How to Study and Crack Competitive Exams: 15 Study Hacks You Need to Know

India has an extremely competitive environment. Numerous competitive exams are conducted every year for entrance into undergraduate and postgraduate professional courses as well as for securing services in the government. And they are not easy to crack, especially when it comes to a government job or admission to top engineering or medical colleges in the country. Every year lakhs of students appeared for these exams but the only a handful of them have cleared it. Despite good preparation and putting rigorous efforts, students fail in their first, second and even several attempts. As the competition is very tough there is no space for mistakes and a candidate has to be thoroughly prepared for the exams. Therefore, we’ve rounded up 15 tips to study effectively before exams & during exam to help you get the most out of your studying hours. Use these tips while preparing for NEET, JIPMER, AIIMS, JEE Main, SBI PO/Clerk, IBPS PO/Clerk to tap into your true potential and emerge victoriously!

1.      Devise a Routine

Before you start preparing for any competitive exam, you must design a timetable. And set yourself with the clear daily, weekly and monthly targets. These targets will make your scheduled routine possible before your exams. Ensure your plan is not aggressive that you feel overburdened. Make short study sessions, they are most effective.

2.     Create a Good Study Environment

Make sure your study place is pleasant. It is the key element for effective study. A good study environment allows you to maintain your concentration and maximize your learning efficiency. Everyone has his/her study environment preferences, so choose your preferences and make yourself free from all distractions. As much as possible you should try to designate a pleasant and tidy study space with good illumination and proper ventilation. This will help you in reducing distractions and increase your concentration.

Does thinking about studies worries you too much? Or there are times you feel demotivated when you sit for studies? Must Read our blog- 5 Reasons Why You Feel Demotivated to Study and How to Overcome It.

3.     Avoid Rote Learning and Focus on Basic Concepts

Focus on understanding the concepts throughout your preparation. Do not adopt rote learning techniques. Because exams like JEE, NEET, IBPS PO/Clerk are extremely complex and check your analytical skills. You cannot crack these simply by isolating various concepts and memorising them. You need to understand them and know how they are interlinked. Understanding helps you to remember the concepts for a very long period of time and you can comfortably handle questions related to those concepts.

4.     Summarise Theories

Encapsulate the theories and information in your own words and make well-defined notes. This is an excellent and helpful tip to study effectively before exam time.

5.     Get colourful and creative

Draw a clear diagram or layout of what you need to learn as per your understanding. Make it visually creative and colourful by highlighting or underlining with different colours. List the dates, formulas, mnemonics and tit-bits of important information that you find difficult to learn. Stick them somewhere in the wall. Seeing them in front of your eyes all-time helps to feed into the memory very easily.

6.     Organize study groups with friends

Study groups can help you get the answers you need and finish tasks faster. Each group member has different qualities/ideas to offer to the study group. So, by doing group study, you will share your ideas and concepts and vice-versa. In this way, you will learn whatever you missed.

Still confused whether group study will benefit you or not? Read the positive and enjoyable experiences of group study. 

7.      Past papers – Do a lot!

Previous years papers really make a lot of difference in your preparation. If you are preparing for exams be it academic or concerned with government jobs, solving previous years’ question papers definitely helps you. Previous years past paper tops the essential exam and study strategies for successful exam practice. The best tips to boost your exam preparation is to take a look at the past papers before revising any particular subject. Then initiate your revision of that subject. Once you are done thoroughly, start attempting the question papers.

Are you struggling to get a good score in results? Are your efforts not getting reflected in the result? Then you are probably not making good use of Mock Test Papers. 

Read our blog: 5 Reasons Why Mock Test Papers are Important? and see your result in improving.

8.     Rest, Eat, Exercise

As we discussed above, regular breaks are very necessary throughout your study session. You need to take proper rest and have a healthy diet. And don’t feel guilty about spending spare time for some recreational activities. This will help you to boost back with full energy.

A positive and healthy mind lives in a healthy body! Must Read our BLOG– healthy lifestyle tips to attain a better state of mind, for a better future.

9.     Treat Yourself

It’s absolutely fine to reward yourself even before the exam. But only if you have reached your daily targets as per your timetable prepared. Appreciate yourself in many ways like going for a short ride, cooking the best food for you, Listening to your favourite music, etc.

10. Boost your short-term memory

When your exam date is too close then learning new theories from the start is absolutely not preferable. Rather strengthen your short-term memory by solving previous years papers. This is one of the best tips to boost your exam performance. Solve as many papers you can till a day before the exam.

If you have followed the above tips, now the time has come when you have to give your best shot. By the time you reach 1 hour before your exam, you must be confident with your preparation. Your focus may switch within a physical and mental state while exam. To be fully confident in what you have learnt. And start your exam with these below tips:

11.  Start with Easiest

Get the exam rhythm, read all the questions carefully. Divide your time for each question. Then start with the easiest question. Easy questions won’t take much time. And you will get enough time to solve complex questions.

12. Don’t go out of the box while answering

Don’t write an irrelevant answer. This will drive away your time and may take power out of your answer. So, make sure you stick with the question.

13. If stuck, Move on

Just calm down if you stuck on any question and leave it aside for last hour. Answer the next question and regain confidence. Once done with all known questions come back to the stuck ones with a different perspective and you will definitely solve it.

14. Stay hydrated always

Keep drinking plenty of water, to avoid drowsiness and headaches. And also, at times you get nervous.

15.  Never leave early

It feels great when you finish your answer sheets well before time. But don’t leave the hall till the final bell rings. Take the opportunity to recheck and revise the entire answer sheet again and again. At this point, some students make the mistake of leaving the exam room. Once you leave it, it’s too late – you can’t go back in for marking unmarked questions. So, even if you finish early, use that extra time to read your answers in OMR sheet and make sure that you’ve answered all the questions to the best of your abilities.

“Always keep in mind that a disturbed and a non-planned study can lead to loss of marks in the examination.” Therefore, by following these 15 tips listed above, we hope that your next exam will be an enjoyable experience with a successful outcome!

Are you struggling to stay focused while studying? Check out our blog – 10 Super Tips To Attain 100% Concentration on Studies