The good news is that there’s only one week left until the Christmas break begins. The bad news is that this last week is the dreaded exam week. We know that this time of year can be stressful for students, so we’ve put together a list of tips and advice that will help you survive exam week!
- PROCRASTINATION- We’ve all had our own battles with procrastination at some point. It’s a common problem amongst students and can lead to poor performance during exams. If you don’t already know, procrastination is the art of delaying or postponing something that could be done sooner rather than later. If you want to do well in exams, studying needs to be at the top of your to-do list and shouldn’t be postponed. Start as soon as you wake up in the morning.
- MIX UP YOUR REVISION TECHNIQUES- Try and switch up your revision techniques. Instead of just reading from a textbook and summarising notes, try different techniques to make your revision that little bit more exciting. Why not try looking at practice papers, making flashcards or revising in a group.
- CUT OFF ANY DISTRACTIONS- It’s very easy to get distracted when revising from the comfort of your own home. You’ve got the temptations of social media right in front of you, housemates making noise and the TV on in the background because you’ve convinced yourself that you can have it on in the background and not get distracted. Try and minimize or completely cut away these distractions. Turn your phone and TV off while you’re revising and go to the library to revise in peace and quiet.
- DON’T BE TOO HARD ON YOURSELF- Of course revision is important and essential for any exam you take, but that doesn’t mean that you should be revising every second of the day. It’s important to take regular breaks, spend some time with your friends and save some time for yourself.
- HEALTHY BODY, HEALTHY MIND- During stressful times it’s easy to get sucked into eating unhealthily, binging on takeaways and sweet treats and drinking your body weight in alcohol. These quick calories from processed foods will ultimately leave you feeling lethargic. Do your best to stay healthy and active over this period. Make sure you get enough vegetables and protein into your body and drink plenty of water. And don’t flunk off exercise. Find some time throughout the week to work out and keep your body fit and you’ll find your mentality will improve.
- FIND STUDY BUDDIES- Revising can be a pretty lonely period and you often see students sat alone in the library with their heads in a book. It turns out working with others can actually help with your revision. Listening to how other students carry out their revision can help expand your revision and topic knowledge. Testing each other and revising together will give you a clear idea of how much you already know and what you need to work on.
- AVOID REVISING THE NIGHT BEFORE – The worst thing you can do the night before an exam is staying up to the early hours of the morning cramming in last-minute information. Don’t try and overload your head with new information the night before your exam, relax and get a good night’s sleep.
- GIVE YOURSELF SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TOO – It’s important to keep your morale high, especially through stressful periods like exam week. Try and make sure you have something fun lined up for after your exam week, whether this is a big night of drinking with your mates, a day trip, a city break or even a holiday to keep you motivated through the hard times.
- DON’T GET LOST IN ONE EXAM- You’re more than likely going to have more than one exam throughout the week so it’s important to make sure you have a clear head before each one. Don’t dwell on an exam you did the day before because you think you messed up on a question or you think you failed. Once you’ve done an exam, forget about it and move on to the next.
- SEEK HELP- More often than not, the stress of preparing and taking exams consumers students. They can suffer from anxiety, depression and other health issues. If you find yourself struggling mentally with exams, please make sure you get in touch with your lecturers, Student services and your SU team. We’re here to help.
Just remember, it’ll all be over in a week. As long as you work hard and look after yourself you’ll be fine, and don’t forget to celebrate afterwards!