There’s something satisfying about cracking open a fresh notebook, unwrapping shiny new highlighters and curating the perfect playlist for focused study sessions. But you’ll also need some novel and science-backed study tips and strategies that are fun and free (or low cost) – and that really work. We tapped some recent graduates on the shoulder for their best study tips. Keen to learn how to study effectively? Your time starts now.
Use Acronyms for Better Recall
Former student Lucy Molineux finished Year 12 in the top band for two of her subjects, partly thanks to acronyms: abbreviations made up using the initial letters of other words or expressions, which sound like a word (like, ALIENS). “This was mostly helpful when I had to remember not only dot points, but ‘dash’ points, too,” she says.
For example, instead of just trying to remember the characteristics of living things – movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion, nutrition – remember ‘MRS GREN’. When learning concepts and processes, Lucy adopted the ‘burger’ technique. “In biology, I’d break down the steps to protein synthesis [in order] as though I was making a burger,” she says.
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Jog Your Memory With Music
While preparing for his Year 12 exams last year, Jamie Rogers studied musical theatre for up to two hours a day, inspiring some of his more tuneful study methods. “I’d tap out a rhythm with my fingers on the table while reading sentences aloud,” he says. “It helped lock dense definitions or long quotes into my memory.”
Jamie also turned dates, essay structures and even Shakespearean quotes into “ridiculous but catchy” jingles. “Singing them in my head during exams brought the info straight back,” he says.
Follow the Traffic Light System
Selective high school graduate Mia Sinosic-Cass achieved her dream ATAR last year without sacrificing the extracurricular activities that fill her cup. When it comes to revision, Mia’s a fan of the traffic-light system. “With so much content across all your subjects, it can be hard to remember what you’ve revised and what you haven’t,” she says.
“To avoid missing any key concepts for your exam, copy and paste the syllabus for each subject into a document. Highlight syllabus points you fully know in green, content you need to go over in yellow and content you have no idea about in red. You’ll know exactly where to direct your energy when revising.”
Tackle Tough Topics When the Time is Right
Students focused on recognising mistakes and self-correcting – rather than getting the answers right every time – learn better over time, says a study from the University of Southern California. After achieving an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) putting him in the top 0.15 per cent of his year and attending university, Max Milstein co-founded Apex Tuition Australia to help other students kick goals, such as teaching them to log questions they get wrong or find challenging.
“Sometimes, it’s best not to get stuck on [figuring out] a topic if you’re in a flow state,” Max says. “When you come across a hard question or topic, make a note of it and set aside some time to go through the content again.”
Schedule Breaks Using the Pomodoro Technique
Try the Pomodoro approach, which according to Dutch research, can boost efficiency and mood. Set a timer for 25 to 30 minutes of focused study, take a five-minute break, then reset the timer for another timed sprint and so on. This is helpful when studying for multiple subjects, says Max. “Pomodoro works great because you set aside a relatively short amount of time to focus on one subject, take a break, and then move to the next subject.”
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Study Tips and Methods That Use Technology
Enlist the Help of Artificial Intelligence
Mia used generative-AI chatbots for her studies, such as ChatGPT. “AI can be a great tool to test yourself for any subject, especially once you’ve done every practice exam you can find,” Mia says. “I’d upload the subject syllabus and all my notes into the language model, then ask it to provide me with multiple choice, short-answer and long-answer questions. It was a lifesaver!”
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Refine Ideas By Playing Games
Before he even went anywhere near a canvas, Jamie built his Year 12 Visual Arts project in world-building game Minecraft first. “It was a great way to visualise the shapes, colours and composition without wasting materials,” Jamie says. “It gave me the freedom to experiment and refine my idea digitally before bringing it to life physically.”
Boost Focus With Apps
Turn your beloved yet often distracting smartphone into an asset during exam time with apps that help you focus. Jamie used ‘Forest’, which rewards users for staying off their devices and spending time in the real world by planting virtual seeds. “I’d set little revision goals in the app; every time I focused, I grew a virtual tree,” he recalls. “My friends and I did it together. It made study feel like teamwork and we got competitive about who had the best garden!”
