How does one "cram"?

[Z3D]

Hear me out, because I know that there's a few of you in my situation... =P

 

See, all my life everyone I knew who studied and got higher grades than me pretty much crammed it all in at the last minute. At best, I can think of maybe 1-2 people who actually "spaced" everything out and even at that they were never drastically higher in marks than I was.

 

Anyhow, I'm at a point where it's really starting to infuriate me. I feel it's unfair that I have to bust my ass and study for a midterm or whatever in advance while everyone else gets to study the day or two before and still end up with higher grades than I do, more free time, and so on.......

 

So I ask you, PreMed members: How do you cram? What's the magic behind effective cramming for high grades?

[CharmingHedgehog]

I think there's different learning styles at play here.

I personally know many people who space out their materials, and gets awesome grades. I also know people who cram, and get equally awesome grades.

Cramming is "easier" because you don't have to put in the effort to study everyday. But it also doesn't help with long term retention.

I think the most ideal studying habit is still "spacing out". But it probably would help to have a overall review 2 days before the exam so the older materials gets refreshed?

[thehumanmacbook]

For physics = need to study/effectively understand systems and exceptions, special cases. More intuitive that one cannot "cram" for

[Z3D]

Agreed with Physics. I had one situation where I had to cram Physics for a midterm and still did well, but it was nothing but Physics and I was mentally exhausted by the end of it all.

 

As for the different learning styles, I'm trying to figure out how the "crammers" do it, because it would be really helpful for the next few years of undergrad, and possibly medical school assuming that I get in. =S

[CharmingHedgehog]

I semi-cram, because I slack the rest of the year. I set out schedules of how many lectures a day I want to review. Usually I give myself about a week to study. Then I just sit in front of my computer, or tim hortons, and read my notes, and highlight. If it's something super relevant, or I have trouble remembering, then I put a sticky on the page, and will review that specifically a couple of hours before the exam. Usually I read over my notes once, unless it was something I flagged.

 

I have friends who will pull all-nighters before an exam, and read everything over a couple of times. They will remember what they read in that short amount of time. Personally I can't stay up that long...

 

We managed to do well enough =)

 

 

But doing well in a course also depends on the way you take your exams. Multiple choice exams are always tricky, and you would need to read the question, and figure out any "keywords" or tricks they put in it. Short answers require you to answer questions they didn't ask. For example, when my test asked "why is it important to be culturally sensitive?" the answer key included not only the importance, but also the definition of culture sensitivity.

[RyanMaverick]

I'm a crammer - I like my free time. How do I do it? Well, have you ever seen the stress vs. performance curve? Basically as stress increases across the X axis, performance increases up the Y-axis to a point, and then will decrease according with further levels of stress.

 

So, the key is to get your stress level high enough to hit maximum study performance but not over-do it b/c then you're really screwed. Basically think "holy sh*t, I have an exam in 2 days and I haven't even looked at it, I gotta bust my ass studying here"; that'd = high performance, at least in my case it does.

[I.Want.In]

I'm a crammer - I like my free time. How do I do it? Well, have you ever seen the stress vs. performance curve? Basically as stress increases across the X axis, performance increases up the Y-axis to a point, and then will decrease according with further levels of stress.

 

So, the key is to get your stress level high enough to hit maximum study performance but not over-do it b/c then you're really screwed. Basically think "holy sh*t, I have an exam in 2 days and I haven't even looked at it, I gotta bust my ass studying here"; that'd = high performance, at least in my case it does.

 

If this was facebook, I'd 'like' the above post.

[Doctor_Strangelove]

I'm a crammer - I like my free time. How do I do it? Well, have you ever seen the stress vs. performance curve? Basically as stress increases across the X axis, performance increases up the Y-axis to a point, and then will decrease according with further levels of stress.

 

So, the key is to get your stress level high enough to hit maximum study performance but not over-do it b/c then you're really screwed. Basically think "holy sh*t, I have an exam in 2 days and I haven't even looked at it, I gotta bust my ass studying here"; that'd = high performance, at least in my case it does.

