Overeating in general disengages signaling pathways involved in cognition.

set the temperature of your room to around 65°F (18°C). Be sure to put your mobile phone in another room.

Take practice tests, preferably under time pressure that simulates the actual time constraints of the test.

Writing down short comments and questions as you read—“annotating”—is an excellent strategy for active reading that also makes it easier to review and refer back to the text.9 If you read a document digitally, you can use the commentary/annotation tool provided. If you read on paper, you can make small notes directly in the margins, on Post-it Note

You need to work practice problems yourself, even if you think you already understand them. This working out yourself of practice problems is what takes you to the “pro learning” level.

As you study books and articles, try to synthesize the key ideas, which are often surprisingly simple. Don’t become overwhelmed with lesser details. If you are watching an instructor live or on a video, you might need to find ways to simplify what they are saying, as well, since even the experts can struggle with this.

It’s easier to memorize information when you understand it well, but it’s also easier to understand information that you have memorized.3,4

As you do the final review, make sure that you don’t leave hard questions blank, unless a wrong or incomplete answer gives you negative points. Instead, write down whatever relevant information you can think of. For example, you might note down the steps you would have taken or the formula you should have used. This can give you partial credit.

Formulate your own questions about the material.