<p>I literally wait till the day before the test day to really study, and still score exceedingly high compared to the rest of the students in my class. The majority–the ones that pseudo-study at Starbucks and ponder about taking courses at their nearest community college instead of the university–actually fail, and 100s are pretty rare. I got a 99, but it was with some extra points everyone received. Can anyone relate to this?</p>
<p>That was how I was for years until suddenly I wasn’t anymore. I would urge you to be sure you have the skills to spread out test preparation so that should the occasion arise that you find you have to, you will have already developed the skill and won’t be left scrambling.</p>
<p>How do you know other people in your class study longer than you? Studying is for reviewing material you should have already learned, meaning it should not take that long. I don’t need to study much when I do all the readings and go to class, basically all I need to do is review notes. It is all about how well you retain information. It also depends on your classes. I don’t study extensively for my major classes, mostly because my tests are typically in class essays. I tend to over study though, because I take detailed and comprehensive notes. I put off reading in my IR class, so I need to read some articles and excerts from the book now that I know what is going to be on the midterm. I probably will spend a little bit reading over notes, but not a ton of time. The better you understand the material, the less you need to study. I do not take traditional tests often, maybe 1 or 2 in 3 of my classes a semester, and they are essay heavy. Plenty of people study sparingly and do well, just like plenty of people don’t study and tank. It’s not abnormal.</p>
<p>It’s called being smart. Come on now, you don’t have to brag.</p>