How to Fry My Brain Slowly and Effectively

While I have fun at Tech, this semester is easily the hardest I’ve worked in my entire life. Knowing everyone is going through the same thing is my biggest comfort, so I press on through about 25 hours a week of homework (at least) and a bunch of studying before tests. Thus far, that pre-test-studying has been mostly the night/day before, but so far it’s working out okay (and I’m trying my hardest to work studying in earlier).

This was very productive.

I usually study around other people even if we’re not really studying together. It seems that emotional support is extremely beneficial to my focus and alertness on those REALLY late nights because every night is late, it seems. My multitudes of online homework I often work on with friends because they are usually practice problems and it’s nice to compare answers or opinions. I’ve found good study buddies! Hannah (the roommate) for English, Sara for Calculus II and Chemistry, Will for Lab Reports, Andree for online Calculus homework. Half of the people I study with are in my dorm, (a benefit of honors program housing) so it’s really convenient. While I usually study in my room, I’ve been on a few CULCing (Clough Undergraduate Learning Center…ing) marathons and have picked out my favorite corners and outlets (it IS Tech after all). These quiet places accompanied by the “Do Not Disturb” mode on my cell phone have been conducive to some fairly focused study sessions. While I sometimes get a little distracted, it’s usually because I need a mental break anyway and I’ve been pretty on top of things.

I have tried to make use of a couple of the tutoring/study sessions from my classes, but a lot of time that is harder to fit into my schedule than some work with other students which has shown to be very beneficial just on it’s own. The best ways to study for me are to rewrite concepts and organize them in my own way. Then, do practice problems. This is perfect for Chemistry where we have homework problems and then make crib sheets (info we can take to the test that must fit on the paper), but even in Calculus where I don’t have that luxury, I still make a crib sheet as review of formulas (and I stick it in my pocket to help me memorize).

I have a few books.

Finals are a looming fear. I will probably hull up with food in my room most of dead week. I know breaks are necessary though, so I’m working on finding a controlled way to relieve stress between study sessions. I find I’m most productive when I switch between subjects relatively frequently, so I’m not bored of the material and also so I can practice remembering what I just studied an hour or so back.

I suppose I should start all this soon…

Step 1: Get all the other work out of the way.