How to Cram for an Exam as a Tired College Student During Finals Season: Three AMAZING Ways

Oh, so your final is tomorrow, and you haven’t looked at a single piece of lecture content? No worries, here’s how to cram for a test as a college student during finals season: 

Talk Out Loud to Yourself

• If it’s a test where you have to memorize, say everything out loud over and over.
• Teach it to yourself aloud, or teach it to someone else as if you’re trying to explain it to them.
• Just make sure you’re doing it OUT LOUD
  • Your brain has a lot to worry about with it being finals season, so if you’re simply thinking about what you’re trying to retain, there will be a lot of room for distraction.
• Also, since you’re tired, it just might help in keeping you 🫵🏾 awake

REPETITION

• I would strongly advise repetition for math exams especially
• Math test→ do each problem on the practice test, PowerPoint slides, study guides- whatever- at least five times each, and at least on three separate occasions
  • So, go over the study guide, practice exam, whatever it is, three times, redoing each question five times
    • At this point, the goal is to remember how to do it for the exam, FORGET UNDERSTANDING; it’s 12 a.m., and your exam is at 8 a.m.
• Kahoots, Quizlet, Study guides, PPTs
  • I’m sure your class has made a GroupMe, so look through it to see if they posted something like a Quizlet or Kahoot
  • If not, don’t bother making your own, because you’ll end up spending more time on that than studying
    • Go over your notes from lecture, read them over and over out loud until you’re SICK of them, you hear me?
      • Do the same with the PPTs, study guide, practice exam, whatever you have on deck that you know is important to know

Forgive Me- but neglect, Neglect, NEGLECT,

• Neglect every other class right now and focus solely on this exam
  • if you have multiple exams on the same day, split your time
• Neglect any outings that are happening; it goes academia first, and a good time second
• Neglect that lil boy that only hits you up at 9 p.m. for “Netflix and Chill”; he does not matter right now
  • Well he doesn’t matter period- but that’s for another blog post pookie 😉
• During finals season, there’s a lot riding on each exam, so there’s no time for distractions. A final exam could…
  • make or break your grade in the class
  • possibly replace your lowest exam score
  • most likely weigh more than all the other exams

There are a lot of little hacks for cramming, but there’s no need to spend hours learning them right now. Start studying and spend your undivided attention on that alone. I wish you the best of luck girly!