Every intellectual challenge entails, at the same time, a challenge when it comes to managing our emotions. That is why, during exam time, it is essential to apply certain psychological self-regulation strategies that allow us to make the most of our study ability, our prior knowledge, and the time we have to prepare for a test.
The psychological tips for facing exams that we will see in this article are designed to influence the way in which as a student you manage your emotions, your ways of thinking, and your ways of relating to the environment and to others. Of course, remember that you should try to adapt these general recommendations to your case and your circumstances.
Psychological tips to take exams well and study efficiently
During exam time, many students around the world may go through periods of emotional turmoil or psychological disturbances of various natures that can test their performance and abilities to pass them. Normally, these difficulties arise from the way we manage stress and anticipatory anxiety, two elements that keep us “alert” in a situation that requires wise management of the time available to study.
After studying for several months in which tension and anxiety build up, students can experience true states of discomfort or psychological imbalances in the face of uncertainty; the fear of failing and the vertigo that comes with facing decisive exams that can mark their professional future forever. But even less important exams can trigger real cases of uncontrolled anxiety if we don’t know how to deal with problems of this type.
In today’s article we will present the main tips that we can follow to successfully face the exams and prevent them from affecting us excessively on a psychological and physical level.
1. Organize your days
The lack of order when studying often causes high levels of stress in the student as well as anxiety or any other psychological and mental health alteration.
To achieve success in any job, it is important to maintain a high level of systematic and methodical organization, as well as a fixed study schedule that allows us to get the most out of each work day before the exam.
We can achieve this by assigning each day a certain volume of study and planning a daily study routine, in which we will first study the most complex topics and then the easiest to internalize.
2. Solve all your doubts in class
An essential element to achieve success in any exam is to have all the important concepts well learned and understood, which is why if we have any questions or queries we must clarify them as soon as possible.
In these cases we can work together with other classmates to resolve doubts together or, better yet, consult the teacher about any concept that is not completely clear or that is difficult to understand. Many cases of anxiety during exam time are reinforced by the idea that, if we had dared to ask questions in class, We wouldn’t have to be desperately looking for answers at the last minute
3. Create a context of mutual help
Having the support of friends or family who provide us with emotional support to successfully face an exam period is very important both for our mental health and for maintaining motivation and optimism in order to achieve our goal.
As indicated, working in a group with other classmates can be very beneficial, since it will give us other points of view on any aspect of the exam and we can exchange valuable information and notes with them. Besides, Establishing a context of mutual support in which you also help them review the syllabus and study efficiently benefits everyone s, and it will even give you the opportunity to better understand what you have memorized by seeing yourself in the situation of having to explain it to others.
4. Start studying early
Starting to study in advance and having enough time to structure the study process and work on those aspects with which we have the most difficulties will also help us face the exams on a psychological level.
Studying ahead of time will also allow us to review the entire syllabus that we must study several times, which It will help us automate certain concepts and internalize those most important aspects of the exam Furthermore, it is much better to carry out short study sessions several months in advance than to dedicate the same time to studying in marathon days during the last week before the exam; High stress makes us worse at memorizing.
5. Practice healthy habits
Even though we are in exam season, that It does not mean that we should neglect the healthy habits that we maintain throughout the year in our daily lives.
Some of the health habits that we must continue to put into practice are weekly physical activity, maintaining a balanced diet and maintaining organized rest and sleep schedules that allow us to regain strength at night and get up early in the morning.
In cases like this, psychology and mental health professionals recommend putting into practice a series of relaxation techniques daily that will help us achieve calmer and more peaceful states of consciousness.
Some of these techniques can be meditation, yoga, conscious breathing and progressive relaxation In addition, there are other relaxing activities that we can practice such as massages, taking a bath or listening to relaxing music.
7. Reconfigure your internal dialogue
Internal dialogue is the way we people value the things we do daily and also the thoughts or ideas we harbor about ourselves and our performance.
This self-talk can be positive or negative and reflects our level of self-esteem To successfully overcome the emotional and psychological difficulties that arise from exams, it is necessary to have positive self-talk that pushes us forward and provides us with optimism and motivation.
8. Make summaries
Summaries are essential especially when we must study a high volume of syllabus and we need to condense the most important information into written guides that guide us.
That is why it is so important to start writing summaries of what we are studying, so that in the next review we can use these summaries and save time
9. If you need it, go to psychotherapy
If you need it, it can be very helpful to go to a psychologist if our levels of anxiety and depression before exams are too high. In therapy, without the need for you to have developed a psychopathology that must be treated, you will find psychological self-regulation strategies that will help you take advantage of your study skills.
