College Success Skills: Study Tips

Study Skills Presentation 

Tips on Fitting Study Time into Your Schedule 

Take advantage of downtime. If you take a long bus ride each day or have some spare time while you do your laundry, why not use it to get a little studying in? The less time you waste during downtime, the more time you’ll have later.

Set goals. It can be hard to get motivated to study when you don’t have a clear goal in mind. Set a goal of how much you want to get done and try your best to meet it.

Use the syllabus. Your syllabus will let you know when and how fast you’ll be covering topics in your class. You can use it to get ahead when you have extra time or to know when and what you’ll need to work on each day to keep up. Learn what works for you. Different methods work better for different people. If you’re struggling with a certain way you’ve been studying, try something else. You may find it takes you less time and that you get a lot more out of it by making a simple change.

Study difficult subjects first. There’s no sense in putting off the worst for last — it will only encourage you to procrastinate and get less done in the long run. Get the hard stuff out of the way and you’ll have a much happier rest of the day.

Work in short blocks with breaks. You won’t be doing yourself any favors by pulling marathon study sessions with no breaks. Studies have shown that the most effective way to get through material is to go through it in smaller sessions and to give your mind and eyes time to rest in between with short breaks.

Team up with classmates. There’s no need to study alone if you can get more out of working with your classmates. Sometimes collaboration can be a much faster way to get through material, and it can be a great help if you’re struggling with certain concepts. Just make sure your study sessions don’t get too off track.

Avoid skipping class. While everyone skips a class now and again to catch up on sleep or to get other things done they feel are more pressing, try not to make a habit of it. Going to class will make it easier for you to keep up with the material and will give you the chance to ask questions.

Create a strategy. You’ll get the most out of your study time if you go into it with a strategy in mind. Focus on certain subjects first or spend a little extra time on topics that you struggle with. Whatever you do, make sure it works for you and makes the most of your time.

General Studying Tips