Midterms are right around the corner! It is an exciting time because we are almost done with first semester, however, we have to get through midterms before we can enjoy the upcoming break. To help get you through the stress of tests Aidan Janney has provided tips on how to stay on top of the midterm stress. 

Aidan Janney, as many of you know, is the number one student for the Sophomore class. He loves science and works hard to make sure he maintains high grades in all his classes. He studies constantly, which makes him almost a master at midterm study time. The advice he has to offer is to make sure that you “stay organized.” It is crucial to have good notes and interact with them, this allows you to be active while you study which helps on test day when you have to recall a large amount of information. Using Quizlet is highly recommended to interact with your notes, it helps to keep notes in one place and makes it easy to study the material. Aidan also pointed out that it helps to know “overall concepts” rather than really specific ideas because it makes it easier to recall information on test day. Knowing big ideas also makes it easy to write free response questions. It is also important to “take breaks”, don’t study straight for three hours then expect to remember all the details. Take a break to meditate (put screens away, take some deep breaths), eat some food, then hit the books again. The biggest thing that you could do to maximize the chances of getting through midterms is to “spread out your studying over a longer period of time, don’t cram because it doesn’t always work. This will ensure that you really know yourself and you will do better overall.” Do not procrastinate! Save yourself some stress and start studying the material weeks before the actual test date. 

The methods you use now to study will stick with you in your academic career. Be smart about how you study and develop a system now to make future you happy. It is important to find tools and methods that make you successful!