It is the month of April and it seems the semester went by so fast.
One of the most obvious events coming up at this point in time will be final preparations for exams. I am offering a few simple tips for the test-taking.
First and foremost, preparations vary for each student. A student who has not been studying throughout the semester and hopes to succeed in the coming exams will have to be more alert and on the books more than a student who has been following up every part of the lectures and notes.
It’s definitely not the time of year to start using books for pillows. It is actually the time for collection of relevant materials, getting results to questions and clearing one’s doubts.
Time planning is as relevant at this period as rest and keeping your mind relaxed, especially when exams are nearing. Trying to compact the brain with so many materials at this point in time has been statistically proven futile.
This is by no means tolerating laziness, but it is by itself implying that it is imperative to keep the mind very relaxed.
This is the period to check on the types of assessment that are required. This information should also include the relative weighting between different modes of assessment.
So it is appropriate to plan accordingly by understanding the exam modules. This is particularly important if the grade you need to have in the course is very important.
No one needs to be reminded to check on the venue of the exam, the day and time. It is mostly undervalued but how demeaning it is to get a poor grade in a major course because one copied the venue, time or date incorrectly or overslept on the day of the exam.
The university has never been obliged to provide you with an alternative exam unless the problem was as a result of things beyond your control such as illness, for which written medical evidence is required.
A revision plan and organizing by dividing courses into blocks based on their relative importance and your ability to assimilate is also of extreme importance. No course is of little importance so even courses which do not have a high credit value should not be left out.
Attack all of the courses but make sure no neglect of sleep or eating habits is observed as a result of a tight schedule. Systematic breaks are needed in order to recharge one’s intellectual and physical batteries.
This is the right time to go over materials and notes which were copied personally because often these are the materials that are likely to be retained. Using someone else’s notes for this has resulted in poorer assimilation which has a great influence on one’s performance.
It is also a good idea to revisit all the lecturer’s recommendations and references. For mathematical courses for instance, understanding the proofs and principles in the course for basics is absolutely important. This approach should be given to all courses.
It has proven positive to try to answer past questions for the course because many a time, lecturers are looking for the same ideas and information. There is no need to memorize questions. Knowing how to solve them and maybe talking with classmates might be helpful.
On the exam day, reading through the exam rubrics will give information about the number of questions to attempt and from this, time management is then very important. Reading through each question in detail is important and care should be given to questions that are similar to previous test. Watch out for those questions, there might be a little trick added to it. Trying to answer the question “What does the examiner want from me?” has been really helpful.
The examiner will not allot any points for a blank sheet of paper.
There is always a need to write something down. Partial credits are better than none, and it is always hard to determine how many points you will get, writing what you can is just right the thing to do.
Panic should be avoided as much as possible and by taking a full breath and reassuring one’s self, panic can be avoided. Panic is simply the first step to poor performance.
After all is said and done, preparations vary from person to person and personal evaluation is the standard for proper preparation.
As Charles Carleb once said, “Examinations are formidable even to the best prepared, for the greatest fool can ask more than the wisest man can answer.

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