10 Smart and Effective Study Tips for University Students

There is no other place where the statement ‘work smart, not hard’ applies more than at university, a place with unlimited freedom jostled by numerous events and activities, which create a sense of confusion and constant distraction from academic focus. This is unlike any other stage in life prior to and after. This is where working smart really separates you from the rest. Therefore, here are some smart and effective study tips you should apply in your university work-smart strategy.

1. Write colored notes

Back in elementary school,our teachers insisted that we use a number of colors to write differentsections of our notes; Red for titles, Black for dates, subtitles andcalculations, and blue for paragraphs. Well, some thought this was just to makeour work look beautiful.

Little did we know that colorimproves our memory through enhancing mind-mapping capabilities. Notes writtenin color are easily readable and can be organized into structures in the mind,which are easier to recall. This hack is greatly underrated but it’s one of themost effective study tips.

2. The Pomodoro Technique

This is a time management method; developed in the 1980s by a university student – Francesco Cirillo, enables a person to maximize productivity by crunching work into small intervals of 25 minute of pure focus separated by short breaks. It involves the following steps;

1. Choose a taskyou’d like to get done
2. Set the Pomodorofor 25 minutes
3. Work on the taskuntil the Pomodoro rings
4. When it rings, puta checkmark on a paper
5. Take a short break(5 minutes): Meditate, walk or take some water
6. Repeat from step 2and after every 4 Pomodoros, take a longer break (20 minutes)

If you seriously want toknow how to study smart, you need to understand how to make good use of thelimited time you have. This method helps you to learn how to work together withtime, eliminate distractions and balance your life and work. A recommended appfor this technique is Pomodoro Timer

3. A snack reward for each milestone

Human beings are suckersfor motivation and the end goal in mind keeps them focused. The product ofstudying is, better grades but why don’t many people like studying? Because weprefer the quick reward! That’s why so many people try their luck in gamblingin order to make quick money. If we apply this concept in studying, we’dbenefit a lot.

How about this, promiseyourself a snack after you finish revising a past paper or a nice meal afterfinishing your report. If you are a foodie, this kind of motivation will makeyou ace your exams. I personally consider this one of the best study tips forcollege.

4. Google searching techniques

Google can be veryinstrumental in our study, in fact since it gives you access to almost anythingyou would want to know, it is indispensable. However, if you don’t know how tosearch for information, then you will not understand its full potential

• If you want accessto quick information about anything, add “filetype:ppt” in your search. Thisgives your PowerPoint presentations which are the briefest means ofunderstanding anything.
• If you want pdfbooks with deep information about the concept, add “filetype:pdf”
• To Google examssamples for your given subject/ topic search; “site:edu [subject] exam

5. Listen to lectures at 2X speed

More often than not, wefail to prepare for CATs and Exams until the very last day and resort tocramming in a bid to salvage our grades. Well, a more effective way of graspingconcepts fast in limited time is listening to a recorded lecture at 2X thespeed. This increases your brain activity, sharpens your focus, organizesconcepts in your mind and helps you cover more in less time. To do this, useAudacity software for audio files and VLC Player for video files

6. Write a cheat sheet you won’t use

A cheat sheet is a smallpiece of paper where you write the most important concepts, which are likely tobe tested in an upcoming exam of a certain unit. So before any CAT or exam,write down testable concepts most preferably from your mind into a small pieceof paper. Then once you are done, put the cheat sheet away from access and doyour exam.

You will be surprised howwell you remember whatever you wrote in the cheat sheet. Writing the cheatsheet concentrates your thoughts onto the most important concepts required toin an exam and gives you a boost to your short-term memory. If you studied welland hacked this clever study technique, you will be surprised at howeffectively it works

7. ‘Unfamiliarize’ your environment

This hack involves doingsomething that will affect one or more of your six senses differently. First,you can try chewing gum of an unfamiliar taste or you could spray an unfamiliarscent.

Chewing gum is a brainactivity booster, but chewing something with a new taste activates your mindand welcomes new creative ideas. Spraying a new scent works in a similar mannertoo; it welcomes new ideas.

Another very effectivetactic is changing your environment which has been scientifically proven overtime to improve your understanding and memorizing capabilities since it exercisesyour brain and makes studying much more enjoyable

8. Watch a documentary or read the history of theconcept

One way to get a deep understandingof any concept or idea is to dig into its origin and history. This can be donethrough watching documentaries or studying some historical articles concerningthe concept. Documentaries can be limited depending on what you’re studying butif you manage to get one with relevant information, do not hesitate to watch.

Digging deeper cultivatesan interest in the concept and motivates you. In addition, it equips you withextra information that might be very instrumental in class and even while inthe field. Libraries like the Wikipedia have more information than you can everassimilate, so utilize them

9. Listen to instrumental music or Ambient Sound whilestudying

Depending on your tastes,listening to music has been proven to increase productivity focus and motivationlevels during study sessions. Classic music, for instance, is universally knownto improve the mood of a student thus creating room for creativity and betterassimilation of ideas.

In fact, until recently,it was thought that listening to classical music improved IQ courtesy of themany testimonies given by people who had benefited from it. Ambient sounds suchas that of the oceans, forests, and chirping of birds work even better inoptimizing your brain. If you are looking for any scientific study tips, thisone must be the easiest to test and prove.

10. Keep track of the forgetting curves

The forgetting curveconcept shows how information is lost over time by humans if there is noattempt to regain it.  For instance, weforget more than 50% of any new concept we learn within the first 24 hours andif we fail to revise the concept within a week, even the smart people canbarely remember 30%.

This calls for continuous revision of newly acquired knowledge for full comprehension assimilation of new information. If we revisit or relearn material, our brains retain it for longer as shown above.

Any more TOP SECRET study tips you’ve got there pal?