Students

Top 10 Study Tips

April 2, 2025 • Academic Tips

At the Center for Academic Performance (CAP), part of the Division of Student Affairs, we partner with students to help them be successful in their personal and academic goals. A big factor impacting the success of any student in a rigorous academic program such as those found at HSC is knowing how to approach studying effectively.  

As part of our comprehensive academic support, we start with a list of study tips that we recommend all students consider. The following 10 tips and respective questions serve as a good starting point to help you be aware of the ways you can improve your habits and practices. 

Use the questions to reflect on your current study habits. If you struggle to answer or your answer is “no” to a lot of these questions, we encourage you to make an appointment with us! Our Learning Specialists can help you develop an individualized plan for success. 

1 – Self-care 

If your mind and body are not cared for, you cannot learn effectively or efficiently. There are many resources on campus to help you take care of yourself – don’t be afraid to reach out! 

Reflection questions:

• Are you prioritizing sleep? 
• Are you eating well? 
• Do you make time for stress-relieving activities (exercise, reading, hobbies, time with friends/family, etc.)? 
• Do you make time for people who are important to you? 
• Do you have a support network? 
• Do you take breaks while studying? Do your breaks lead to distraction or leave you feeling refreshed? 

2 – Stay organized 

Time is your #1 resource in graduate and professional school. We suggest that you set aside time every weekend to make a schedule or to-do list for the upcoming week. 

Reflection questions:

• Do you check your syllabus regularly? 
• Do you keep a master calendar and block out your time? 
• Do you plan specific study time – including when, how and where you are going to study? 
• Do you prioritize your to-do list? 
• How often do you make a schedule or to-do list? Daily? Weekly? 
• Do you stick to the schedule you make? 

3 – Preview before lecture 

Being aware of your schedule and the way the class is organized will determine how long you need to spend previewing (skimming vs. in-depth studying). Previewing is intended to give you a framework of the information.  

Reflection questions:

• Have you looked at the learning objectives to see what you should be getting out of lecture the next day? 
• Have you looked over the PowerPoint or assigned readings before attending lecture? 
• Have you written down any questions that you might already have? 
• Are you previewing the material so far in advance that you forget what you learned by the time you get to lecture? 
• Have you identified the concepts that seem complex and that you should pay close attention to during lecture?  

4 – Attend lecture & take good notes 

Attending lecture and taking notes can help you identify what the professor is emphasizing and give you a chance to ask questions. It can also help you build good rapport with your faculty.  

Reflection questions:

• Do you go to class? 
• Do you take notes? Hand-written? Typed? 
• Do you often feel lost during lecture? 
• Are you able to tell what the professor is emphasizing during lecture? 

5 – Review & reorganize notes as soon as you can after lecture 

We suggest that you condense and reorganize your notes in a way that is easily reviewable (charts, diagrams, concept maps, etc.). This makes cumulative review more efficient and self-testable.  

Reflection questions:

• Do you review and reorganize your notes within 24 hours of attending the lecture? 
• Do you have an effective way to format and organize your notes? 
• Do you condense your notes into a format that is quick to review? 
• Do you organize material by learning objectives? 
• Do you still have questions after lecture that need to be answered? 

6 – Test your understanding 

There are many different ways you can test your knowledge – rewriting/redrawing from memory, verbalizing, mock teaching, flashcards, practice questions, etc. Be creative – use multiple methods! 

Reflection questions:

• How do you check that you are understanding and remembering the material? 
• Do the resources you are using for practice questions align with the course material? 
• How do you actively recall the information? 
• Do you use practice questions to strategically guide future studying? 

7 – Carve out regular cumulative review time

Spaced-out, frequent, active repetition is the best way to commit information to long term memory. Frequency and length of time spent reviewing is dependent on content. Be strategic!

Reflection questions: 

• How often do you spend cumulatively reviewing material within a course? Daily? Weekly? For how long? 
• Is your cumulative review active?  
• Do you use your exam report to guide your cumulative review? 

8 – Use the learning objectives

Consider the learning objectives your unofficial study guide. This is what the professor expects you to learn. If the learning objective is broad – start with the main concepts and drill down to the details.  

Reflection questions:

• Do you preview the learning objectives before class to help determine high yield information? 
• Do you organize material by learning objective? 
• Do you use the learning objectives to test yourself? 
• After attending lecture and reviewing on your own, do you reach out to the professor for additional clarification on learning objectives, if needed? 

9 – Seek depth of understanding, not rote memorization 

Seeking a depth of understanding enables you to build a foundation for future courses, prepare for boards, and apply the information in a clinical setting.  

Reflection questions:

• Can you answer higher order questions? 
• Are you able to not only recall the information, but also apply it appropriately? 
• Do you understand how the details fit into the bigger picture? 
• When doing practice questions, are you able to explain why the right answer is correct and the other answers are wrong? 

10 – Use study groups 

Studying with others helps you see the information from different perspectives. Studying with a partner or group can also help you study actively and hold you accountable.  

Reflection questions:

• Do you have a study partner or group? 
• Do you study with high-performing peers? 
• Do you have goals for your group study sessions and do you accomplish them? 
• Are you using active study techniques during your group study sessions? 
• How often are you studying with others? 

Once again, if you have struggled to answer or your answer is “no” to a lot of these questions, we encourage you to make an appointment with one of our Learning Specialists so we can help set you up for success with a tailored plan for your specific needs.   

Visit unthsc.edu/cap for more information about the Center for Academic Performance.