<p>I can’t give great biology specific advice (I only ever took 1 course at Cornell), but there are a couple things I would suggest.
- Cornell has quite a few biology tutoring/resource centers. Take advantage of them to make sure you are learning the material.</p>
<p>2) Are you in the habit of “reading” your notes to study? That is a very poor way to learn things and a low percentage of things will stick. Try to figure out a study method that allows your mind to actively engage with the materia. Some suggestions:
- If you are already taking lecture/book notes, before exams make notes of your notes. It will force you to think about what’s really important. At the very least, you can figure out a way to rearrange what you have to make learning the material easier. I used this strategy frequently for my econ tests and always tried to get everything down to the front/back of a sheet of paper (My sense is biology would require more).
- I’m assuming all your textbooks have questions at the end of each chapter. Do as many as you can, especially the ones that weren’t assigned so that you are thinking more than recalling the answer from something you already did.
- As you’re going through questions and looking over previous assignments, take note (and literally write it down) of what questions you were getting wrong. Focus on those topics and try to find similar practice problems. Having this list ready will be immensely useful if you take advantage of the tutoring resources/office hours.
- Have you tried Cornell-style notes? [Somewhat ironically, I learned about this method in high school, not at all at Cornell] Basically, as you’re going through your notes, write questions in the margins. Then when you study your notes, instead of reading the notes, read the questions. Your notes will be there to guide you if you have trouble answering them. Even the process of trying to come up with good questions is a good way to study (even if you don’t end up answering them).</p>
<p>That’s all I’ve got in terms of studying advice. Especially as a freshman, don’t be intimidated to ask for help from your professors, TAs, study groups, and peers. It may seem like you are well behind, and it’s possible in some areas you are, but for most Cornell students, college is A LOT harder. It may seem like you are behind your peers, but keep in mind it’s the people that know their stuff and are confident that are speaking up. Don’t worry about them. There are always a lot more people not speaking up/looking smart who aren’t getting things right away. If your grades are behind the curve now, take immediate action to change your habits and you’ll be ahead of most students.</p>