1) No Multitasking-No matter how much you think you can watch Hannah Montana and do your physics homework, you really can’t. Your brain can only process one important thing at a time, and Hannah deserves your full attention. Don’t believe your brain isn’t as powerful as you think? Try to say your times tables while writing out your ABC’s…not so easy. Don’t push your brain to do more than it can; you won’t retain anything and your time will worthless.

2)Leave the Laptop-Admittedly you need your computer sometimes for research of to type up your paper, but if you are locking yourself in the study lounge to get your chemistry homework done your laptop isn’t necessary. If you bring it, you will use it. Two hours later you’ve checked your email, your Facebook, the news, talked to friends, and gotten exactly nothing done.

3)Chew Gum or Mints- It’ll help keep you awake and alert. Chewing gum keeps moving so you feel less sleepy.

4)Set Aside a Study Haven- The study lounge, the library, the student center, etc. You need to find a spot you can devote to studying. If you study in your bed, you’re going to want to fall asleep. If you study on the couch you’re going to end up watching TV. You need to have a space that you associate with concentrating and getting your stuff done, sans all your cool toys.

5)Get Rid of the Roomates and Friends- You love them, but make them go away. You aren’t going to get anything done if you spend the whole time talking about what you’re going to do Friday night, or giggling over the most totally awesome thing that happened in the line at Falafel Cafe. Each time you break your concentration you have to take time and go back to figure out what you were studying; it will take forever to learn anything.

6)Check your Lighting- Fluorescent lighting makes your eyes hurt and wears them out quickly, making you feel more tired then you actually are. Lighting that is too dark does the same thing too. Try to find a nice medium to work by. Sun lamps rock, they convince your body that it is daylight, and you should be awake and productive.

7)Make a List- Get everything you need to do in order, so you don’t forget anything, and so you can manage your time in order to actually get everything done. Also, after your brain is fried from 5 hours of physics and you forget you still have a paper to write, your list can remind you, and avoid disaster.

8)Get Your Stuff Together- Try to get everything you need together before your study so you don’t have to take a ton of breaks trying to find your purple post-its.

 9)Don’t Set Your Goals Too High- Don’t plan to write a twelve page paper, catch up on three classes and do all your homework in half an evening. First, the work will look so daunting you will probably be less motivated to get the job done. Second, when you fail miserably trying to conquer this massive list you will be even less encouraged  to study well in the future. Assign yourself manageable goals, and if you don’t achieve them all, focus on what you did accomplish.

 10)Use Colors- Colors help you recall things. Highlight, get colored pens, use colored flash cards, print practice exams on colored paper, etc. It sounds stupid, but it works.

 11)Take Breaks- Realistically you can only focus on any subject for 30-60 minutes without being overloaded with information. Don’t try to sit for three hours straight reading about psychosocial theory; your brain needs a break every once in a while to process what you just took in. Every hour or so go get a snack, make a phone call, lie down and listen to music, etc. It doesn’t need to be a huge break, sometimes even 5 minutes can work a miracle.

 12)Make Flashcards- Not only are flash cards great for quizzing yourself, but making them is just as great a study tool. Making an awesome set of flashcards forces you to organizes and understand the material enough to write it down. Also, writing it down on the cards helps you retain the information. Remember, write- don’t type. You’ll recall a lot better what you’ve written by hand than what you’ve typed.

13)Create Your Own Questions- Think of as many questions as you can that you think could be on the test. This can help you think critically about the information, and prepare yourself for the test day!

14)Study a Little Every Day- Take as little as 20 minutes to study for each class, every day. You will be way likelier to ace the exam by learning a little bit each day, than if you try to cram it all the night before. That isn’t even 2 hours per class! Easy.

15)Take Notes While You Study-  Grab a pad of paper or a pack of post-its, and write down everything that comes through you mind while you study. Anytime you have a question, topic you don’t understand, idea of something you should do before the test, etc. just write it down.

16)Paraphrase- After studying a portion, then sit back for a second and try to say what you’ve learned in your own words. Studying won’t do you any good if you aren’t retaining any of the material or if you don’t understand it enough to summarize it.

 17)Don’t Underline-  Good Students don’t underline. Underlining is NOT an effective way to emphasis or to recall. Use a highlighter. This is probably the easiest tip.

 18)When To Study- Study after you’ve taken a nap and had a cup of caffeine. Don’t try the all-nighter method, or the one where you wake up after 5 hours of sleep to cram before the test. Fulfill all your basic needs before you get to working. Sleep, caffiene, hydration, food, shower, etc. are all great things to do before you study, so that all your basic needs are met.

 19)Prioritize-Don’t work on your biology homework thats due next week if you have a paper you still haven’t started due tomorrow. Finish the most pressing work first, before moving on to the less important tasks.

 20)Double Check Your Work-Look at the syllabus, check the assignment, and take a second to think. Did you actually study chapters 1-4 or 2-5? Was that 3 references or 7 in the outlline for the paper? It sounds stupid, but it is incredibly easy to mix things up and end up in a panic of cramming the right chapters for the test.