Find someone to keep you on track

There’s a reason “study” rhymes with “buddy”. That’s science.

Normally, studying is a painful and boring process that makes you want to throw yourself on the bed and kick your legs while screaming into your pillow about how unfair life is. Especially if you’re studying Drama.

This is why you need a study buddy – someone to share the pain, make sure you’re keeping the tantrums to a minimum and maybe even teach you something you didn’t know. Read these tips now. Or later. Whatevs.

Pick someone who suits your style

Some people learn better by reading, others by listening. Some people need absolute silence or they can’t concentrate, others need music and to talk things out. There’s no point trying to work with someone who bounces a ball off the ceiling while they recite chemical symbols if you usually get mad at the cat for purring while you memorise quotes.

Make sure it’s mutual

If someone’s going to the trouble of making sure you’re staying on track with your study, the least you can do it return the favour. In the same way, make sure you’re not giving up all your precious time to help someone else get a great mark while they have constant excuses about why they haven’t checked your Japanese homework yet. (And none of them seem to be “I am lazy like this dog.”)

Fill each other’s knowledge gaps

In the best case scenario, you’re a Maths genius who struggles with English and your study buddy is the opposite, so you can help each other out with the tough bits. But even if you’re both battling against the pain of Legal Studies, it’s useful to puzzle things out together. Two heads are better than…whatever the end of that saying is. You know the one.

Share notes and resources

Depending on how your brain works, you’ll probably take notes differently to your study buddy – jotting down bits that seemed important at the time, maybe using more doodles and diagrams, maybe whipping out different pen colours like a fiend. Swapping these things with each other can bring a fresh perspective to topics that might have otherwise been a struggle.