I remember when I was in high school, I would be studying for tests and exams in my room while my radio was turned up really loud. It just felt like a cool thing to do. And I got through high school well enough to get into university. When I started university, I of course used the same study methods since I thought they were my proven way. The result was that I almost ending up failing some of my first year courses.
It’s great listening to music blasting away in your room but if your head isn’t absorbing the stuff you’re suppose to be studying and your grades suffer, then you need a change in study environment. This means turning off the tunes until your study session is done. Can’t concentrate in your room or friends always interrupting? Then hit the library and find some quiet space.
Also, make a habit of studying regularly, even right after tests so that you will be prepared well in advance for the next one. This way, most course material will still be fresh in your mind by the time final exams come. This is one of the secret strategies college success or university success. Taking the time to study even when there are no exams just around the corner helps you learn your material so much better so you won’t have to do any last minute cramming for exams. This way of studying was a drastic change in my study habits. It was time consuming since I had to allocate regular study time during my days even when there were no exams in the near future. But it did work extremely well in helping me know the course material.
Back in high school, some teachers might have hassled you if your grades were low. At university or college, nobody is going to be on your case to study. This might sound good but if your study habits are lousy, you might end up failing out and many professors won’t really care. Again, I almost failed out of my first year and had to really improve on my studying to stay in. I did improve my grades well enough by my fourth year to get accepted into one of the MBA schools.
When I got to MBA school, it was a good thing that I had developed better study habits because we needed a B average to stay in the program. During our first semester, we lost about a quarter of our students because they couldn’t make that minimum B average.
There’s much more competition from other students for the top grades at this level of learning. It really pays to have good study habits. Good money was paid for your tuition so don’t fail out. Put in the time to study as if it was your full time job for the present. This will help insure that you are a college success or university success.
Of course, getting exposed to good external guest speakers on campus will also add to your college or university success since they often teach you about things that are not normally covered in your courses. Plus you don’t have to study the material presented by the guest speakers which is a welcome change.
Clint Cora is a motivational keynote speaker, author and martial arts karate world champion. His book, “The Life Champion In You”, is about how to overcome challenges and achieve life success. It is one man’s journey from personal tragedy to becoming a karate world champion. More information about his speaking programs, books, videos, articles on motivation and success can be found at www.clintcora.com