 

Well said Maverick!

[kylamonkey]

Well, I have to admit that I tend to cram too, but I make sure I pay very close attention in class and ask questions when they arise. I do WAY better when I don't cram!

[psychoswim]

I don't exactly cram, but I don't space it out that much in advance either. I have semi-photographic memory so once I've gone through slides/notes once or twice I can remember them and remember details usually for a long time. My finals were over a month ago, but I could still do any of them, or probably even my midterms. I tend to do a "simulated" review say midway before the exam, and then review a day or 2 before again with the added material, preferably not the day before. I think I've only ever stayed up 2 or 3 times to study during the night, and that includes a B.Sc, M.Sc and 2 years of PhD. I'd much rather read a book or watch tv, and the material comes back easily on exam day.

[Boa]

I'm a crammer - I like my free time. How do I do it? Well, have you ever seen the stress vs. performance curve? Basically as stress increases across the X axis, performance increases up the Y-axis to a point, and then will decrease according with further levels of stress.

 

So, the key is to get your stress level high enough to hit maximum study performance but not over-do it b/c then you're really screwed. Basically think "holy sh*t, I have an exam in 2 days and I haven't even looked at it, I gotta bust my ass studying here"; that'd = high performance, at least in my case it does.

 

this is actually accurate... If I study one day before the exam, I panic so nothing gets done. If I study waaay in advance, I dont retain much because im thinking<<yeah i still have a lot of time>> and just skim stuff passively. However, if I study 7 or 14 days before the exam, i tend to retain way more info because time is ''semi''limited so you HAVE to get the stuff done...

 

STRESS CURVE

[Karma]

I prefer spacing my studying but having to do 19 credits and + per semester in med school, most of the time I have no other choice but to cram. Also cramming is unavoidable if you want to know all the details that they ask you on exams.

 

Also, some people like to give the impression that they only study before exams but in reality they study much more.

[RyanMaverick]

I prefer spacing my studying but having to do 19 credits and + per semester in med school, most of the time I have no other choice but to cram. Also cramming is unavoidable if you want to know all the details that they ask you on exams.

 

Also, some people like to give the impression that they only study before exams but in reality they study much more.

 

Not true, in fact going through pharmacy when we did 42 credits/year (~21/semester) I found that the ONLY way to study was to cram as we'd have a major exam every 3 to 7 days. Of course then the argument can be made that studying for a pathophsiology exam for disease A is beneficial for a therapeutics exam of disease A, but I digress.

[Z3D]

I'm a crammer - I like my free time. How do I do it? Well, have you ever seen the stress vs. performance curve? Basically as stress increases across the X axis, performance increases up the Y-axis to a point, and then will decrease according with further levels of stress.

 

So, the key is to get your stress level high enough to hit maximum study performance but not over-do it b/c then you're really screwed. Basically think "holy sh*t, I have an exam in 2 days and I haven't even looked at it, I gotta bust my ass studying here"; that'd = high performance, at least in my case it does.

 

Dude...that is the best "cramming" advice I've ever heard. Thanks a lot!

 

Does it have to be 2 days, or does that depend on the individual? =P

[thehumanmacbook]

^ LOL Just like an optimal pH curve

[thatonekid]

I'm a crammer - I like my free time. How do I do it? Well, have you ever seen the stress vs. performance curve? Basically as stress increases across the X axis, performance increases up the Y-axis to a point, and then will decrease according with further levels of stress.

 

So, the key is to get your stress level high enough to hit maximum study performance but not over-do it b/c then you're really screwed. Basically think "holy sh*t, I have an exam in 2 days and I haven't even looked at it, I gotta bust my ass studying here"; that'd = high performance, at least in my case it does.

This. Excellent summary.

[The Ace of Spades]

It really depends on the subject matter.

 

I would routinely cram for biology courses (MCAT included!), but like thehumanmacbook said, I had to continuously work at physics and math to master the concepts. Even chemistry can work both ways - you can cram for inorganic, but organic takes lots of practice.