Exam preparation

Refuse to believe the student who says she only works just before exams and still gets through. Revision doesn't begin a week before the exams, although it might be more intense towards the end of the semester. To maximise the chances of a satisfactory result in your exams, start your preparation as early as possible in the semester.


Here are four concrete things you can do at any time to prepare for exams:


    Get hold of appropriate textbooks early and familiarise yourself with them. Try to do some preliminary reading.

   Make contact with other students - they may wish to form useful study groups later on.

.Make sure you're acquainted with the course program, lectures, tutorials, lab sessions - what is or has been covered, and when?


    Think where your subjects fit in to your overall course and career objectives. Maybe more work on that subject you find boring now will pay off much later on.

I find it hard to get down to study.

USUALLY -If you USUALLY find it difficult to get down to study it might be worth thinking about the course that you are doing and whether it is, in fact, the most appropriate for you. Ideally you will have a desk where you will do your writing and perhaps you'll have a comfortable chair near the desk where you can do the less-intensive reading. One way of settling down to study is by not immediately going into your hardest and most demanding work. You can organise your notes (perhaps prioritising the folders or books you are going to be looking at) or tidy your desk so that you have a clear space to work on. But be careful that these tasks don't extend too long; sometimes it's too easy to put off studying by finding small chores to do.

SOMETIMES-If you SOMETIMES have difficulty, this is extremely common, and you might consider ensuring that you always sit down in the same place to study. Ideally you will have a desk where you will do your writing and perhaps you'll have a comfortable chair near the desk where you can do the less-intensive reading. Another thing you need to bear in mind is the time of the day when you function the best. There is not much point sitting down at six o'clock in the morning if you're not usually much of a morning person.