Doing well in school requires effective studying and writing. After all, passing exams depends on mastering what one has learned in the classroom, and writing solid research papers depends on using good time management and research skills. This resource list is designed to help all students get the most out of their learning, studying, and writing. Visit these sites for helpful information on all the study skills that are necessary for academic success.
Time Scheduling Suggestions
ASC Time Management — Southwestern College offers an overview page on developing good study habits, although much of the focus is on effective time management.
How to Organize Your Time — Alexandria Technical and Community College has a sample schedule on this page and a blank template to help students schedule their study time.
Managing Your Time — Dartmouth’s Academic Skills Center hosts this extensive page with tips on time management, worksheets to help students schedule their time, and much more.
Scheduling Your Semester — Texas Tech University has this excellent site with tips on using paper planners, electronic schedules, and other resources for time management.
Scheduling Your Time — Here is a basic overview of effective scheduling from Wilmington University.
Time Management for High School Students — High School Students will benefit particularly from this resource on effective time management.
Study Skill Checklist
Full Frontal Learning — There are many study skills strategy videos on this page to help students master the art of studying.
How Successful Students Prepare for Tests — This page is a basic overview of how students can study successfully for their exams.
Study Guides and Strategies — Here is a comprehensive guide to studying and learning that contains many tips to help students of all kinds master what they are learning more effectively.
Studying with Intensity — Studying with intensity is key to success in school, as this page from Columbia University demonstrates.
Study Skill Checklist — This page from Virginia Tech can help students determine their strengths and weaknesses when it comes to their study skills.
Study Skills Center — This site from Sam Houston University is a good all-around resource on developing and using sound study skills.
Concentration — Some Basic Guidelines
Concentrating, Comprehending, Remembering — Here is a good overview page on concentration and other important skills.
Court Reporting: Improving Your Concentration — Although this page is hosted by a school that trains court reporters, the information it provides on improving concentration applies across the board to any student.
Improving Your Concentration — Kansas State University offers this page with many helpful guidelines on improving one’s concentration.
Learn 2 Study: Improving Concentration — Using this pdf, students can greatly improve their ability to concentrate on lectures, reading, tests, and more.
Student Development Centre: Improving Concentration — The University of Western Ontario has this helpful resource on the problems that may make it hard for students to concentrate and what can be done about them.
Techniques for Concentrating and Remembering — As the title indicates, this page from Cuesta College focuses both on concentration skills and memory techniques.
Control of the Study Environment
Control Your Study Environment — Distance education students may find this overview from California State University particularly helpful when they want to set apart a place to study.
Create a Positive Study Environment — Grinnell College has this page on setting up a positive study environment. It helps students minimize distractions and much more, and it has several pdf documents that students can use to help them study in many different environments.
Creating a Good Study Environment — The University of Alabama offers this comprehensive plan for setting up and maintaining a good study environment.
Finding the Best Place to Study — This pdf allows students to analyze their present study environment. It also has some suggested on-campus study sites for the particular college that hosts the document, but students can look at these suggestions and find analogues on their campus where they can study effectively.
How to Begin Studying — This page from Chapman University is a great overview of creating a study environment, developing study skills, and more.
Ideal Study Environments and Factors that Influence Studying — Western Carolina University has five factors that are critical in determining the location of a good study space.
Note Taking — The Cornell System
Cornell Notes — This graphic-intensive page can help students learn how to take notes effectively.
The Cornell System for Note-Taking — On this page, students can learn how to make use of the renowned Cornell system for taking notes.
Lecture Note-Taking — This comprehensive page from Saint John’s University helps students understand how to take notes and use them before, during, and after a lecture.
Note-Taking Skills — Using this resource, students can evaluate their present note-taking skills and develop a more effective way to take notes in class.
Taking Good Notes — This pdf from Purdue University Calumet will help any student take and study their lecture notes effectively.
Taking Notes — Empire State College offers this resource with many good tips on taking and organizing notes.
20 Memory Techniques — The 20 memory techniques on this page from Stonehill College are great for helping students to memorize and recall important information.
Improving Your Memory and Concentration — Minnesota State University hosts this page with some basic tips on memorizing information.
Mnemonic Devices — Some common mnemonic devices to help students memorize what they are learning are found on this site.
More Advanced Memory Techniques — The University of Alabama Birmingham offers several pointers for memorizing longer lists of more complex information.
Reading and Memory Techniques — Using these five steps from the University of Florida, students should be able to retain more of what they are reading.
A+ Research and Writing — College and high school students will find this page of writing and researching tips very helpful as they write their papers.
The Five Commandments of Writing Research Papers — Read up on the five must-take steps for writing a research paper on this site.
MLA Guide — Students who must write their research papers in MLA format will find this guide particularly helpful.
The Writer's Handbook — The University of Wisconsin has this handbook on the process of writing a good research paper.
Writing Calculator — Students can use this University of Minnesota-hosted interactive page to keep their research and writing of papers and other assignments on track.
Writing a Research Paper — Purdue’s Online Writing Lab has this excellent and thorough resource that describes the steps students should take to write a research paper.
Written by Grace Ann Stanford