If you want to know how to study for board exams with a perfect strategy then, you have come to the right place.
Now, I will not tell you to study for at least 14-16 hrs, wake up early, plan properly, or any of those things you have already been told by people around you or you might have read somewhere. You have already tried that, and we both know that it is not working; otherwise, you wouldn’t be reading this here. The real question is not “what to do,” the question is “how to do it.” In order for this strategy to work, try to be as honest as possible to yourself.
I will tell you the most practical approach you can apply for board exams or any other descriptive exams you will sit for. If you are a NEET aspirant then here are 10 points to crack NEET with guaranteed success even without coaching. Of course, the strategy will slightly change if you are going to appear for a descriptive exam in graduation or post graduation. I strongly believe in “one shoe doesn’t fit all.” Therefore, this is not a fixed strategy that will be applied to everyone who is reading this. Instead, this strategy will be customized based on your own understanding of yourself and who knows yourself better than you only.
How much do you want to score in Board exam?
This is the critical factor in deciding how much effort you will put into your board exam preparations. You really need to ask yourself this question, and the answers should be in the context of how much you want to push yourself. If you are aspiring for medical entrance, then above 80% is good enough, and it will not matter much later. But if you are going to join a different bachelor program, you need to score as much as possible because it will be the most important deciding factor of your education life hereafter and possibly your career. Check out the cut off for good universities out there to know the minimum score needed to get admission. It usually lies above 95%. With all that said, you need a strong grasp of the concepts, no matter if you are going for MBBS or any other program. Believe me, it will make your life much easier for the rest of your career.
Know thyself
This will tell you how much far behind you are and what gear you need to switch to if you want to excel. Look at your scores so far you have gained in your test or exams and ask yourself if you would keep yourself in the top 10% of your classmates or the rest of the group. If you are in the top 10% of your classmates, you have to work really hard and follow strategies to get to the top in your class and then you’ll earn decent scores in board exams. I’m sure you have played games which can be a real sport or a racing video game such as Need for Speed. You might have noticed that it is easier to come to rank three or four or five, but to go from rank 3 to rank 2 and then to rank one can get tough, and you have to be working not just hard but really smart. It gets more challenging because every time you race, you have to do better than yourself. But, if you’re in the other group, you are in the long haul, which means you have to work really hard for your exams, devise strategies, and for longer duration. So, tighten your shoelaces and be ready for a marathon. Follow the strategies I’ve discussed in this post and you will achieve your goal.
Take care of your environment for your board exams
You have to ask yourself whether the environment around you is hindering you from giving your best effort or it is the environment that is helping you in giving your best. Try to be as honest as possible to yourself. Look at people around you, including your family, friends, and dorm mates, if you live in a hostel. Give deep thought about who is helping you in giving your best effort and who is hindering you. Try to spend less time with the people who are hindering you. This can be a neighbor or your tenants or your siblings who have their good intentions, but they are consuming more time of yours. This is not the time for you to waste on such things. If need be, you can always use music for studying for not getting disturbed and cut off noises around you. You should try to minimize these interactions, but of course, you should not get away from your responsibilities or if they need your help. On the other hand, if you can find a companion who can form a study group, believe me when I say “It works wonders”.
Develop your own timetable and stick to it
You should make a timetable that works for you with the goal of maximum productivity. I strongly suggest you do not follow anyone else’s time table. Know your habits and time of maximum productivity. For example, I’ve analyzed that I am very productive from 9am to 1pm and then from 9pm to 1am. So, I try to use this time without any interruptions for the things I am working on currently. It is possible that you are productive during early morning hours from 4am onward; if that be the case, then be it, sleep early and wake up early. There is an advantage to timings such as beyond 10pm or before 6am, that there are less people around you to interrupt. You have got to experiment and analyze yourself for a week about your time of maximum productivity. Just find it and design your time table around it. In any of the case, for board exams never study less than 4hrs in a day and more than 10 hrs in a day depending on where do you stand now and what is your target score.
Practice answering questions
If you can’t follow anything else that I’ve suggested so far, just follow this. I promise you will end up scoring really decent in your exams. Learn and understand your prescribed textbook completely. If you are CBSE board student, then you should know the left and right of your Physics Part I , Part II, Chemistry Part I, Part II and Biology NCERT textbooks. More importantly, you need good notes, which can be your own or you can borrow from your good friend. But do not spend time making perfect designer notes. Instead, focus on practicing answers in the best way in the shortest time. Use your logic; you will get marks not for best notes but for best answers. Now you will need different strategies for answering different subjects. Physics and mathematics do not require much effort in presenting. Even chemistry does not require much effort in presentation. You need to present answers in a specific format; for example, in mathematics, you will first write what is given, then you will state your approach to solving the problem. Finally, you will provide the solution with a final conclusion.
On the other hand, answers in biology exams require a particular way of presentation. This can be achieved only with practice with almost all the possible questions, which is why it is more demanding. Practice previous 8-10 year question papers; nothing is coming beyond that. Just write answers to those questions and practice answers with a reasonable time frame. Always include diagrams in biology. It goes a long way to create an impact on examiners’ minds, and you can practically steal marks from your examiner.
Set a reward system
Our mind works in mysterious ways, so let’s hack it to our advantage. Find something which you like to do and would prefer doing it than anything else. Now use this as a reward system for your studying. For instance, I love playing video games, so when I was younger, I used to set up a reward system that goes like- “if I can finish the practice question set, then I’ll play 30 min of the game”. This reward for you can be dancing, playing chess, badminton or anything your heart desires. Do not reward yourself with movies or serials. Now before you go and start applying it, I’ll tell you two tricks to make it work in your favor. First, never set an easy goal; it should be realistic but not easy. Secondly, you have to be strict in following it. Otherwise, you will start bypassing it and end up playing more than studying, which is not good.
Conclusion of the Perfect Strategy
Follow these strategies and before you know it, you will achieve great score in board exams and everything will fall into right place for you. This will work for you beyond your board exams in everything that comes along the way. Just remember-
- Do not waste time in things which are not helping you move towards your goal.
- Keep yourself motivated by setting a reward system. This can be sports, e-sports or anything artistic.
- Be smart in utilizing time available to you.
Let me know in the comment section if you need help in anything, TLBI is here for you. I would love to know the strategies you have used for your exams.
All the best for your board exams.
-ARN
Thanks sir
You’re welcome Arvind.
All the Best.
Great!!