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Invisiblekaniz
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Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well?
    #6808452 - 04/19/07 11:48 AM (16 years, 11 months ago)

So, I'm sure its the end of semester for many shroomies, and heading into exam time (if not already there).

What are some tips you have for studying / doing well on exams? (other than cheating?:)

Mine are.

1. Start doing review 1 month before the final exam. Even if this is just 15-30 mins a day here and there reviewing material (this is ontop of normal homework/etc), this is a big help.

2. Two weeks before the exam: start heavy review, 30-60 min chunks of time, with 15 min breaks - and reviewing for at least 2hrs a day, if not 3 or 4.

3. When doing questions (esp for math courses) - dont just write down the solution, but write down the steps explaining WHY you did what you just did. Often exams will have similar questions to the text book, but with 2 or 3 'tricks' - so its really important that you understand WHY you are doing what you just did, and not simply how to do it.

4. If you can manage it, do *NOT* study the day before the exam. However, no matter what - do *NOT* study on the day of the exam, you just psych yourself out.

5. Dont fall into the trap of quizzing your friends before the exam "do you know this? or this?" -- often quizzing like that will just psych you out and put you into anxiety mode thinking 'omg, I forgot everything!".

For me, I'll simply put on my iPod, throw on my favorite tracks/CDs - sit in a corner, close my eyes and relax. Going into an exam in a relaxed/calm mindset will benefit you more than pop-quizzing and getting anxious. If you followed advice #1 and #2 - you should be damn prepared anyways, and have no need to try and quiz eachother.

6. Be aware of what questions are worth - dont waste 30 mins doing a question that is worth 5 marks out of 100, when there is another question worth 10 marks. Quickly skim through the exam and see what questions are worth what marks, and plan accordingly.

7. On multiple choice tests - I find I have better luck by eliminating the wrong answers than by selecting the right answer. This is /very/ useful when you have 4 or 5 options that all sound similar but with a few key differences. Think through each option, and mark off ones that are wrong (now and then the right one will pop up - but even if option A is the right one, work on the rest just to ensure that they are wrong)

8. If you get stick on a question - just move on. Trying to re-work a difficult question over and over, and you may simply find yourself making the same type of mistakes. Move onto other questions - this can help break the pattern, and possibly a question later on in the exam will trigger a memory / remind you how to do the question you were just stuck on.

9. Dont panic - if you feel yourself stressing out, dont fall into it - put down the pen, close your eyes, put your hands down to your sides, take deep breaths while clenching and unclenching your fists while focusing on your breathing. This will help you release the tension, clear your mind, and help you get relaxed and into writing the exam again. Staying calm is key when doing exams IMO.

10. If possible, try and find past year midterms/exams - these are usually floating around, and while the questions may not be the same on the exam, the difficulty of questions will probably remain the same, this helps let you know what your about to get into. Some schools will even post them / offer them, but every school / course is different.

11. In the last day or two of studying, (esp if you dont have option #10 avail) - pick out sample questions from your textbooks, and ones that you have the solutions for - and do a mini timed-exam on yourself. Try and do X number of questions in 1 hour, then check your work at the end.

12. When studying - be sure to take breaks, 10-15 min breathers can help the information shift itself into memory easier than doing a 2 hour cram-session with no breaks.

13. When writing the exam - take mini-breaks. If you find your head 'just feeling tired', lay your head down for a few mins (not too long, still gotta be aware of the time), this can just help clear your head and help you be a bit more refreshed for the rest of the exam.

Edited by kaniz (04/19/07 11:49 AM)

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InvisibleWhiskeyClone
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808470 - 04/19/07 11:52 AM (16 years, 11 months ago)

If you do all those things, you have absolutely nothing to worry about.

15. Don't drink coffee before the exam


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Welcome evermore to gods and men is the self-helping man.  For him all doors are flung wide: him all tongues greet, all honors crown, all eyes follow with desire.  Our love goes out to him and embraces him, because he did not need it.

~ R.W. Emerson, "Self-Reliance"

:heartpump:

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Invisiblejewunit
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: WhiskeyClone]
    #6808481 - 04/19/07 11:54 AM (16 years, 11 months ago)

I cheat.
And stuff my head full of Adderall so I can cram like a motherfucker.
I also have a 1.3 GPA, so don't take any of my advice.

Trying to turn it around this quarter though, I still have 7 weeks I think til exams, and I'm much better about getting to class and doing assignments. Just gotta work on the study habits. Old habits die hard :sad:


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Invisibletiny_rabid_birds
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808512 - 04/19/07 12:04 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

holy crap. if i did this, i'd have a 4.0

i'm an awful student though. i don't go to class as regularly as i should. i sure as hell don't read the chapters as they're assigned. hell, half the time i never read them at all.

i'm not even going to start studying for any exams until a few days before the exams, because i'm too stressed about my 15-20 page paper i still need to write. and my philosophy journals on top of that. god i'm an awful student.


