Jenna Grasso Staff Writer
The adjustment to life on a new campus can be difficult. For most new students, this is their first time away from home. Freshmen have to worry about meeting new people, arranging their schedule and maintaining good grades for the semester.
The goal for all freshmen during the first few weeks of the semester is finding a way to study. As a freshman, the biggest difficulty is finding a way to study that is effective for memorizing information, and to get to tests on time without staying up all night, cramming before an exam. Freshmen should try different techniques during the first weeks and learn which techniques works the best for them.
Different ways to memorize information include: working with index cards, rewriting information or typing down all of the notes and then re-reading the notes multiple times. Since everyone learns and studies differently, there could be other techniques that work. In the first few weeks of the fall semester, trying out these different methods would work tremendously for a freshman. It is better to learn what works best for you sooner in the semester rather than later.
The last thing that you, as a freshman, want to do is wait until the last minute to study for a test. This leads to cramming, and you learn and memorize less when you cram. The most efficient way to study for an exam, midterm or final is to use these different techniques everyday. After each day of class, writing up flash cards, retyping notes or rewriting notes will help you memorize information as the course goes on. It will also make the studying for a test easier. You may be the one freshman that is not freaking out the last week before finals about getting your grades up. You will remember all the information that you need to know for the tests because of your semester of hard work.
Even if you do not want to write out flash cards or rewrite information after every class, there should be time that is put aside in order to do this during the semester. Even looking over your notes every weekend for an hour or two is more effective than cramming the last minute. Most freshmen are guilty of staying up and partying the night before a big test. If you want to be able to do that, studying throughout the semester or each weekend for an hour or two will decrease your workload.
More time must be dedicated to the homework and projects that are given in college than the work given in high school. Studying day-to-day will lead to a much easier transition into the college workload. This technique will make your workload more bearable and will make it easier when trying to study for midterms and finals, which are stressful no matter what level of college you are in. The most efficient thing to do is to get ahead on your work instead of letting yourself fall behind and then trying to catch up. You don’t want to end up behind in the long run!