| At university you are expected to be able to do more than just remember facts, you
must be able to understand, assimilate, reprocess and communicate information effectively. Most of the students who drop out of university either never realise this, or don't have the high-powered information processing skills required to do it properly. People who manage to complete their university degrees usually realise the level of sophistication that is expected of them sooner or later, however, many learn it the hard way after being penalised repeatedly in exams for giving inappropriate answers. It's the same as playing a game of soccer while following the rules for another code of football- you get penalised every time you try to pick up the ball. So the secret to doing well in exams is to know the rules of the game and how to follow them.
Once you understand what is expected, you can work on developing your exam technique. It is important to have a conscious strategy to follow so that you know exactly what to do in the exam- this will save you from becoming flustered and making silly mistakes. Exam technique is
easy to learn, however techniques may vary from subject to subject.
The other main issue is appropriate preparation. Here there are a number of crucial steps to follow:
- Begin by making sure you have the big picture view of the subject that you are studying and are clear about what the exam is trying to test.
- Then follow a strategy that allows you to determine which areas you know well, and which areas need further work. Spending time on material you already know means you are wasting time which would be better spent on your weak areas.
- Next, follow a strategy to learn the material that you are not sure about.
- Once you know that you know all the work, it is a good idea to practice writing mock exam questions, then answer them under exam conditions.
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