<p>It’ll depend on your major and the type of courses you take. I’m accounting & comp sci so I don’t deal with much reading beyond the textbook. I’m sure an English major would have different objectives while studying than I do. </p>
<p>For me, it’s all about maintaining an assignment planner and adhering to it. I’m scatter-brained; I’ll go around looking for keys that I left in one room and a coat in another. It’s one thing to live that way, it’s another thing to study/work that way. </p>
<p>I don’t just write down assignments; everyone does that. I write down the reading I plan to get done each night. I make sure that I study for every little insignificant quiz. The grade on that quiz doesn’t even matter–the point is that I’m using that quiz as a study tool for understanding the material. And don’t study less for midterms/tests that are worth less than finals. Just because a test is worth less doesn’t mean the material covered is less important. Study for the sake of learning. Silly things like this work.</p>
<p>In high school, I would complete homework assignments because I had to and I’d do the actual studying later. That’s not only inefficient but it forces you to cram. Nowadays, even though there’s way less mandatory assignments, I use all of them as study tools. That means reading all the chapters relevant to the assignment beforehand. It also means doing the assignment without a book/other unnecessary tools in front of you. Treat all material as a mini test. Finish the programming code without looking in the sun java manual. etc., </p>
<p>If you can’t complete assignments without a book, then you haven’t learned the material. Re-read that material. Personally, reading carefully is FAR more useful to me than doing a bunch of random problems. Most of my studying is spent reading. Practice problems just make sure that I can apply the concepts effectively. I’ve found that most people in our situation spend most of their study time reading. That’s the way to go if you have a flexible problem-solving brain, because the solutions come naturally when you truly understand.</p>
<p>The problem for me was that I could get away with it. I could blow off assignments and then make up for it on tests. It works, but you’re only learning the main points instead of all the necessary intricacies. When you start taking classes that have multiple courses as pre-reqs, you’ll be glad you studied effectively in the other courses. I am.</p>