Student survival guide: A basic guide to surviving exams

By EMMANUEL MANALO

So you have enrolled at a tertiary institution and feel a bit overwhelmed by all the new faces, buildings and ways of doing things.

Don't worry, you will soon settle into a routine as you come to grips with your new situation.

It will soon sink in that you are likely to be a student at this institution for a few years, and that to succeed in it you need to do a number of things.

You have to read the course texts and other prescribed readings, and maybe do extra research. You need to complete assignments and other coursework. And you must pass your exams.

Students have many wrong ideas about tertiary-level exams. Some of these stem from misinformation and poor advice, particularly from people who started a course but did not finish it.

To avoid some of the pitfalls on your way to exam success, here are some useful tips:

* Start your revision early. It should start on the first day of the semester, not two or three weeks before the exams. There is a lot to learn in a short amount of time. Spreading the load and studying regularly will mean you are less likely to become stressed close to the exams.

* Practise what you need to do in your exams. For example, if you are doing a statistics course and need to be able to solve problems, practising only with the model answers in front of you is pointless. You will not have those answers in the exam and you do not want to be mentally dependent on them for remembering what to do.

* Talk to and learn from your lecturers and tutors. Ask them about what you may not have fully understood in class. Do not just hope that what you did not understand will not turn up in your exams.

* Make sure you can write well. If you cannot explain yourself in writing, you will not do well.

* Get advice from your institution's learning centre. Many tertiary institutions have learning centres that provide much more than remedial assistance to students who are struggling.

* Dr Emmanuel Manalo is director of the student learning centre at Auckland University.