How Well Do You Study?

What are some good study techniques in college?

I am student and in my previous year I did very well in school, but this year I became lazy, because it was a little bit too simple…And I don't know how to start again, because even making a summary of the text is very difficult now. Could you please give me some tips?

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I was asked to answer this question of the website quora.com. My answer is below followed by a comment from the student who asked it:

Earlier this year I talked with a student who was a physics star in secondary school and during the first year at University. Unfortunately, she then fell into not studying as much as she should have and her grades suffered. She then became depressed and the cycle just got worse.

What I encouraged her to do was to create a rigid schedule. I encouraged her to plan a set time during the evening when she would study and do nothing else. No phone nearby, no Facebook open on the computer etc. Just work for a couple of hours every day, same time, same place. I also encouraged her to get at least one study buddy. This person would join her to go to a place where they would study only and not chat. They would do this together so they could keep an eye on each other (and perhaps compete a little with each other too).

I talked to her a couple of weeks ago and the study buddy thing worked out very well for her. She’s doing much better and is now looking at highly ranked graduate programs in physics.

 Student comments on my reply: 

1.Thank you so much sir. This situation is exactly my situation and I will do the same thing.

2. Sir. I have tried this technique and it helped me, thank you

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The student who asked the question and the student I talk about in my reply are far from the only ones who have been through peaks and valleys during their academic careers.  It is unfortunate that in the world of selective admission to elite colleges and universities there is little room for students to learn from experience how to change and improve the way they approach education. Students in secondary school who don’t present a transcript with virtually all A grades will have little chance of being accepted to top schools. Likewise, many student currently in college who have a drop in grades often lose a chance at getting into top graduate school or in certain competitive fields for jobs. Those who do not have a 3.5 GPA in college will be winnowed out for consideration at virtually any top consulting company. Those hoping to get accepted to honors programs or upper level majors that are selective such as certain business schools also face steep odds. 

On the one hand, it makes sense that students who do not do well in a class or project required for these programs will no longer be in a position to be a competitive applicant. On the other hand, a student who goes through a rough patch and then recovers and does well should, I think, be given an opportunity to compete. The system of winnowing out students now means that students will rarely takes risks. They won’t sign up for classes with a prof or a teacher known for giving low grades. Or they sign up for classes that have the reputation for the ease of the workload and a high grade.  Rather than encouraging risk-taking, something virtually every innovator and successful leader stresses, the system encourage those who follow the path that leads to a high GPA. Given the way companies use computers to sort applicants now, it is rare for a student to demonstrate individual acumen and to be able to convince employers or graduate schools that they have learned how to learned and they have learned from failure. Failure is not an option. And not just failure. A single grade of C can be more than enough to keep a student from being accepted or even considered.

Schools like to say they look at the individual student. At the same time they have tried to increase their applicant polls by double digests year after year. Given the numbers of applicants for jobs or places at selective schools it comes as no surprise that finding a single blot on a resume or transcript can be the easiest way to push a student out of contention.  Few schools use interviews in any significant way, and while some students write about overcoming obstacles or challenges in their essays, it is more the stories of overcoming the odds of a low income background or being a part of a marginalized group that wins hearts and minds in admission offices. Writing about learning from a low grade rarely, in my experience, moves a reader to think about how they may have already reacted in positive ways to a setback. 

What does all this mean? The students coming in to selective schools have rarely experienced an academic setback. Should this happen in a college or university, early on, their confidence is shaken, and many struggle to get it back. The researchers and writers who document how STEM students often don’t complete their intended majors point to this phenomenon but few schools have implemented ways of mentoring students and providing them with second chances. 

The innumerable books about learning from failure fill shelves and lots of space on websites. Schools might consider ways of learning how to implement ways to learn from those who value people who have been though struggles and then overcome them. These students often bring with them a hunger and passion that comes from experience.  Those who have changed the face of world  (Lincoln, and Martin Luther King come to mind) knew that the road to creating great change comes only through a path that is anything but straight and narrow.

In part 2 on the topic I will address what students in secondary school can do to learn how to learn and how to study most effectively.