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Study, study, study… it’s what students do almost every day of their life. And, if they aren’t studying, then they are worried about when they have to start studying again after their short break. Unfortunately, that is just the way of the student. There are good and bad ways to study though. If you are a student who wants to improve your grades, then there are simple tricks and tips to keep in mind that will not only improve your grades, but possibly make your own studying habits a little simpler on yourself.

Overall, it comes down to planning. Think ahead a little bit and try out these 7 things to help improve your study skills and, ultimately, your grades.

#1 Get Rest

Although this has been gone over many times, it is never said enough – Get enough rest before you go to school. Showing up to school tired means that you are not focused on the material that your teacher is lecturing or on what you are reading. If you are having trouble focusing in class while you yawn every ten minutes or more, chances are that you are not getting enough sleep during the night. If you are still skeptical on the importance of getting sleep, there is an entire blog on Eduify that is dedicated to the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation.

#2 Eat Before an Exam, (but don’t drink much)

Food is fuel. When people do not eat properly they become tired, weak, and grumpy. None of those symptoms of hunger are conducive to proper concentration while you try to study or attend class. If you are in class and you stomach is grumbling because you skipped breakfast again, you are going to end up daydreaming about food rather than listen to the lecture. Do yourself a favor and eat something that will tide you over while attending class. However, you may not want to drink anything in excess. The feeling of a full bladder and needing to run to the bathroom in the middle of class can be just as distracting as an empty stomach.

#3 Arrive to Class Early

When students are showing up to class late they are often out of breath or are interrupting the instructor’s lesson. A late entrance not only distracts the students, but it distracts the teacher, which is no way to get on a teacher’s good side. Being late also means that you have missed some material that was first given in the beginning of class, which may leave you a bit frazzled and possibly missing even more information as you ask a fellow student, “What did I miss?” I recommend showing up five or ten minutes early to class, so you have time to take your seat and set up your books without disturbing anyone with your backpack’s zipper or adjustments of your chair. An early student is prepared and in a ready state-of-mind to be taught.

#4 Make Flash Cards

Many students make flash cards when they are preparing for a test. I suggest making flash cards even before your test. Make early preparations for your test. If there is some information that you feel will be difficult to remember, you should put it on a flash card, that way when it is time to take your test, most of your flashcards will already be set for you, which should make you more relaxed than having to prepare cards last minute for your test.

#5 Record Lectures

If you happen to have a teacher who goes over material quickly or does not seem to stay on a topic long enough for you in class, ask the instructor if he or she would mind that you record the lecture. With a copy of the lecture in your pocket, you can later rewind and listen to any important parts that you may have missed jotting down in your notes. Most teachers do allow students to bring a recorder in to class, as long as they are warned ahead of time. It is not ethical to record a person talking who is not aware of it, so be sure to ask your teacher for permission before doing so.

#6 Read the Material after the Lecture

It may seem simple, but there are far too many students who only listen to the teacher lecture over a subject, but never actually read the material in the book. After the lecture, make time to read over the same material your instructor went over. Going over a lesson twice will help solidify the information in your memory better.

#7 Discuss Material with Friends

Although most students do not want to talk about their homework, having a discussion about the material you are studying is a great way to help remember information. If you are reading something confusing or interesting, relay that exact information to a friend or family member. When you force yourself to repeat the material and think about the topics in a conversation, you help yourself remember the information better. Since I had trouble remembering dates in history, I used to spout off facts to my brother with, “Did you know…?” He would usually roll his eyes or ignore me because he didn’t want a history lesson, but I just continued talking at him and it was a lot of help for me to remember the facts easier.

By Julia H. Jackson

When I was a freshman, I was stressing through my first college exams when my brother,  who was three years above me and had already learned the ins and outs of college life, took me aside and said: “Find the Egg Chair. Trust me.”

Mystified, I followed his directions to the Counseling Center on campus, where I found a room called Stress Services. The room was dimly lit, and soft music was playing in the background.

“Um, excuse me?” I asked the student receptionist. “Is this where I can find the Egg Chair?”

The student nodded, and asked for my student ID card. “Come this way,” he said, and I followed him into a small room, where a massive massage chair lay waiting. I could see why they called it the Egg Chair—it had a circular seat and a little white dome overhead. “You can turn on the music if you want,” he said, gesturing to a stereo behind the chair. “You’re entitled to thirty minutes,” and then he left the room.

I was awestruck. How was it that, halfway through dead week, I was somehow entitled to my own personal massage chair? Just how many university students knew about the magical Egg Chair? And what other equivalent services could I cash in on with my school ID card?

