Revision Tips

Related story: problems

It can bite you on the behind and not let go. It can make knitting and watching QVC seem more interesting than doing your coursework. It means that the night before a test, the local shop has been picked clean of coffee crystals and Coke, and you’re cramming until your eyes bug out.

It is procrastination and it is evil.

So, how to defend yourself from this plague?

sUK’s revision suggestions:

• Work when you’ve got energy. If you’re a morning person, do it then. If you’re a post-dawn, pre-dusk, during-lunch person, do it then.

• Don’t panic, and break your massive workload into smaller tasks.

• Make a plan, Stan. Get a desk organizer where you can see your deadlines and how they may overlap.

• Work for a decent amount of time and then take a break. Your brain will thank you.

• Scrap the all-nighters. Once your brain is fried, it won’t function properly. Hence, your 3am stare at the notebook will be nearly useless.

• If you can afford it, nip down to your local herb-monger and pick up some Gingko Biloba or Ginseng. Ginseng's way better than caffeine, and is fantastic at beating fatigue and increasing energy. For maximum results, ensure that any supplements you buy contain pure ginseng and have no added sugars, colours and other junk. Also, do not take ginseng for long periods of time.

• Gingko Biloba is good for revision. Take the extract from the Chinese gingko biloba tree, and enhance the blood flow and oxygen supply your heart and body and brain. Known by the white coats as a prime brain booster, gingko is reputed to increase memory, as well as relieve aches and pains. Bonus!

• Juggle those topics! Mixing and matching studying between the fun and boring courses make the bland ones easier to digest.

• Find a desk. Or make one. Just ensure that you’re not lying on your bed, sitting in front of the TV or lounging on the floor…studying requires discipline, not comfort.

• Trn yr mob. off or u will be sdtrked 2 ofn.

• Don't forget "panic time" when estimating how much time you need to revise. Panic time is when you realize that you needed to read an extra novel — say, for example, the 900-plus paged Anna Karenina by Tolstoy — for your essay. Add an extra half- or full day to your study time, just to be on the safe side. If you’ve done everything correctly, you can use this time to reread or study.

• Work with a friend…but only if you don’t fancy them or feel the need to gossip. And talk to them about the subjects. This will help your memorization.

• Draw pictures, graphs, use your highlighter (so long as you don’t over-highlight) or make notes. This may help your recall.

• Talk to your tutor. Explain to them your stress about an upcoming assignment and see if they have any suggestions.

• We hate to say it but it really does help you retain more if you review or discuss your notes from a class soon after you’ve taken it.

• Try using mnemonics, which are devices that use a formula or a rhyme to help you remember. For example if you wanted to remember the names of the planets in order from the Sun…try My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas (for Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto). This also works by changing song lyrics or writing a poem.

• Essay banks—web sites or books that offer pre-written essays on a number of topics—may seem the easy way out, but tread carefully. It is a fine line between using them as a study tool and plagiarizing. Which you could get nailed for. We say: You’re at school to learn, so learn, dammit!

• If you’re struggling to keep up and feel that you may have a learning disability such as dyslexia, talk to your tutor about what problems you have been experiencing. They may refer you to Student Services or work with you to find ways around the issue, such as allowing you longer time during exams. For more information about learning disabilities contact the British Dyslexia Association or the National Bureau for Students with Disabilities.

And don’t forget…

Save money by buying your books second hand from last year’s students. These are often advertised and sold around campus via billboards and in halls and sometimes even the uni book store, so keep an eye out. Or try visiting Student Books or Student Book World to see if they or other competiters have what you need.

Find a computer and Web access. The best place to start for all your studying needs is your campus library. The fine bookworms in there should be able to help you with your studying dilemmas and perhaps even offer free or subsidized access to the Net. Find it and use it.

As for a computer, be on the lookout for people selling used ones (although be careful not to get ripped off), or go down to your local dealer with a list of your computing needs. For non-IT types out there, think carefully about what you will need a computer for (simple Word processing? Net access? Computer games? A large memory for downloading nudie pics? A printer? Extras? etc.), what your budget is and then research it by talking to your computer geek friends, visiting several shops or checking out the Net for information. Don’t rush out and buy the first flash and expensive box you see.