Student Success Center offers study tips as finals week approaches
The Student Success Center at Mississippi University for Women is offering aid and advice to students who are worried and feel underprepared for finals week.
There are several techniques that a student can use to help them study and retain information such as the Pomodoro technique, flashcards, the Feynman technique, playing games and quizzing each other, according to the Student Success Center. The center advises that you study for 30-45 minutes each day, try to have fun sayings to remember things and don’t cram right before the test.
“The Pomodoro technique is when you set a timer for 20-25 minutes and study intentionally until the timer goes off,” said Mallory Holly, a peer mentor for statistics and UN 101 classes. “Then you would take a 5–10-minute break and repeat that cycle again until you retain all that information.”
The university offers many resources in order to help its students learn and study, such as library study rooms that can be used for study groups, office hours for all teachers, peer mentors and an online tutoring program called BrainFuse, a free service to students.
“For studying, peer mentors are the first place I would direct my students.” said Cameron Eaves, assistant director of the Student Success Center. “We have peer mentors for most of the core curriculum courses.”
Most of these resources can be found at muw.edu/ssc
Many students also struggle with motivation as they run out of steam approaching finals. To help with this, it is recommended that students prepare in advance. Small workloads help with motivation. Students are encouraged to discover their motivation whether it be specific treats or hanging out with friends or connecting the class to what your end goal is.
“I always try to help students refocus on why they are doing what they’re doing, because if you’re a freshman, it seems so far in the future that it’s hard to understand the importance of one final,” said Eaves.
In the weeks before finals, many students have concerns about not understanding the materials. To help with this as well as other concerns, it is recommended that students ask the instructor, look at the syllabus or ask a peer mentor who might have taken the class previously. Additionally, students attend class regularly for reviews or study guides and should be aware of the location, time and alternate location of their final exam.
Holly explained, “Make sure to study, keep up with work so you’re not overwhelmed, make sure you know when and where the final will be as it can change. But most importantly, remember to just do your best. Take care of yourself both physically and mentally, don’t make major changes to your routine, eat plenty of food and get plenty of sleep.”