what not to study Whole books Your lecturer tells you to read "War and Peace". If you have study skills you won''t! Even with perfect memory - how much of the book can you cover in an exam essay that takes 40 minutes to write? Look through the library for abridged versions of your books, or commentaries... Now you''re using your study skills. Buy your textbooks 2nd hand. Why do you think they are in perfect condition? Because the last students hardly opened them!
Whole syllabus One benefit of attending classes is that you get a skeleton outline to apply your study skills. The skeleton will be complete for the sake of completeness. But only some parts matter to your study skills.
Study yourself - you''re interesting aren''t you? Each day write down at what time of day you didn''t mind using your study skills, and could really get down to work. Write down the times when you hated to study. I study best early in the morning. You might study best late at night. Do you work best in a totally silent room, or with background music? Do you work better if you are petting the dog or does it interfere with your study skills?
Use your spying study skills Find past exam papers in the library. Put them in order by date, then go through the earliest one, and write down the subjects in a column at the left of your page. Put the date at the top of the second column and a tick for each subject. Now put the date of the next paper and a tick opposite each subject that is repeated, and write in any new subjects.
