At what point is it studying too much?

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chman

chman

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After studying pre-calc (yes, not even calc), for the past nine hours I have come to the conclusion that I am doing more harm than good at this point. When I first started I was killing it and now I keep worrying that I will forget everything.

So here is my question to you guys; At what point is studying counter productive time wise?

What is the longest you have studied in one sitting (- bathroom, food, etc.).
 
chman said:
After studying pre-calc (yes, not even calc), for the past nine hours I have come to the conclusion that I am doing more harm than good at this point. When I first started I was killing it and now I keep worrying that I will forget everything.

So here is my question to you guys; At what point is studying counter productive time wise?

What is the longest you have studied in one sitting (- bathroom, food, etc.).
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I think you are overdoing the same subject for 9 hrs dude.

I sometimes study 5-8 hrs, but change subjects every 2 hrs or so...
 
MexicanDr said:
I think you are overdoing the same subject for 9 hrs dude.

I sometimes study 5-8 hrs, but change subjects every 2 hrs or so...
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I was just thinking the same thing. I mean, I study this long all the time, or at least during mid-terms and finals (usually with a break or two), just not the same subject.
 
there's no such thing as studying too much as long as you space it out. youre more productive if you study in parts. studying at all at once will burn you out and you won't even retain all of that information tomorrow.
 
9hrs straight on 1 subject, precal, is way too much studying man. You need to study smarter not harder. Jesus f'ing christ. If you study 9 hrs for this class, how do you study for your other classes and still have time to shower/take a siht?
 
kangar00 said:
there's no such thing as studying too much as long as you space it out. youre more productive if you study in parts. studying at all at once will burn you out and you won't even retain all of that information tomorrow.
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This.

There are studies done that you remember more of the things you see at the beginning and end of studying, so if you do it all in one chunk, you forget most of the middle. If you do it in a bunch of chunks, there are more beginnings and ends to remember 🙂
 
jvesco22 said:
9hrs straight on 1 subject, precal, is way too much studying man. You need to study smarter not harder. Jesus f'ing christ. If you study 9 hrs for this class, how do you study for your other classes and still have time to shower/take a siht?
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Well, I normally don't devote so much time to one class, but I did not do well on the first test and I have another one on Tuesday.

Also, it is probably more like seven or something with meals distractions and such. I feel like I am behind in the class even though I do the work and go every day. I don't know why. The teacher said it moves fast so I guess she was right.
 
i know people who studied precalc by doing every problem they could find in high school. They did it for hours on end.
I just did enough problems until I felt comfortable with how to get the right answer (and a couple problems after that to solidify). no need to go overboard in classes like precalc (calc is a completely different animal).

Like using trig functions, you don't have to do 200 problems to understand that sin= opposite/hypotenuse, cos=adjacent/hypotenuse....


the most I ever studied was probably for ACS genChem test (national exam that covers first and second semster gChem), that was a bitch of a test b/c when I took first semester genChem, i didn't think I was going to take anymore science classes. Somehow I pulled out a B+ but to this day I have no idea how to get % yield half the time. :horns:(thank god for lab partners)



just don't get too caught up in studying too much because the next thing you know, you'll be a wrinkled up 50 year old.
 
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I think my longest study marathon has been 8 hours, but I'm pretty sure I switched between at least 2 subjects. 9 hours on ONLY MATH is just too hard-core for me. I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a 1 and a 3 by the end of it.
 
anonymousername said:
i know people who studied precalc by doing every problem they could find in high school. They did it for hours on end.
I just did enough problems until I felt comfortable with how to get the right answer (and a couple problems after that to solidify). no need to go overboard in classes like precalc (calc is a completely different animal).

Like using trig functions, you don't have to do 200 problems to understand what to make sure that you understand what to do.

the most I ever studied was probably for ACS genChem test (national exam that covers first and second semster gChem), that was a bitch of a test b/c when I took genChem I i didn't think I was going to take anymore science classes. Somehow I pulled out a B+ but to this day I have no idea how to %yield half the time. :horns:



just don't get too caught up in studying too much because the next thing you know, you'll be a wrinkled up 50 year old.
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Yea, the concepts are more important than the actual problem, but I do feel I need to do a lot of problems to get math.

I don't feel like I am wasting my life studying or missing out. I am 23, entered college late, and have done plenty of partying. That is part of the reason I am in pre-calc now as appose to having taken care of it in high school.haha.
 
In particular I find there is very little yield studying math for any long period of time, since there's not a whole lot of content. Make sure you understand what is going on, do the practice problems with that in mind, and you should be good! 🙂
 
Any time you can ask yourself that question you probably need a break. How much is too much is obviously specificto the individual.
 
