How to Prepare Better for Exams and Beat Exam Stress: My Personal Experience

As a college student, I think one of the most difficult tasks to overcome is getting in the right mindset of taking exams, short or long, and doing well on them. For myself, the more exams I take, I find myself preparing for the next one with better strategies and preparation techniques. When it comes to improving my study/test strategies I could focus a lot more on the time I spend on studying, preparation before the test, and finish all the assignments in relation to what is being tested. The time I spend studying tends to be the night before the exam, I will cram everything in the night before and just hope for the best. A more strategized way of doing this is, repeatedly looking over the syllabi, then make a schedule of when I could spend a week or two before the exam to look over everything. The reason into spreading my study sessions over several days is because my mind will continue to process the information, which in the long run, help me on the test. While figuring out when the best time for me to study, I could also collaborate with other classmates on what information they find important. Also, studying a week or two prior to the exam gives me time to ask the professor any questions about the exam or if I need any clarification on a topic.
Secondly, I believe the most important component before taking a test is making sure you’re getting 8 hours of sleep and eating a healthy breakfast. Normally when I am encountering a numerous amount of hours studying before a test I don’t get enough sleep the night before making me already unprepared for the test. Being unprepared leads to test anxiety, which then falls into experiencing “going blank” while actually taking the exam. If I were to plan accordingly to study a week or two before the test and prepare accordingly the morning of, I would not get this negative test anxiety.
Most importantly, completing all the assignments listed on the syllabi provided by my professor are tasks, which I should complete on the due date. Reading all the assigned not only helps me on exams but also would give me a better understanding of what is being talked about in the classroom. In conclusion, taking test exams don’t come easily to most students, like myself but if I were to follow these basic steps into becoming a better student academically I could reduce the feeling of stress test exams often bring. Simply, focusing more time studying (spreading out the time of studying wisely throughout the week(s), preparing the night before for good nights sleep and solid breakfast, and completing the assigned requirements.