10 steps to study success
- Published on 9 Apr 2013
- HR Pulse News Desk
As thousands upon thousands of students get stuck into their studies at campuses across South Africa, it is worth looking at how a good start can make the year ahead not only easier but also much more likely to produce success.
Dr Felicity Coughlan, director of the Independent Institute of Education, says that by organising your thoughts and approach, you will focus you energy and attention and improve your results.
She advises new students, and those who’ve been around the campus block a few times to follow these 10 steps and enjoy being happier, healthier and wiser throughout the year:
1. It is important to start well. Treat your day as if it is a work day, and plan to put in eight hours. Get up on time, early and at the same time each morning, and work between lectures. Use the library or form a study group if you can’t leave campus. There are two advantages to this discipline: You’ll have to work far fewer long nights, and you get in to the habit of a work week.
2. Keep up with reviewing your notes. College and university knowledge builds up very quickly, and if you fall behind it is hard to catch up. Additionally, backlogs are quickly compounded to the point of becoming unmanageable.
3. Attend all your lectures. If you do miss any, make a point of catching up soon. If you absolutely must skip a few lectures, never miss tutorials or workshops.
4. Use any online resources that are available to supplement your learning. These are often free, and are invaluable in increasing your exposure to, and understanding of, a subject.
5. Talk to other students about your work as collaboration and sharing reinforces your learning. Take it as an early warning sign if you can’t take part in these discussions as this will indicate that you don’t really understand the work.
6. Start assignments early to avoid Murphy and the stress that will arise from the inevitable failing printer or downed network.
7. A little bit extra goes a long way. Do the extra reading. Prep for your lectures. The payoff far outweighs the investment.
8. Keep up with your learning. Learning is cumulative, and if you keep up, you won’t need to cram for exams.
9. Work through past papers. The more exposure to your subject, and questions about it, the better. And you might just meet an old question when you’re sitting in the exam room.
10. Take feedback seriously. If your lecturers don’t give you sufficient feedback, seek it from other peers who take their studies seriously.
“Finally, it is important to remember to enjoy yourself,” Coughlan says. “Higher education is a privilege, and should be treated as such. Every day you are on campus is an opportunity to grow as a person and as a professional, and to prepare yourself for the brilliant future you have ahead of you.”