I don't necessarily agree that 9 hours is too much. I do much more than that on a fairly consistent basis out of necessity due to an unadvisably heavy load (science major, graduating early, studied abroad = squeezed many courses into few semesters). If you are WILLING to do it, and can balance your life such that you are happy more often than you are not, then go for it. Do not sacrifice your overall happiness for the sake of a grade, but recognize that you will probably feel bitter around exam time.

HOWEVER, I will say that I definitely agree with the poster who said that HOW you study matters as much as HOW MUCH you study. I took a really tough year-long course my freshman year in which I blundered badly my first semester, but did superbly during my second. However, the vast majority of the other students considered the 2nd semester to be considerably harder than the 1st. I definitely attribute my dramatic improvement despite facing a more difficult semester of similar material to my change in approach. And since I've discovered my particular learning quirk, I've been able to apply it successfully to other subjects I've taken. The method I use does NOT work for one of my closest friends, who is also a premed in my major and in my year - but his method of studying does nothing for me, either. In short, learn how you learn, so you can learn better.
 
I've studied chem for 9 hour periods before. I sat for so long last year studying every single day to ace chemistry that I developed multiple blood clots that ended up in my lungs because I wasn't moving.
I wasn't joking when I told people chemistry was killing me.🙄

Study in shorter periods and take more breaks. Switch subjects often too.
 
I've studied for a whole day before, but it was before a midterm and I took breaks here and there to space it out. (I got an A, so it was worth it.)

But, seriously, HOW do you study for pre-calc for 9 hours?!?! Like...what did you DO?!

In all honesty, this is okay if it's before an exam, and ONLY if you take breaks to go out and grab lunch, or take a quick nap or something. Otherwise, yes, it's counter productive.
 
I've def busted out more than 9 hours before on one subject. Orgo year long cumulative Final comes to mind. But I took breaks for music and such to not go insane.
 
roseglass6370 said:
I've studied for a whole day before, but it was before a midterm and I took breaks here and there to space it out. (I got an A, so it was worth it.)

But, seriously, HOW do you study for pre-calc for 9 hours?!?! Like...what did you DO?!

In all honesty, this is okay if it's before an exam, and ONLY if you take breaks to go out and grab lunch, or take a quick nap or something. Otherwise, yes, it's counter productive.
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How I studied this time was to go through every section and do the practice problems. Where I think I messed up was that A) I did too many problems, even after I pretty much had the section at hand down (plus each section has about 100 problems) B) I did everything as appose to focusing on things that I needed to spend more time on.

I don't normally study one subject for that long, but I have a test tomorrow, and math is not my forte.
 
I think what roseglass meant was how you studied pre-calc that long without wanting to knife yourself. 🙂 I definitely try to study in chunks for the most part. Like if I'm reading notes or the book, I'll read for like 45 mins - an hour, and then allow myself to have like a 10-15 minute break and then get back to it.
 
When someone you don't know, or even do know, calls you a Gunner. Then it's about time to drop the books and buy a 6-pack.
 
Um.. Just so you know, precalc is almost useless in calc... All you really need is trig and Algebra II and you are good to go!
 
Van Chowder said:
Um.. Just so you know, precalc is almost useless in calc... All you really need is trig and Algebra II and you are good to go!
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It's trig based pre--calc, or at least I think that is what they call it.

I took the test today and think all the studying payed off. Although for the next test I am going to come up with a better plan of attack.

EDIT: If pre-cal does not help with calc then why do they even make us take it?
 
MexicanDr said:
I think you are overdoing the same subject for 9 hrs dude.

I sometimes study 5-8 hrs, but change subjects every 2 hrs or so...
Click to expand...

I think 10 hours for Mol Bio, day before the final (but had been studying ~6 hours a day for it for the past week).

Bumped my grade up from B- to A-.
 
Study smart, not hard. Really. Studying the same thing for 9 hours is rarely helpful. Most people who don't get one chapter of information from a class like pre-calc in a couple of hours aren't going to get anything after 9.

If you're really having that much trouble, it's time to stop studying on your own and either find a nerd friend or a tutor.
 
Tin Man said:
Study smart, not hard. Really. Studying the same thing for 9 hours is rarely helpful. Most people who don't get one chapter of information from a class like pre-calc in a couple of hours aren't going to get anything after 9.

If you're really having that much trouble, it's time to stop studying on your own and either find a nerd friend or a tutor.
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I was not having trouble grasping the material, we just cover a butt load of material. The test was on 10 sections in about two weeks. May not be much to some, but that is a lot for me.

I agree though, that I need to find a smarter way to go about it.
 
It varies from person to person and subject to subject. I have spent 10 hours straight studying for Gross anatomy, and I think I spent about 16 hours cramming for my Orgo II final. But personally I think once you start feeling drowsy, and that you're rereading the same material because you are zoning out, that it is time to go to sleep. You help yourself getting a good nights sleep more than staying up all night studying.
 
