Collegelib curated a list of ideas to prepare better for your next engineering exam. Check them out, we hope there would be some new ideas for you to score better for your next test!
Related: How to Read Faster and Remember for the Exam
Get the right materials
You’ll need a few things to prepare for the exam:
- A study guide or textbook. This is the most important thing you can get, so make sure it’s one that covers everything you need to know about the exam.
- A calculator (if possible). Many tests require calculators, but some do not—so if yours doesn’t have one included in its package of materials, buy one online and bring it with you on test day!
- Paper and pencils/crayons/ pencils/ markers… whatever makes sense for your personal style of learning (and what works best for keeping track of information). They’re also useful for taking notes during lectures so that later when studying isn’t an option anymore because classes have ended or homework deadlines passed by far too quickly
Additional step if you have enough time
Wait, dont limit there, if you have access to your college’s library look for related thesis and references to enhance your insights on the subject.
Start early
You should start preparing for the exam as soon as possible. This is especially important if you are not yet fully prepared because if you wait until the last minute to start studying, there won’t be enough time to study effectively.
If your goal is to pass your certification exam on the first try, then it’s best if you begin preparing early in order to maximize your chances of success. If this doesn’t sound like a good idea due either because of budget constraints or other reasons such as needing more time before starting (perhaps because of an unexpected break in work), then don’t worry too much about it—just make sure that if no one else can help out with tutoring services and bookshelf materials while they’re available so that they’ll still want whatever help I provide!
Start preparing from the beginning of every semester
Get all possible information for your next semester exam, well in advance and start finding answers and or solutions
Take a practice test
You should take a practice test as soon as possible. This will help you identify areas of weakness and strength, and create a study plan that is effective for you.
If your first test score is below the 50th percentile, you might want to rethink how much time and effort it’s worth spending on studying for this exam because there’s no guarantee that your second attempt will be much better than your first one.
Idea!
Try to collect previous year question papers and get an idea on how questions are formed, and from which area of study the questions can come up.
Assess your performance
After you’ve finished the exam, it’s time to assess your performance. Here are a few things you can do:
- Review your notes and tests. If there are any questions or topics that you did not cover in your course materials, check through them now and make sure they’re covered before taking the exam again. It may also be helpful to look at past exams from other courses so that you know what types of questions will appear on this test (for example, if one of your classmates took an anatomy class last semester).
- Look at your mistakes on each question—and don’t forget about those pesky ones that weren’t marked off by the proctor! This will help focus on the areas where most students tend to miss key information during an exam session; if possible, try working through these mistakes yourself before proceeding with any further practice exercises or mock exams.* Make a list of topics/issues/questions that were missing from today’s session as well as any other relevant knowledge gaps/questions which remain unexplained until further study efforts yield results.* Compare how well prepared everyone else did with regards to their assignments compared with yours; this will give insight into potential improvements needed prior
Identify your learning style
In order to succeed on an exam, you need to know your learning style. This will help you plan how best to study and practice so that you can be prepared for the test in a way that works best for you.
Learning styles are defined into three categories: visual learners (people who learn visually), auditory learners (people who learn through sound and music), and kinesthetic learners (those who learn by doing). While there are some similarities between these types of learning styles—for example, they tend to prefer different ways of learning—each one has its own distinct characteristics and benefits.
While everyone has multiple ways of doing things, most people fall into one category or another when it comes time for tests like this one! Knowing what type of learner(s) are among us will enable us all to reach our full potential as students and professionals alike!
Create a study plan
- Create a study plan that is tailored to your needs.
- Make sure your study plan is realistic and focused on the right things.
- Create a flexible, positive and specific study plan as well as a list of things you need help with at every step along the way—from making sure you’re staying organized, to understanding exam questions better so they’re not just “check boxes” for you (or asking questions where there’s no answer), then finding online resources for answers when other sources don’t exist yet or aren’t up-to-date enough yet (or if they weren’t designed specifically for premeds).
- Please refer to our article on time management for more ideas on time management techniques for engineering students
Study in chunks
Study in chunks of time, but don’t study for too long.
Don’t try to overload before an exam. It’s better to do small amounts of work over a few hours than one large chunk of homework at the last minute before an exam. Study every day, study every hour, say 15 to 30 minutes even during holidays.
Don’t study when you are tired or hungry or thirsty, because your brain will have difficulty concentrating on the material and remembering what you studied during those times instead of focusing on its own needs (e.g., food).
Stay focused on your studies until they’re finished—don’t let distractions break your concentration!
Focus on understanding, not memorization. Focus on the big picture first.
When you’re studying, it’s important to focus on understanding and not memorization. The right way to approach an exam is by first understanding the main ideas of each question or passage, and then focusing on detailed information.
The most important thing when studying for an exam is to understand what you’ve learned so far—and how it relates to other concepts in your course material. If you don’t understand something, return back over it until you do!
Combine studying with physical activity, if possible
- Exercise can help you focus. When you’re in the middle of studying, it can be difficult to stay focused on what you’re doing and not get distracted by other things that are going on around you. However, exercise has been shown to increase attention span by up to 50%, which means that if there are two people who study for hours at a time and one is exercising regularly while the other isn’t, the person who exercises will have better concentration than their non-exercising counterparts!
- Exercise helps relieve stress. In our modern world where we’re constantly bombarded with information about how stressful our lives could be (and often already are), taking some time out of each day for exercise can make all the difference when it comes down to combating stress levels—and hopefully even improve them! According to research conducted at Stanford University School of Medicine & Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford Health Care System by Drs David Neufeld & George Sherwood; “Exercise may help reduce anxiety symptoms such as fearfulness during exams.” It’s important not just because it reduces stress overall but also because this type of self-care practice has been shown time after time again over decades: It works!
Review frequently. Speed up as you get closer to the exam.
Review frequently. Speed up as you get closer to the exam, but don’t forget to review your material regularly.
- Review at least once a week, or even more often if possible. Don’t cram–you’ll get confused and tired in the middle of taking an exam if you try to learn too much at once.*
- If possible, review material that has been covered on previous exams before this one; it will help solidify your understanding of what’s important in each section.*
Develop an appropriate test-taking strategy for each type of question.
- Develop an appropriate test-taking strategy for each type of question.
- For multiple choice questions, look for answers that are consistent with the passage.
- For fill-in-the-blank questions, read the entire passage and look for clues. You may be able to eliminate some choices by eliminating those that don’t match up with what you see on paper—or vice versa!
- For short answer questions, read the whole question and then answer it honestly—but remember: there will be others who could have written down similar answers if they had done their reading properly (and they probably did).
You can do it!
It’s hard to believe that you are about to take the test, but it’s true. You can do it! Take a deep breath and relax as you visualize yourself succeeding at your exam. Stay motivated by setting goals for yourself and visualizing your success.
Conclusion
In the end, remember that the best way to study is to have fun and enjoy learning. You can do it!