Whether you are a freshman taking your first high school exam or a senior taking your last, everyone can improve upon their scores with more effective ways to study and prepare.

It has unfortunately been proven that actually doing your homework and paying attention all year is the number one way in which students do well on their Regents and final exams. However, it’s June and too late to start doing that, here are some tips from students and online sources on studying for exams.

The key to doing well on Regents exams and finals is staying organized, keeping a schedule, unplugging from the internet and managing your stress.

Having an organized three ring binder with labeled dividers or folders for review is a great way to keep all of your notes and key papers accessible and therefore allow you to optimize your study time.

Keeping a schedule for after school activities can help to find time for more studying, even ten minutes could allow you to look over at least one topic.

Unplugging from the online world allows you to spend the time you are studying more effectively and avoid distractions.

It has been scientifically proven that continuously spending 50-60 hours working, leads to a decline in the proficiency of your work. Taking 40 minute breaks allows for your study time to be fully optimized.

Jane Paulson is a sophomore who rises to the challenge of taking on four AP courses including AP World History, AP Psychology, AP Seminar and AP Chemistry. She credits her success thus far in courses involving vocabulary to Quizlet, a website which allows users to create study sets. By creating the Quizlet you are subconsciously studying the material and when utilizing features such as Study or Learn you reinforce this information into your brain.

Jackie Glaser is also a sophomore who takes the same four AP courses as Jane does. For Jackie teachers who make review videos help her the most. She said that teachers such as Mr. Rupertus and Mr. Grodski make YouTube videos and this is helpful because they are always accessible and easy to pause so you can take notes.

Using the study tips from Jackie and Jane in addition to those online can help you to improve upon your Regents exam and final exam scores. Check out the final exam schedule to see when your exams are, good luck everyone!