so always take a break or two while studying for long periods of time.
Note Taking
If you’re trying to study and when you look back on your notes, you might look at them and wonder to yourself, “What did I write down? Nothing makes sense.” When this happens, it might be time to start looking at how to take better notes. There are several methods of note taking that you can do or you can come up with methods that work best for you. Want to see different methods on how to take notes? I made another article on different ways to take notes.
Group Studying
Sometimes there are days when you’re studying and you find that studying with another person around helps you focus, you might want to look into group studying sessions if that’s what works best for you. Being able to work with a group gives you the chance to not only bond with your classmates, but you can also compare notes this way.
Visit The Tutoring Center
There is no shame if you need someone who can help explain a concept to you in a way that your professor might not be explaining it as. The Peer Tutoring and Writing Center, located in room 2052 next to the Hay Library, is a great place to meet with tutors who are more than willing to help make sure that whatever you’re struggling with or need some clarification with, all of your questions can be answered. You’re not alone, there is always someone who can help.
