Test Preparation and Taking
Test Preparation and Taking Introduction
Tests, exams, and quizzes are frequent and critical occurrences in college; studying for them requires consistent and thorough effort throughout the course as opposed to a last-minute cram. It’s foolish to think that you can prepare adequately without proper notes, study guides, or other course materials. Before you challenge that this would never happen, acknowledge that this means that you are taking notes during class and staying current on your work. Students bury themselves in a hole quickly and then often lack the motivation, strategies, perseverance to get out. In order to do well in college, you have to do well on these major parts of the coursework and final grade.
Students must expel the myth that students in college who get As do not need to study, or that studying only happens for students who have more catching up to do. The truth is, students who are successful taking tests give themselves a great deal of lead time, attend individual and group study sessions, and actively talk to their professors about the content.
Successful students consistently find ways to adapt to the needs of each class—a Math course will require a different mode of studying than an English/Writing course, for example—and lean into productive strategies of retaining information throughout the academic term.