How to survive all your exams falling within the same day/week?

[vitaebellaa]

I have been doing great this semester. Most of my classes only have 2-3 midterms and up until this point they have been spread out. But now the week is upon me where all of my midterms (4) are in the same week. I don't want my class averages to drop too much, because I know it essentially is going to be the same deal in a few weeks for finals. I'm not studying too much for the classes I have high A's in because I know they can handle a drop, but that scares me! Just wondering how everyone deals with having all of their midterms falling within the same week/same day. I know I try to allocate my study time efficiently and start WAY in advanced, but sometimes studying too "early" is inefficient (I found this to be true in physics for me).

Sorry if it seems like I am complaining. I realize this is the nature of college! Just curious to see how everyone handles when this seemingly inevitable week is upon them.

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[phonyreal98]

1. Get off SDN.
2. Buckle down.
3. Profit.

 

[armybound]

Um, start studying earlier. Know it all before the week of the exams. Use the free time you have during that week to review, not to cram new material or master concepts.

If you seriously need the day or two before the exam to learn new material, you're doing it wrong.

 

[Forthegood]

Study harder and longer. There is no secret to education, it is measured in hours spent.

 

[OGMD]

yup, everyone goes through the same thing at some point, just gotta handle business son. I had 3 finals the week of my MCAT.

 

[HW51Revisited]

I like to study in short bursts for multiple subjects at once. So I'll spend 45 min to an hour on one class and then move on so I still have some brainpower to use for other material.

I also try to alternate types of studying. if I have a class that requires quite a bit of math/logic, when I've reached a stopping point, I switch to something less math-intensive (like some kind of biological science or something).

 

[apumic]

It's been said several times: plan ahead. If you're not planning ahead, you're going to fall flat on your face. Every. Single. Time. If you, instead, plan ahead, you'll find there's always time to get done what must be done. Also, catch things the first time. If you're prepared for class and go to class, I really see little reason to spend more than 1-2 times the number of hours you spend in class on studying and work outside of class. Typically, I spend no more than 1 hr outside class for every hr in class. On occasion, I may exceed this but that is pretty atypical for me. Simply learn the stuff on the first run-through and this becomes a non-issue. If that is simply not possible, work on time mgmt.

 

[paul411]

I got through such hell weeks on several all-nighters. I'll admit it's a terrible idea and learning strategy but it worked.

 

[portlandpixie]

Time Management.


I am in the same boat. My last two midterms for o-chem and bio were one day apart. My third and upcoming midterms for both classes fall on the same day... AND on the wednesday after thanksgiving which means i will not be able to relax during thanksgiving break but c'est la vie.

I try to rationalize and think about how taking two midterms in one day is not nearly the hardest thing I am going to do in my life so I should just man up and do it. That's how I deal.

 

[apumic]

When it comes to finals, the key is to make sure you're strong enough in all your classes to where your grade on the final is trivial -- so, for instance, if a course has 3 exams weighted 25/25/50, you make sure to ace the first 2 and the cut-off for an A is 93%, you only need [93-(25*1.00+25*1.00)]/50*100% = 86% to achieve your A. Relatively speaking, an 86% is pretty much as easy to achieve on an exam for someone with a top-A in the course as chocolate cake is for fat kid....

 

[BSPS]

Study harder and longer. There is no secret to education, it is measured in hours spent.

This is a serious case of flawed logic. How well you do or how well you understand the material has nothing to do with the number of hours spent studying. Do what is the most efficient for you.

 

[orthomyxo]

This is a serious case of flawed logic. How well you do or how well you understand the material has nothing to do with the number of hours spent studying. Do what is the most efficient for you.

U mad?

 

[Elpenor]

U mad?

U dumb?

 

[Medwell]

I once had three exams on the same day (Calc 3, Chem 2, and Bio 1). I chose not to study for Chem 2 because we got to drop a test, and I pulled an all-nighter to review for the other two (I hate not getting enough sleep so this is rare for me).

 

[terpskins10]

I once had three exams on the same day (Calc 3, Chem 2, and Bio 1). I chose not to study for Chem 2 because we got to drop a test, and I pulled an all-nighter to review for the other two (I hate not getting enough sleep so this is rare for me).

Same. I hate pulling all nighters, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do.

 

[PreMedder]

U dumb?

u aware?

 

[milski]

Pick a day, a few days before your doubled mid-term is. Designate it for the midterm in the first class - study as if your midterm is then. Spend the next 1-2 days studying for the other class. You should not have problems retaining the knowledge for a few days. Hopefully, you'll have at least some time to rest between the two exams. Taking them in a row with no break would suck.

Now that I think about it, you may want to start with the class that will have the exam later in the day. You will be more tired and will harder time to concentrate, so it will be nice to be more familiar and at ease with the material.

 

[ThaliaNox]

Is having multiple exams in one week really all that unusual? Here I thought that was what midterm and final weeks MEANT. Doesn't go away in med school, either, in many cases.

 

[Forthegood]

This is a serious case of flawed logic. How well you do or how well you understand the material has nothing to do with the number of hours spent studying. Do what is the most efficient for you.

Actually, the number of hours and times you cycle through material is the DEFINITION of learning, via the Circle of Papez.

When you are dealing with a large VOLUME of information, giving yourself more time to cover it is the only way to go.

How exactly do you think you learn, anyway?

 

[Isoprop]

Actually, the number of hours and times you cycle through material is the DEFINITION of learning, via the Circle of Papez.

When you are dealing with a large VOLUME of information, giving yourself more time to cover it is the only way to go.

How exactly do you think you learn, anyway?

More learning requires more time, but spending more time on the material doesn't mean you are learning more.

Consider this: as a med student, you probably don't have enough time to learn EVERYTHING because there is a lot of volume. You can't give yourself more time. So what do you do?

 

[BSPS]

More learning requires more time, but spending more time on the material doesn't mean you are learning more.

Consider this: as a med student, you probably don't have enough time to learn EVERYTHING because there is a lot of volume. You can't give yourself more time. So what do you do?

exactly..

if someone can read something with very little time used, understand it, and then perform well on an exam or practical, does that mean they are not learning because they didn't spend countless hours on the material? learn how you learn first, then learn the material. its a trial and error process..if you cram and you fail then that obviously doesn't work. if you need an hour a day for weeks in advance then do it. whatever works for you.

 

[Forthegood]

Seriously folks. Read the original post. The guy is concerned about how cram all this stuff in his head during one week. The trick is to give yourself more time, and go over each more times. Memory retrieval can get jumbled up pretty easily with high volumes, so to combat that one must retrieve the information more frequently.

Short term memory has limits. Long term doesn't.

 

[Mbeas]

 

[getright]

Cram in for your easier courses, study much earlier for the harder ones.

 

[studmuffin]

caffiene
adrenaline
sweat
blood
tears
you get the point