La Doctora said:
I've studied chem for 9 hour periods before. I sat for so long last year studying every single day to ace chemistry that I developed multiple blood clots that ended up in my lungs because I wasn't moving.
I wasn't joking when I told people chemistry was killing me.🙄

Study in shorter periods and take more breaks. Switch subjects often too.
Click to expand...

Ha! Back when my study habits were crap I pulled like 7 hours without moving for biology. Stood up and pulled a stomach muscle - MD diagnosed!
 
draw up a schedule before you start, and try to stick to taht. if u go under, thats too little, if u go over (wow!), thats too long.

rem to incldue fun stuff in ur schedule!
 
chman said:
After studying pre-calc (yes, not even calc), for the past nine hours I have come to the conclusion that I am doing more harm than good at this point. When I first started I was killing it and now I keep worrying that I will forget everything.

So here is my question to you guys; At what point is studying counter productive time wise?

What is the longest you have studied in one sitting (- bathroom, food, etc.).
Click to expand...

If you are requiring 9 hours of study for precalculus, I would wager that you are not studying but wasting time for the most part. If one class requires this for you, medical school is going to be a reach.
 
Well the OP doesn't seem to have any problems understanding the concept as a lot of people here might be thinking.

I think you're doing the right thing, just practice. However, I think 100 practice problems PER section is way too much. You should find representative problems that best reflect the concepts/problems that would most likely appear on the test. Don't you find that many problems are just repeated over and over, that you find it almost robotic in doing it? I think that's when you know you have to stop. Sometimes when I feel robotic in answering problems, it's kinda like muscle memory-ish and when it comes to actually think about a problem in a test, I kinda freeze. So don't over do things. When you finally understand the root of the concept to each problem, you're good to go.

I do study a lot, and people tell me that too. BUT, the closest all-nighter has had to have been in my finals week of last semester when the only day to study for my Chem II final was the night before. I had a review session with friends then went to the lib at 2am because I def was not ready for it, then I realized that someone stole my TI-89, went looking for it, didn't find it, then just studied until 4 or 5 am. It was the night of my birthday too. Exciting.
 
njbmd said:
If you are requiring 9 hours of study for precalculus, I would wager that you are not studying but wasting time for the most part. If one class requires this for you, medical school is going to be a reach.
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Thanks for the encouragement. [dont forget sarcasm brackets]

If you had read the whole thread you would see that this is not a regular thing, but that I am "cramming" for a test. Do I regret not keeping up as well as I should have? Yes. But I think we are all guilty of it at one time or another.

EDIT: But yea, I would be lying if I said I did not waste any time. I can't study without the tv in the background and whatnot.
 
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rockyDoctora said:
Well the OP doesn't seem to have any problems understanding the concept as a lot of people here might be thinking.

I think you're doing the right thing, just practice. However, I think 100 practice problems PER section is way too much. You should find representative problems that best reflect the concepts/problems that would most likely appear on the test. Don't you find that many problems are just repeated over and over, that you find it almost robotic in doing it? I think that's when you know you have to stop. Sometimes when I feel robotic in answering problems, it's kinda like muscle memory-ish and when it comes to actually think about a problem in a test, I kinda freeze. So don't over do things. When you finally understand the root of the concept to each problem, you're good to go.

I do study a lot, and people tell me that too. BUT, the closest all-nighter has had to have been in my finals week of last semester when the only day to study for my Chem II final was the night before. I had a review session with friends then went to the lib at 2am because I def was not ready for it, then I realized that someone stole my TI-89, went looking for it, didn't find it, then just studied until 4 or 5 am. It was the night of my birthday too. Exciting.
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Yes, I was feeling like a robot towards the end. So I actually only studied two hours or so the night before the test and I think I did pretty well on it. We will see.
 
9 hours on Pre-calc? Wow. I'm taking it right now and it's the biggest waste of time ever, it's just a rpeat of algebra II and trig. I never do any of the HW, I just do a practice test the day before the test. It's a joke class.
 
Toadesque said:
9 hours on Pre-calc? Wow. I'm taking it right now and it's the biggest waste of time ever, it's just a rpeat of algebra II and trig. I never do any of the HW, I just do a practice test the day before the test. It's a joke class.
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Well good for you. But please keep in mind that:

-Not all teachers/professors give the same amount of work/the same material.

-Some people, such as myself, have never taken trig so those concepts are new.

-People excel in different academic areas. I am the first to admit I am not a math whiz, and that I need to work at it to get it. However, I usually don't need to work as hard at writing papers as many of my peers do.

-Lastly, that the 9 hours is not the norm for me.

I guess what I'm saying is that I do not see how tooting your own horn is helpful.
 
kangar00 said:
there's no such thing as studying too much as long as you space it out. youre more productive if you study in parts. studying at all at once will burn you out and you won't even retain all of that information tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Truth.

For me, that's the secret to efficient studying 😎
 
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