Making A Study Guide in Under Thirty Minutes

Finals week hits fast, and many of us don’t have the time, or energy, to make the perfect study plan. The good news? You don’t need one. With the right strategy, you can make an effective study guide in under thirty minutes, sparing yourself to do any more hard work this semester. So, let’s focus on a quick and easy plan to get right into studying one class at a time. 

Step One: List Every Class and What You Need to Do 

Grab a piece of paper or open your preferred note-taking app. Write down: 

• Each class 

• What the final actually is (paper, presentation, exam, etc.) 

• How much it’s worth of your total grade 

• How prepared you feel on a scale of 1 to 5 

This will give you a quick snapshot of what you should prioritize the most. For example: Psychology – exam, 20 multiple choice questions, 1 essay – 30% of the final grade – preparedness of 3/5. With this, you’ll instantly know where the most work is needed. 

Step Two: Prioritize What’s Needed 

Now that you have this list, ask yourself what matters the most. Which classes are worth the most? Which ones are you least prepared for? Which deadlines hit first? 

Then, when you have it figured out, rank your classes from “needs immediate work” to “light review.” This will help save you unnecessary hours wasted on classes you’re already passing with an A and get right to the heart of the matter. 

Step Three: Estimate Time Needed 

Don’t overthink it. Just give each subject an allotment of time. Whatever is feasible to you is where your estimates should land to help you divide time realistically. 

Some advice for this step is to divide bigger projects into little snippets. An essay might require brainstorming, research, and outlining. An exam might call for flashcards and practice quizzes. That way you can see just what is needed instead of fearing an unknown monster. 

Step Four: Block Out Time You’re Free 

Open your calendar, set reminders, do whatever works for you to keep in mind the time you have open. Some non-negotiables you can mark off are: 

• Classes 

• Work shifts 

• Sleep (please) 

• Appointments 

Whatever is left is your real study time, not the imaginary “I’ll study ten hours tomorrow” fantasy. Even if you need to chug a Red Bull to get that inspiration running. 

Step Five: Assign Tasks to Your Open Time 

Now that you know what blocks are available, this is when you bring back your study priorities. These priorities should be scheduled on a level of urgency. For example, you may come away with a simple schedule like: 

Monday: 4-5 PM – psychology vocabulary review. 6-7 PM – English Composition research. 

Tuesday: 3-4 PM – psychology practice quiz. 5-6 PM – finish English draft. 

No need to get fancy. This study guide just needs to be written, not worshipped.  

Step Six: Now For the Bare Minimum Back-Up Plan 

We all have those days when getting out of bed feels like the biggest betrayal to college students globally. Especially in winter, why would we ever want to leave our cozy blankets to study things that make us want to pull our hair out? With finals just around the corner, give yourself some grace on the hard days and just try to get one simple, easy thing done. To help prevent yourself from falling behind, pick an easy task: 

• One practice quiz 

• One page of an essay 

• One chapter of reading 

• One set of flashcards 

Better yet? You don’t even have to get out of bed to do any of these things. You can even set up a “just in case” station that has textbooks, notebooks, and stationary supplies within arm’s reach right by the bed. 

Finally, your study plan is a tool. You ultimately choose how to wield whatever comes inside your toolbox. There may be some days full of surprises, pop quizzes or family emergencies, and leniency goes a long way. With studying, any progress is good progress, no matter how small it is. These tricky days may call for you to move the task to another time or day, or even swap one task for another to make things more feasible. If need be, you may even find yourself shrinking down the workload into bite-sized chunks. 

The goal here isn’t perfection. The world wasn’t built in a day. Everything around you is a culmination of time and hard work, so let that show in this semester’s finals. In just these six easy steps, you can create an easy, forgiving, and flexible study guide.