With midterms ahead, I feel it is a good time to discuss studying. It can feel impossible to relearn and study content from a whole semester. This is because it is nearly impossible to completely know everything that you’ve learned in every class all semester. That is why studying for midterms is unique. There is no perfect method for studying that is applicable to all students, but the following are some general techniques that I think most students can benefit from. 

Firstly, making a realistic plan is key. Midterms can be extremely overwhelming, and it may feel like you cannot fit studying for them into your life. Making a plan allows you to take a deep breath and know that you will get everything done, and it also helps to make sure that you are keeping yourself accountable with your studying. I want to emphasize that this plan needs to be realistic. If you try to pack too much studying into a day, you will likely not be able to meet this standard and end up feeling overwhelmed and defeated. A realistic plan is one the leaves time for breaks, sleep, and time with friends and family. 

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses is crucial to making midterms successful. The first thing to do while studying is make a list of units covered in the semester. From here you can look back at test grades to see which units you struggled with. You can then plan accordingly with the information that there are some units that you will need days to review, and some, only an hour. 

If you don’t know where to start with studying, use your class-given resources. Most teachers will provide their students with some form of review material for the midterm. This can help students to better understand what will be covered on the exam, as well as what the test questions may look like. If you have access, looking back at old tests is a great way to study because teachers often use old test questions. If you are struggling to know where your focus should be, just asking your teacher can offer some guidance on what material will be most prevalent on their midterm. 

Midterms are not the time for all-nighters or binge studying. As somebody who has used and succeeded with both of these methods on unit tests, I understand the appeal. Midterms contain too much material to try to beat the system. Being well-rested and having days of studying under your belt will help to reduce anxiety and ensure a better score.