You’ve been studying the course content for months, but then days before your exam, the only things coming to mind are “I can’t remember anything”, “I’ve forgotten everything” and “my memory is terrible”.
When studying, you need to locate, absorb, retain and remember the information. To help you do this successfully, try these tips.
Show real interest in what you’re studying.
Switch on all your senses: this will improve perception, attention and concentration.
Carefully go over the information and try to grasp the most important details.
Focus on what the key ideas really mean and this will help you get a better overview.
Commit ideas to memory by repeating them and link them together by thinking about how they are related to each other.
Classify and group together different bits of information – you’ll remember them more easily.
Use visual imagery: try to associate what you want to remember with an image.
Stimulate your mind by asking yourself questions about the course content. This will make it easier to take information on board and remember it.
Take regular breaks while studying to keep your mind fresh.
Try to put the content you’re studying into your own words – this is a great way of checking that you really know it.
Prevent yourself from forgetting. Briefly go over and revise content you’ve already covered as part of every study session.
Test yourself: ask yourself questions about what you’ve done – this will help you to see what you still need to do.
