Highlighter pens, slightly crinkled lecture notes and trying to remember a piece of information that entered your brain about 8 months ago but has since decided to take a vacation somewhere else: these are just some of the features of revision during exam season – for me anyway.
I’m currently writing this post whilst surrounded by a mountain of textbooks and a slightly tepid cup of tea is within arm’s reach (I am trying to restrict my intake of caffeine). The days until the first exam are getting fewer and fewer and I’m already wondering what the temperature is going to be like in the exam hall.
Okay, perhaps that last quandary was a bit too picky – but as I think ahead to this year’s exams, I can’t help but reflect on exams gone by. However, it seems – perhaps due to being a bit more advanced in age – that my attitude towards the prospect is different to what it was during my adolescent years.
I wrote a blog post earlier this year about how I was going to strive for a greater sense of balance between the academic and non-academic features of student life – and I’ve tried to maintain this balance during exam preparation. This has involved a bit of planning in which I set aside some time each day for exam revision but also allowing time for other things like walking my dog, going to the gym (a topic for another post) and actually eating well-balanced meals. This is in complete contrast to the past when exam revision pretty much took up every hour I was awake and chocolate bars were the fuel of choice (something I’ve written about previously).
So, my approach to upcoming exams is somewhat different to the approach I had in the past. I wrote in a previous post about taking an efficient rather than excessive approach to studying and I intend to continue this approach when preparing for exams.
I’ll finish by saying good luck to everyone sitting exams over the upcoming months.
All images featured are my own.
Science and Joe 