The first thing most people do when they’re about to begin a study session is to put their phone away, log out of all social media platforms and put all devices far away. That has always been the traditional method especially, for people preparing for major exams like those in grad school. But what if I told you-you’re doing it the wrong way? Technology can be your friend.
With the right amount of self-control, you don’t have to put those devices away. Here are some tips on how you can use technology to your advantage when doing your GRE prep:
The power of music
The hardest part of beginning revision has to put away your fantastic music. Sometimes I even abandon my revision plan altogether cause the music is too good. It wasn’t a long time before I finally decided to read while listening to music and believe me it works wonders.
Classical music is known to be the best for studying. When listening to music, it is possible to relate a particular tune to a concept making it easier to remember. Listening to music while doing math has also been proven to increase performance.
Not only does music improve your cognitive ability but it can also be used to mute other sounds. It’s not such a bad idea to take your headphones especially when you’re going to be studying in a public place.
Make an e-library
During exam time it’s not surprising to see a grad student carrying ten five-hundred-page books to the library. Chances are they’re not even going to read all of them, and they probably spent thousands of dollars purchasing them.
Books are heavy and expensive, and that’s where technology comes in. Using eBooks was never my thing until I tried, and I’ve never turned back. They’re so much cheaper (some are even free) than the actual book, and you only need a single device to carry over 100 books.
With technology, you don’t have to struggle to turn page after page searching for a single word. You can search it up. Using eBooks also means you are conserving the environment. Save the trees!
Videos are your friend
Is there a concept you can’t seem to grasp? There’s probably a video on it. It’s amazing how millions of people upload videos explaining millions of ideas in different subjects every day.
Using videos enables you to learn a difficult topic in the easiest way possible. If you missed a lesson in class, worry not. You can always watch the video.
Didn’t understand one video? Try another one from over a hundred others on the same topic. Using videos also cuts the amount of time you would have taken reading on something using only the textbook.
However, it’s important to compare what your books say to what is being taught in a video. Have a bit of knowledge on what is being shown. Some things are not always prepared well or correctly.
Research
Thanks to technology, you can find information on any topic you want. The internet contains millions of articles, journals, magazines, newspapers, and blog. A lot of reliable statistics can also be found on the internet which would have otherwise taken you hours to look up in a book.
However, it is not recommended to use only the internet as your sole source of information. This is because a lot of the content is submitted by individuals making it prone to inaccuracy and bias.
Find motivation
You’re not the first one struggling to prepare for grad school exams. You will find many people on the internet who have already experienced the hustle of preparing for exams. Some people even go as far as forming support groups for people who are about to sit their exams.
It is here where most people find encouragement and advice on how to make it in grad school. Motivation to keep going can take you a long way and sometimes it’s all that you need to unleash your potential.
Download those apps
No. I don’t mean games. Apps can be a fantastic tool in your GRE prep process. Depending on what you need, an app can be used for planning your studying, obtaining information, doing assignments and projects and practicing exams.
I particularly love applications that have practice exam papers and question banks. Some apps even help to simulate the exam environment to make it as realistic as possible.
Just before exams, it is also important to schedule your time well using a planner. Most planners come with a reminder feature so that you never miss important things. Apps also help you study anywhere and everywhere. You can take out your phone while on the bus home and try practice questions.
Neha Nidhi
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