Exam preparation can quickly become overwhelming without a clear plan. The key is not to overcomplicate revision, but to build simple habits consistently over time. To succeed though it is important to simplify the complicated, not complicate the simple. The following five pieces of advice will help you navigate the preparation and revision process. They worked for me and will work for you. The significance of them will remain fundamental for the rest of your life.
1.Identify your goals
It is crucial to identify clear goals early on and work backwards from these. It could be a school entrance exam, a GCSE exam, an A-level/IB exam, a university exam, or a job application, the principle remains the same. By setting tangible targets and having these firmly established in your mind gives you something to aim for. All the hard work, restless nights and temporary setbacks can all be more easily managed when considered as part of a wider process. Having a picture up on the wall of what you are aiming for will also act as a permanent prompt of what you wish to achieve and remind you to never lose sight of the broader goal, whatever the process throws at you.
2. Build structure
Buy a calendar and diary. The first will help you plan your revision for the medium to long term and enable you to identify goals which you can work towards. The second will enable you to set daily and weekly tasks for the short term and help you make tangible steps forward as part of your goals. It is important these two items are reviewed daily and adjusted where necessary. The more you write down on paper, the easier it is to manage disparate tasks and meet simultaneous deadlines. It is also important these items are hard copy and not digital equivalents. By having a physical calendar on your wall and diary on your desk it is impossible to ignore them. Writing things down by hand has also been shown to improve memory retention and serves as a cathartic process for offloading stress from the mind. Ultimately, take control of events otherwise events will take control of you.
3. Marginal gains
Start revising early. It is better to do small amounts of revision over a longer period rather than intense, stressful and crammed sessions over a short period. Little and often helps with building memory retention and develops a sense of progression. Starting early enables you to identify areas of your studies which require extra attention and allows more time to dedicate attention to working on these areas. There is nothing worse than feeling rushed and stressed in the lead up to exams. Starting early will help you avoid this and provide the space for you to enjoy learning your subjects for their own sake rather than simply to pass an exam.
4. Failure = growth
There is nothing wrong with falling short of your targets as part of your preparation. Become comfortable failing in the pursuit of success. It is during the moments when you receive harsh, constructive criticism on your work that you will develop the most. Numerous attempts which have fallen short of your desired outcome but forced you to reflect and improve will eventually enable you to reach your goal. Remember, you are ultimately judged by the final exam, not in your mocks or as part of a class assessment.
5. Exercise regularly
It is common knowledge that exercise is important for good physical and mental health. Exercising helps relieve stress, helps clear the mind, helps with motivation and can help improve quality of sleep. All these things are crucial to embody during the preparation stage for exams. The only way to fully appreciate how important these things are is to consider what the opposite means and the associated effects. Imagine harbouring a lot of stress, imagine having a muddled mind, imagine having poor motivation and imagine having little to no quality sleep. This will be disastrous. Put simply, the aim is to feel the opposite. One way to achieve the opposite is to exercise regularly. It does not matter what it is, so long as the form of exercise works for you, is conducted regularly and leaves you feeling better than before you engaged in it.
Start implementing these five simple but fundamental habits as part of your revision schedule and the results will speak for themselves.
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