As it turns out, most colleges and universities offer a plethora of student services. Believe it or not, but schools are not just for classes. Now that your semester is winding down, here’s a list of the Top 5 Campus Resources You Forgot Were There. You never know, there might be an Egg Chair out there for you.

5. Drop-in Tutoring

The transition from high school to college can be a big academic jump. For this reason, most schools have an on-campus tutoring center where students can make appointments or drop in to get help with their homework.  Depending on the class, your professors might be able to direct you to a specific extracurricular workshop that corresponds with your field. Many of these tutoring services are also linked to programs such as the Economic Opportunity Program (EOP) and the National Collegiate Athlete Association (NCSA), so if you qualify for those scholarships, you are usually guaranteed a certain number of tutoring hours per semester.

If you can’t make the tutoring times, you can always get help here on Eduify with writing. We offer a whole group of great writing tutors that are standing by 24×7.

4. Counseling Services

As my experience with the Egg Chair shows, Counseling Services can apply to a variety of different things. For many students, starting college can be a surprising life change, and sometimes it can be hard to ask for help away from home. It is also common for certain health conditions, such as depression or bipolar disorder, to emerge in late adolescence, so it’s always a good idea to check in with counselors if you feel the need. Most colleges will offer a series of counseling sessions with a therapist, and can refer you to other resources if necessary.

3. Career Services:

Here’s a service I wish I’d utilized more as an undergrad. Most colleges have programs in place to help students meet with career counselors, take aptitude tests, research grad schools and internships, and attend resume and job skills workshops. These are amazing resources that are pretty hard to find once you leave school. Many career centers also offer a service where students can save letters of recommendation from their professors on file, in the event they want to apply to grad school. This is great because professors can write your recommendations while your work is still fresh in their minds, and also helpful if you plan to take time off before applying to graduate school.

2. Study Abroad Services:

The opportunity to study in another country is a privilege that might not interest everyone. That said, it is an incredible opportunity to immerse yourself in another country, and, sometimes, language. Even if you have no plans to leave the country, it is worth visiting your school’s study abroad center, if only to meet exchange students on your campus and learn about school and internship opportunities beyond your college. Many majors and departments have affiliated programs in other countries, especially foreign languages. Given the state our economy is in these days, many companies value students who have lived, studied, or worked abroad. ¿Por qué no?

1. Recreation Services:

Most colleges these days support athletics programs in a huge range of sports: football, basketball, soccer, swimming, water polo, volleyball…sailing. That said, you don’t have to be on a college team to use the facilities and equipment on campus. As a student, I often registered for half-unit recreation classes such as weight lifting, aerobics, or swimming, just to become familiar with the facilities. Of course, you don’t need to take a class to use a Stairmaster. Take advantage of these services while you’re enrolled; they get a lot pricier once you graduate!

Believe it or not, but universities offer a lot more than simply classes. Regardless if this is your first semester or your last, you still have time to take advantage of some of the student services on campus. Many students might not realize just how many programs help universities run, as well as how many services they qualify for. So what are you waiting for?

by Adam Krause

Working is all fine and good. But as Jack Nicholson in The Shining pointed out, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. If you have nothing but white walls to stare at, you might find yourself kicking your laptop down the hallway at three in the morning instead of using it to write your seminal paper on Stanley Kubrick. Eduify doesn’t want that to happen. So we’ve assembled this list of distractions to keep on your desk, giving your eyes and brain a rest before plunging back into the labors of a scholar.

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by Brandon Chester

In our fast paced lives, music is often the perfect remedy to slow down our pace and bring focus to a writing project. Consider the effects of the tempo and rhythm of your favorite songs or the mood a certain musician brings you to and how your creative faculty responds to those elements. Whether you’re doing a last minute paper in the wee-hours of the morning, letting some submerged thoughts spill out in a stream of consciousness free-write, or carefully constructing your masterfully novel, music can help unlock thoughts and enhances your writing process. Although musical tastes are highly subjective, Eduify has identified 5 albums to accompany your future writing projects. We’ve even thrown in a style of writing we think fits the theme of the music for each album.

Click here to listen to Eduify’s Write to Radio on Last.fm! All these albums and our fan’s suggestions. Free!

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The Raven, from http://xkcd.com/

By Julia H. Jackson

Imagine that your significant other has recently fallen ill. You are an orphaned adult. Everyone who is close to you is slowly dying of tuberculosis, or as you call it, consumption. You can’t sleep. You fidget. You wait by your writing table and contemplate the slow descent of humanity. And suddenly, there is a knock at your door.

I should mention that you are a sometimes-successful editor of literary magazines. It is 1845.

“Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`’Tis some visitor,’ I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.’”

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