It doesn’t matter if you’re just freshmen or studying senior year in college, good grades are essential to succeed in life. While the first few months into college can be enticing and exciting due to the new environment it offers to you, it often happens that the thrill of it makes one forget the basic purpose of college: academics.
Senior year students are expected to have a more mature understanding of the situation and boost up their academic performance accordingly. Freshmen year is rather light, but students should always keep in mind the need for good grades and work as per requirement.
Basic tips to remember while studying in college
Good Notes are an essential to good grades
While you, as a student might think taking and noting down everything that the professor tells you in the class is the key to getting excellent grades, you might as well be trying too hard. A good set of notes is one that has all the basic points and not every detail that the professor spills out of his mouth. The key points or the significant points of a particular lecture should be properly noted down. That is the generic marker of a good class note.
Moreover, if you miss out on any part you can always ask your professors during free hours. Often many students record the classes on their phones or i-pods so that they can refer to them once they start studying at home. The recording also allows one to not miss out on anything and make individual notes cancelling the unnecessary details, allowing concentration on the essential points. However, if you choose to record the class, make sure you have permission from the particular professor.
Always stay organized
Good grades come easier if you stay organized. This is because if you are unorganized then the process of studying becomes all the more difficult. College life often encumbers us with a lot of handouts, PDFs, documents that come as either texts or reference texts. It is extremely important to keep track of these class materials and not make the process of studying them complicated.
To ease the process of maintaining and studying these materials, along with individual notes, one can use sticky notes to mark the important pages or underline or highlight significant lines. Also, keep a calendar to keep your engagements, your academics, and your commitments in order.
Disconnect yourself from the internet while you’re in class or are studying at home
In spite of the fact that most of the students use the computer and the internet to complete their assignments, projects, term papers and even to look for reference, the internet comes rather as a distraction. The social media is a platform that one cannot leave as it might contain class details and study materials.
The best way to not get distracted while studying is to not go online on social media while studying. This will ensure maximum concentration and all the time invested in studying will be fruitful. Setting boundaries to the amount of time spent on the internet is always a necessity when it comes to the maintaining of good grades.
Do Not Cram
It is generally not advisable to leave the syllabus for the last minute. While many students can score brilliant marks even by studying at the last minute before exams, it is not very fruitful in the long run. A student that does this is less likely to remember all that he has studied just the night before exams for a long period of time and might even have to learn it again.
A good study habit is one that makes grades good. Studying a little every day at a regular pace is what a good study habit means. It is normally found that student that has a good study habit remember things more and for them the concepts are clearer than students who cram themselves till the last minute.
Never Over-study
Normally the concept of ‘over-studying’ is practically non-existent when it comes to college students. This happens mostly because college students have more engagements than students of any other category. There are events, curriculum and then the academics and a social life to maintain. However if you as a student of a college is the kind that does classes, sits in the library for hours looking for textbooks, study material or reference books and then goes home, maybe you are overworking.
Always remember to give attention to the basic important points and not hover on irrelevant details. That makes both studying easier and the memory efficient. If you are not sure of your method of studying, you can always consult your professors. Often studying too much comes from the unnecessary reading of irrelevant materials.
Find your comfort zone
Always look for the environment that suits best for you to study. It differs from people to people. A certain amount of calm is required for carrying out your study pattern. However, there are students who can study even in the soft murmurs in a coffee shop. Some prefer to study in the college library. Others, on the other hand, prefer to study in total isolation. Thus as a student, it is essential for you to find your comfortable spot to study, and then carry out your study pattern. It is normally helpful in studying in comfort which in the long run yields better grades.
Always take a break
If you have a regular study schedule then it is essential you take ten to fifteen minutes to break after every one or two hours of unperturbed studying. You really deserve every bit of it. You can even take two or three days off, per week. This really helps maintain your stress levels as well as your mental health, which is probably the most significant part of your college life.
Moreover, these breaks keep you energized and make you look forward to classes and to academics in general. Also, maintain a healthy diet and a proper sleep cycle. If not, try to take rest at regular intervals so that you never run out of energy.
Good grades are important to succeed in life. However, it is always necessary to keep your mental health in shape. Physical health is as important as mental health and if you as a student feel you are not being able to cope with all the stress that college comes with, you should always seek the help of the college counsellor. A good mental health is a road to good grades and a good life in the long run.
