Test-Taking Tips: Studying for That Big Exam

There are so many different exams and tests adminsitered in today’s world that it is not uncommon to see a thirteen year old applying to a specialized high school or a 24 year old law student panicking before taking the biggest exam of their life. I have known all too many people who have freaked out way too much before an examand psyched themselves out so much that they were doomed to fail from the start before they even took the test. Emotional stability is key for any big exam and I am here to help you stay calm.

The first part is to relax. The only way you can do this is by gaining confidence and by study for a long period of time for yuor exam. If you have studied for a couple of months and have taken practice exams, then you should relax and be confident, you will do just fine on the exam. You should get a good night’s sleep for the day’s leading up to exam and heat healthy. Your studying should be a bare minimum to make srue that you don’t over due it. Too much studying can overload your brain and be too much to take in.

Another helpful tip is to know ahead of time the exact time and location of your exam. This way you won’t be panicking the day or night before wondering if you have the right location for taking the exam. Also, make sure you are comfortable and know the format of the exam. A format that is unknown to you such as an extra reading passage might startle you and make you panick on test day. Aslo, the week before the exam try and do something fun to get your mind off the big exam. This will relieve stress and built up tension you have. Hang out with friends and family and enjoy yourself.

Now the hard part is for the many test takers who wait for the week just before thet exam starts to take the exam. Well I got news for you- you should panic! You should have studied a lot harder for the exam! However, there are some tips for helping relevie stress, tension and panic. First, try and get most of your studying done as early in the week as possible. Pull all nighters if you must to study.

Try not to think too hard about the approaching exam. Take as many practice tests as you can and make sure to eat right. A really helpful technique I have found useful is to record information on a CD or tape recorder and when you are ready to fall asleep play the information back to yourself. You will find that your brain is able to remeber information even when you are sleeping!

The day before the exam you should stop studying. Maybe you can allow yourself to quickly glance at a review book for half an hour, but that is all. You must take your mind off of the exam because an extra day of studying will not improve your score, it can only make it worse. You must get plenty of sleep for the exam and be prepared to go to the test center with confidence. Take deep breathsand focus on the exam on the test day and you should do just fine.