Jasmine's exam season survival guide

Undergraduate ambassador Jasmine shares her top tips on how to survive the exam season.

Exam season. The time period which all students dread yet is forced to confront. The final stretch of the academic year can be the most rewarding whilst causing many students to experience unbelievable amounts of stress and anxiety. Therefore, my exam season survival guide is designed to help students navigate this stressful time, providing tips and tricks to ease this experience.

Time management 

The exam period at university may initially feel long and dreary but before a blink of an eye, you have a limited space of time in which you are expected to be exam ready. Consequently, it is vital that you efficiently delegate your time accordingly to your strengths and weaknesses, focusing on your weaker areas first. It is essential to be realistic. It is unrealistic to learn a whole ten weeks' worth of content for a module in a couple of weeks. Therefore, devising a realistic revision schedule can help aid your learning.

I advise you to split your time according to your modules, ensuring you spend equal time revising each module. Subsequently, you are less likely to fall into the trap of spending time focusing on modules and topics that you enjoy rather than the modules and issues which you struggle with. Then, making a priority list of your weaker areas to focus on will make sure your study sessions are most productive. This aligns with my next exam season survival tip: work smarter, not harder. 

Work smarter, not harder! 

The most successful and productive students work efficiently to maximise their results through effective revision techniques. You are not going to get a 1st by reading the textbook. Therefore, I recommend that students use past exam papers to test their subject knowledge and improve their exam technique.

With the finite time available before your exam, it is vital to work most efficiently, e.g., making flashcards, practising questions, and making revision resources; every student has unique techniques that best suit them. 

Another way to maximise your revision sessions can be through collaborative work, working in groups with students studying for the same exam. This can make you feel more supported and less isolated, as well as share expertise and knowledge. 

Look after yourself 

Whilst it is essential to try your best and work hard in the exam season, it is even more important to prioritise your mental health and well-being. It is easy to neglect yourself while focusing on the stress and academic pressures you face. Personally, I advise students to ensure that they schedule relaxation periods in between revision sessions. This can be individually unwinding alone or through socialising with friends who are also experiencing similar pressures. It is very important to reward yourself for the hard work you are putting in, an excellent way of doing this could be by treating yourself after every topic of revision you complete such as going out for dinner. 

Additionally, practicing good wellbeing is essential through a healthy balanced diet, keeping hydrated, and physical activity; collectively this will help your physical health. In addition to this, practicing healthy mental stability is also beneficial and important, meditation is a great way to unwind using apps such as Calm and Headspace. 

Finding the balance between your studies and well-being during exam season can feel isolating but I can assure you this is a normal part of university life and that you are not alone. If you find the stress and anxiety too much, do not suffer in silence but reach out to the incredible well-being services at the University of Warwick. 

In summary, in this blog, I have provided an array of tips and tricks essential to my exam season survival guide which hopefully will provide some guidance and support to students going through exam season.

If you would like more advice regarding balancing your university lifestyle or would like to read more about the well-being resources available at Warwick please see here.