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OfflineColbadol
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808514 - 04/19/07 12:05 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

the night before your exam, re-do almost all of the homework that was assigned (if possible) on the material that you will be tested on. youll have all of the problems and procedures fresh in your head for the exam. this will also speed up your testing time.
i do this for normal exams, too, and this semester i have aced every single exam in my engineering courses. this is really good for me because i only have a 2.1 GPA.



steps 3 and 4 in that program are false.

i always wake up at about 6am the day of my exam and i study all the way until i have to take it. this has worked for me because i keep my studying very organized and structured with all past homeworks, sample exams, exams, labs, and examples handed out in class.


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Edited by Colbadol (04/19/07 12:10 PM)

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Invisiblekaniz
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: jewunit]
    #6808528 - 04/19/07 12:10 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

Follow my advice and you'll do better :smile:

I almost flunked out, now my GPA is a 3.057 (had a 3.88 GPA last winter, 3.5 last semester) and thats up from a low 2.0ish in previous years. For awhile, I was getting a B/C avg and failing a course here and there (failed 2 courses, had an incomplete in another, and a few Ds) - during the years I was doing poorly, I was more stressed/anxious than ever. I didnt do homework, would skip class, wouldn't study for exams, put partying / dating / work / social life above school.

Now I've pulled shit around, getting a B+/A avg, gotten A+'s in a few courses.

Now, school is generally my #1 priority, I still party/etc - just I tend to fit partying into school, then trying to fit school around partying. I'm less stressed, more ontop of things and feeling like school is easier than ever.

While it may seem like allot of work - its actually easier, less stresful and in the end, feels like less work/effort then doing the 'put everything off then cram at the last second'

Edited by kaniz (04/19/07 12:11 PM)

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OfflineColbadol
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808534 - 04/19/07 12:13 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

feels good when everything just "clicks," right kaniz?

i guess it's just that youve figured it out. i was the same way, and my last semester i was on academic probation. So, i got my shit together and last semester i pulled a 3.3 and this semester im going to get a 3.5. This is amazing for me. I have 1 year left to see how high i can get my cumulative.


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Invisiblejewunit
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808535 - 04/19/07 12:13 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

As I'm sure you know, easier said than done. I'm also working on changing so many other habits of mine that it's hard. I mean hell, I just am now starting to get to class more and more regularly. I also don't party very much at all. Haven't drank since Spring Break actually. A lot of people assume that's a problem but it isn't.

But definitely good advice, I'll keep it in mind, and maybe just start by working on a couple of those things at first :thumbup:

As for step 4, I think studying the day before/of an exam has varying effects for different people. It actually really helps me, I think part of this is because tests don't stress me at all, they have always been the sole reason I'm still not a grade behind.


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Edited by jewunit (04/19/07 12:16 PM)

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InvisibleBoom
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808536 - 04/19/07 12:13 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

Damn man, why ya askin' advice?  You got that shit under serious control :lol:

I wish I could do that

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Invisibletiny_rabid_birds
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808545 - 04/19/07 12:15 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

dude, it sounds like you've really turned it around big time in the past couple of years.

i've kinda tried, but i really have a lot of difficulty staying focused. it's not really that i don't do my work at all. it's just that i'm horribly unproductive. so a simple task takes me all night because i don't stay focused and i end up wandering around more than actually working. which is awful, because low productivity means i don't get shit done early/on time. i'm so fucking stressed about all this shit i have to write in the next week. and i hate myself for not doing it earlier. oh well.

btw, i have like a 2.5 overall, 3.2 major. Bs and Cs only. couple of A-, couple of C- but that's it.


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Invisiblekaniz
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: tiny_rabid_birds]
    #6808554 - 04/19/07 12:18 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

lost 50 pounds, kicking ass at school, in a stable relationship, got a solid summer job lined up (same place as last year), and a good chance of getting hired there once I finally graduate.

Took me a few years of fucking up before I pulled my head out of my ass, and gotta say - the air is much fresher out here :smile:

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Invisibletiny_rabid_birds
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808588 - 04/19/07 12:28 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

in high school i had my shit together rather well. exercising all the time, captain of the wrestling and cross country teams both of my upper classmen years. always acing classes.. had like a 5.4 gpa or something. although, granted, classes were a shit-ton easier in high school. regardless. i've regressed over the past few years, and it's not cool. i should take care of it.


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Invisiblekaniz
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: kaniz]
    #6808596 - 04/19/07 12:31 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

I guess the 1 exception to my 'no study the day of' rule is.

