Twelve Tips for Studying and Managing Your Time

1. Plan a definite time for studying each day. This will discourage procrastination and prevent that pile-up of work.

2. Know the purpose of each assignment, what to do, and how to do it before you leave class. Keep a record of all assignments in a special section of your notebook. 

3. Predict the amount of time needed for each assignment. By timing your assignments, you are more likely to concentrate and less likely to become bored.

4. Time yourself to see how long it takes you to read five pages of your textbook or a paperback. This will help you estimate the time needed to complete a reading assignment. Because a textbook is loaded with information, you may have to read some sections more than once. Even instructors have to reread material. Allow time for reflecting on what you read, too.

5. Pay attention to charts and diagrams. They can be shortcuts to understanding.

6. Review reading assignments before class so that you will be ready to participate and also be prepared if there is a quiz.

7. Spend ten minutes in review of previous assignments every time you study. These “refresher shots” are the secret for long-term memory. This habit of frequent review also results in less time needed for studying for a major test.

8. Use daytime for study if possible. At night you are likely to be less efficient.

9. Take a five-minute break after every 50 minutes of study.  This break refreshes your mind so that you can concentrate better and finish faster.

10. Set a “stopping time” at night to encourage hard work in anticipation of being through by ten o’clock or whatever time you set. Sometimes you may even beat the clock. The increased impetus helps you concentrate.

11. Don’t cram for hours the night before a test.  Instead, distribute your study in half-hour segments over a period of days.

12. Continuously make the connections and associations in your own mind. Since learning is cumulative, new ideas must be incorporated with previous learning from lectures, readings, and lab experiments. Putting it all together is easier if you schedule time daily to read, to think, to reflect, to review. Improved learning is the natural result of this approach to using your time.