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As a college student, you need to dedicate many hours of your week to studying, whether in class or on your own. It’s important to make good use of this time because it will have a big impact on how well prepared you are for exams. Study smarter rather than harder by using these hacks.

1. Determine Your Learning Style

Everyone has preferences for how they like to learn. The activities that resonate most with you are likely to fall into one of four categories: visual, auditory, reading and writing, or kinesthetic.

Visual learners like to be able to see the information they’re learning. You may find it helpful to draw diagrams of concepts and to use colour coding.

Auditory learners prefer to hear and talk about information. Joining study groups where you can discuss concepts with other students is ideal. When studying alone, you could try reading your notes aloud or even make recordings of your ideas.

Students who have a reading and writing learning style enjoy reading textbooks and putting their ideas into written form. You should write your notes as bullet points or summaries as you study.

Finally, kinesthetic learners prefer hands-on ways of studying. They enjoy taking classes that have labs and workshops. When you need to read textbooks, take notes, or listen to recordings, you may find it helpful to incorporate physical activity into studying, such as by moving around to maintain your focus.

Reflect on what type of learner you are according to your study preferences or by using an online quiz.

2. Use Mnemonics

To memorize lists and orders of things, use mnemonics. As well as searching for mnemonics that already exist, you might try to create your own. If they’re ridiculous or based on something in your own life, they’ll be especially easy to remember.

3. Doodle to Keep Your Focus

There may be times in class when you don’t need to take any notes and can just listen to the professor. To stop your mind from wandering, it can be helpful to doodle. You can also use this practice if you’re listening to information or reflecting on what ideas to include in a paper.

4. Listen to Music

Whereas some people need silence to study, many students find listening to music helps them stay focused. This is because it puts them in a good mood, which makes it easier to tackle challenges. Create a playlist of tracks that are ideal for studying. This will likely be music without lyrics to distract you.

5. Cut Distractions

Other distractions you need to cut out when studying include notifications and social media. Set a focus mode on your phone to avoid receiving any alerts and commit to studying for a certain amount of time before you do anything unrelated to your class.

6. Rewrite Notes

Refresh your memory of the material before an exam by rewriting your own notes. You could condense them into key facts, group them in a different way, or add information you learned at a later date. However you choose to use this tactic, it will be better than simply reading your notes because you’ll be doing something active rather than passive.

7. Chew Gum

Studies have found that chewing gum increases alertness by keeping you awake and stimulating your mind. Link chewing gum to your memory recall by choosing a particular flavour for each class and chewing the same flavour during each of your exams.

Crucial to being able to study at college is having a quiet place where you can focus. Whereas you likely won’t find this living on campus, you will if you move into student rentals. Barrie has apartments that are sure to meet your needs at Arcadian Students. Our brand new community provides you with your own room and en suite bathroom in a fully-furnished suite or townhouse. For a change of scenery, you can always use our onsite study rooms or one of the nearby cafés. Contact us now for a lease before we run out of space.