- if you need to know some equations, but do not have a cheat sheet
-- study the equations before the exam, write them down over, and over, and over, and over until they stick. When you get into the exam, the first thing you write down are those equations.

Obviously this is moot if you are allowed a crib sheet.

Quote:

tiny_rabid_birds said:
in high school i had my shit together rather well.  exercising all the time, captain of the wrestling and cross country teams both of my upper classmen years.  always acing classes.. had like a 5.4 gpa or something.  although, granted, classes were a shit-ton easier in high school.  regardless.  i've regressed over the past few years, and it's not cool.  i should take care of it.




Highs school screwed me over. I pulled off mid 80 avg without having to try - didnt study, didnt do homework, could skip class - and since I had a high avg, teachers didn't complain or get me in trouble. So, I had ZERO study skills and very poor schoolwork-ethic.

Then, I get to univ, and bam! I actually need to try and pull off grades, took me awhile to figure out how :smile:

Edited by kaniz (04/19/07 12:32 PM)

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InvisibleIn(di)go
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: WhiskeyClone]
    #6808616 - 04/19/07 12:37 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

Quote:

WhiskeyClone said:
If you do all those things, you have absolutely nothing to worry about.

15. Don't drink coffee before the exam




that depends... there's this thing called "same state learning" and i have found it to be quite accurate... whatever you consume when you're studying, consume the day of the test... it will put you in the same state of mind and you will be able to remember what you studied better...


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InvisibleWhiskeyClone
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: In(di)go]
    #6808627 - 04/19/07 12:39 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

Quote:

In(di)go said:
Quote:

WhiskeyClone said:
If you do all those things, you have absolutely nothing to worry about.

15. Don't drink coffee before the exam




that depends... there's this thing called "same state learning" and i have found it to be quite accurate... whatever you consume when you're studying, consume the day of the test... it will put you in the same state of mind and you will be able to remember what you studied better...




Yeah but I don't usually study while holding in a giant piss.


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Welcome evermore to gods and men is the self-helping man.  For him all doors are flung wide: him all tongues greet, all honors crown, all eyes follow with desire.  Our love goes out to him and embraces him, because he did not need it.

~ R.W. Emerson, "Self-Reliance"

:heartpump:

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InvisibleIn(di)go
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: WhiskeyClone]
    #6808657 - 04/19/07 12:43 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

hahaha i thought you meant getting all hyped out on caffeine...


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OfflineMadtowntripper
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: WhiskeyClone]
    #6808659 - 04/19/07 12:44 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

This thread is funny to me.

The best way to do well on a test is to know the material. It seems pretty simple.

I have no test anxiety whatsoever. I would much rather take an exam than give a presentation or write a paper anyday. To me, an exam is the best method to assess a persons knowledge of a subject. If you know the material, you will do well. If you dont, you probably wont.

Its pretty black and white.


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After one comes, through contact with it's administrators, no longer to cherish greatly the law as a remedy in abuses, then the bottle becomes a sovereign means of direct action.  If you cannot throw it at least you can always drink out of it.  - Ernest Hemingway

If it is life that you feel you are missing I can tell you where to find it.  In the law courts, in business, in government.  There is nothing occurring in the streets. Nothing but a dumbshow composed of the helpless and the impotent.    -Cormac MacCarthy

He who learns must suffer. And even in our sleep pain that cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, and in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom to us by the awful grace of God.  - Aeschylus

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InvisibleWhiskeyClone
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: In(di)go]
    #6808662 - 04/19/07 12:45 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

It's the diuretic effect that is troublesome :frown:


--------------------
Welcome evermore to gods and men is the self-helping man.  For him all doors are flung wide: him all tongues greet, all honors crown, all eyes follow with desire.  Our love goes out to him and embraces him, because he did not need it.

~ R.W. Emerson, "Self-Reliance"

:heartpump:

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Invisibletiny_rabid_birds
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: WhiskeyClone]
    #6808670 - 04/19/07 12:47 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

then get up and take a piss?

are you guys not allowed to go to the pisser during exams? if so, that blows. but i haven't had that sort of regulation at all in college.


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InvisibleWhiskeyClone
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Re: Exam Time! - tips/tricks for doing well? [Re: tiny_rabid_birds]
    #6808678 - 04/19/07 12:49 PM (16 years, 11 months ago)

They let you go but they look at you all funny... like the 'greeters' at Wal-Mart.

I'd rather do without the whole distraction.


--------------------
Welcome evermore to gods and men is the self-helping man.  For him all doors are flung wide: him all tongues greet, all honors crown, all eyes follow with desire.  Our love goes out to him and embraces him, because he did not need it.

~ R.W. Emerson, "Self-Reliance"

:heartpump:

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