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Overcoming Exam Stress at University
When you’re studying for your exams, you’ll probably find that you’ll have plenty of late nights in the library and countless last-minute revision sessions. Long story short, exam season can be tough. It takes hard work and dedication to get through this busy time, and it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the workload. Fortunately, exam season doesn’t last for too long – a couple of months of focusing on your studies and you’ll come out of the other side with (hopefully) good grades. 

Stress can really impact your performance in exam situations, so keeping those stress levels to a minimum will help you achieve the best marks possible. Here are our tips to getting through the busy exam season. 

Plan Ahead 
When your tutors go on at you about taking notes in lectures, you probably roll your eyes and think, “I’ll just remember all this anyway.” You might think that you’ll be able to retain all that information without writing it down, but you almost definitely won’t – so listen to your tutor and get note-taking. 

Use these notes to then give yourself some clear structure around your revision. Doing this well in advance is a great way to make sure that you’re not spending the night before the exam cramming in all the info that you should’ve learned earlier in the year. 

Make sure you factor in time to actually learn stuff and keep testing yourself to see if the information has gone in – if it hasn’t, you’ll have time to repeat the process until you know it inside and out. 

Look After Each Other 
No matter how independent you are, it’s not always possible to do everything on your own. 

Trying to teach yourself a topic can be a tricky task when there are gaps in your knowledge. Fortunately, you’ll be surrounded by fellow students who are in the same position, and it’s more than likely that they have absorbed information that you haven’t. This means that you can all book out one of those big group-study rooms in the library and share your knowledge, giving yourself the best chance of passing those tests. 

Don’t Forget to Rest 
If you’re one of those people who thinks that they can do 48 hours of revision non-stop, think again. Revising while you’re fatigued is a pointless exercise, and this is because all of your brainpower is focused on keeping you awake, so anything that you do read over won’t be retained. 

This means that you’ll waste time by going over the same topic for hours and hours. The best way to overcome this is to break up your revision, thereby giving your brain a rest from the constant stream of information. 

Use this time to do things that help you to relax – take a bath, watch your favourite Netflix documentary series, or spend some time with friends. When you’re feeling refreshed, you can get back to the library and do some productive work. 

Look After Yourself 
This one is more of a general life tip, but it will still help you out when you come to study for your exams. 

Science has proved that a healthy body is linked to a healthy mind, and giving yourself the right nutrition is a great way to boost your brain power. If you can make things easier to learn while you revise, you’re less likely to feel stressed around the busy period. 

Put down those instant noodles, because foods like avocado and asparagus are full of the vitamins you need to keep your brain on top form while you study. Processed foods and guilty pleasures have their times and their places, but it is best to avoid them when you’re trying to nourish your mind.

Cut down on the caffeine intake too, because this will only make you crash later in the day (believe us when we say that it will make you feel worse). We doubt you’ll be going out and partying while you’re trying to revise, but steer clear of the alcohol too – you’re not going to be productive if you’re hungover.

It’s All About the Prep
Preparation is key when it comes to getting through the exam season, and getting everything sorted well in advance will make those couple of months easier for you. If you do feel that the stress is getting a bit too much for you, make sure to visit your university’s student-support advisor, who will be able to give you plenty of advice on getting through.  

Article By: dwell Student Living.

A Bit About Our Contributor: dwell Student Living is a student accommodation provider located in the UK offering all-inclusive halls in great locations.