Imagine this; It’s the night before your semester exam. You’ve had a pretty fun semester, which means you definitely have not touched the 55 readings distributed during the last six months by your CR. Then, oh no you remember! You’ve got an exam tomorrow morning or soon (just in case you are in a better scenario).

It’s the end of the world, and you should just give up and then maybe flee the country, right?

Sound familiar?

Yes.

However, with these 5 tips, you might just be able to pass that exam tomorrow.

Coffee

I know how everyone keeps talking about how bad caffeine and sugar are for your body, and all of it is true. But let’s face it: you need to stay up, so your body cleansing needs to take a backseat. Do whatever you need to do to stay alert and awake. Even just eating something while you are studying can be really helpful.

Use the 50/10 rule

This is one of the most useful methods of studying, because it keeps the student focused. Work hard for 50 minutes or with no breaks or distractions.

Anytime you get distracted and stop, the 50 minutes starts over.

Once you hit 50, take a 10 minute break. Training yourself this way forces you to study for 80% of the time- it’s much more effective.

Study Out Loud

Read your readings out loud.

Whisper, yell, sing, rap, whatever- say your notes out loud.

Its much easier it is to remember something you say, hear and read than something you simply read. By speaking out loud, you give your brain three stimuli to remember the material instead of just one.

Don’t study in your head- study aloud!

Chunk

Try remembering these ten numbers: 9-1-4-6-5-7-3-2-4-1.

Not so easy?

Now try remembering this phone number: 914-657-3241.

Much easier, right?

That’s a process known as chunking, which can help you retain information at a much higher rate. Come up with a few major concepts from the course material, and explain them each in a paragraph. Then, on a piece of paper, group your terms into the concepts. Practice going over a concept, and remembering the relevant terms and definitions.

Study with a friend

Odds are, you’re not the only one who put off studying until the last minute.

Find someone else to panic with.

You’ll realize how much you already know by asking and answering questions, and you’ll figure out what you need to study.

Quiz each other, ask questions about what you don’t understand, and figure out together what you need to be thinking about.

A disclaimer: Studying only the night before a test (like always) really isn’t a very good idea. These tips are meant to help you at the last minute, not to give you a reason to not study beforehand.