Extremely Bad Study Habits Of College Students

Bad Study Habits Of College Students

Every new school year students create lists with the goals to achieve. Most students work diligently for their first exams. To ensure academic success throughout the entire year, it is important to recognize and ditch all bad study habits in college. No matter what age or academic level, employing effective studying strategies can make all the difference between acing a class, barely passing or, worse, failing miserably. Unfortunately, many of today’s most common study methods can lead to utter disappointment despite best efforts and intentions.

Ultimately, students should identify their own study preferences, what works for them on a consistent basis, and act accordingly. For instance, some students study better in the morning or can better focus in smaller chunks of time rather than a marathon session. Knowing exactly what does and does not work on a personal level, even tracking study patterns and correlating it with related grades, and then proactively creating a study plan and schedule around the proven effective methods, is the most powerful study tool of all.

Below are some of the unhealthy study habits that every student should avoid:

 1. Studying At Home

Studying at home might be convenient and easy, but there are excessive distractions lurking around the place. Maybe it is a talkative roommate, the TV, texts and the lure of Facebook, or the growing pile of clothes that are just begging to be washed. Any of these can break concentration and make studying less effective. Consider going to the library and finding a quiet room or desk away from all of these diversions.

 2. Listening To Music

The benefits of listening to music while studying have been argued time after time. Although classical music was once, believe to increase spatial abilities and improve learning, subsequent research was not able to support this theory. In fact, recent studies show that music may actually impair cognitive abilities and hinder memorization because of the changing words and notes in songs. Studying in silence or amid a little noise will not distract you from thinking. In addition, not listening to music can help a student concentrate without the disruption of lyrics and changing tempos.

 3. Procrastinating

Every student is guilty of procrastination at one time or another, but just because it is a common behavior, does not mean it is acceptable. Procrastination can lead to doing things halfway and not retaining as much information as necessary to ace that exam. If a student is pulling frequent all-nighters or rushing in fire-drill mode to finish every essay or project, then it is time to work on time management skills and schedule earlier, calmer study sessions.

 4. Not Making An Outline

If a student is not making outlines while studying or writing a paper, then the results most likely will not be the intended grade. There are many reasons to make an outline. It helps to keep track of large amounts of information, organize ideas, and present the class material in a logical way. Instead of trying to reread a textbook or write an essay from scratch, make an outline to organize thoughts and study more effectively.

 5. Highlighting The Textbook

Some study advice books recommend reading a textbook and marking the pages with a neon highlighter as the best way to study for an upcoming exam. However, in actuality, this is one of the least effective ways for students to remember content. Instead of coloring entire pages with highlighters and trying to reread the text, a student can quiz themselves on the material they just read. This will help retain more information and score higher on exams.

 6. Pulling All-Nighters

Most students in the high school and college level are particularly guilty of it, but staying up all night cramming for an exam has proved to do very little good for test preparation or performance. Not only does sleep deprivation turn students into zombies, but it also takes a serious toll on happiness and overall well-being. The best way to avoid pulling all-nighters is to study ahead of time. Dedicate a few days a week (or more) to study and review the material to avoid trying to cram everything into that brain in one night.

 7. Using The Social Media While Studying

You cannot resist the temptation to check Facebook, Twitter and other social media accounts.

If the lure of those sites is too much for you, your browser has free productivity tools that will manage "break time” for you. You can program, Leech Block for Firefox, Nanny for Google Chrome, WasteNoTime for Safari and SelfControl for Mac users to block specific websites during fixed hours or for specific amounts of time. You can block your social media sites for 50 minutes of every hour, and program them to unblock for 10, or whatever combination works for you!

 8. General Disorganization

If you find yourself jotting down reminders in odd places or never consulting your student agenda, consider downloading the Studious App on your Android or iPhone. Enter your timetable and the app automatically silences your phone during class time. You can add homework assignments, exam dates, text notes, and photos.

 9. Skipping Classes

Do you regularly skip class? Attending class is your primary responsibility as a college student. If you cannot handle this small little piece of self-control, requiring, at most, a few hours of your time a day, then how can you expect to muster the discipline required to become an efficient, engaged, high-scoring student? Beyond the general fussiness of side-stepping the lecture hall is the practical reality that every hour of missed class will require 2 – 3 hours of copying notes, bothering your friends, and reading to learn the information from scratch. Attend class. Always. Make this non-negotiable.

In conclusion, every student should fix those most common bad study habits. This way, everyone can achieve his or her set goals and grades.