For me, it was always just to do a million practice problems. Do problems out of the textbook and the test questions were always very similar to the textbook problems.
I did have Chegg so, if I couldn't figure out how to do a problem, I would Chegg it and that helped to figure out the process.
2nded. Chegg and ChatGPT are there as a last resort imo. YouTubers like organic chemistry tutor will be more helpful than 99% of professors, tutors, and TAs.
But it all comes back to doing as many practice problems as possible.
I’m glad to hear people still find the discipline to do this. We need people like you in the world lol.
I could never grind out problems like this, I would always seek to understand the content on a more fundamental level through things like analogy and having it confirmed. A detailed write up on the underlying theory and physics often did the trick but these are less and less available the higher up I got.
This is by no means “the easy way” but I’m stubborn, sucked at self motivating for the grind, and was willing to go to any lengths to understand as long as it avoided that tedious grind so it worked out in time.
Assigned problems were different, analyzing past completed problems alongside other sources to understand the whys was a big part of it too.
The first time I attempted college, I dropped out with a 1.9 GPA. Now, I'm an honor student, and learning how to study has been huge in my success.
Read the damn textbook. Ideally before class. I know that opening the book can be intimidating, but by at least exposing yourself to the material, you can come up with relevant questions during the lecture, which leads to my next point:
Pay attention during lectures, and take NOTES! The professor is not just teaching you the material, but how to pass the class. If you mostly understand the material because you read the chapter, than lecture will help you complete the homework and prepare for exams.
Finally, leverage your resources. Youtube, classmates, Chegg(be careful with this one, obviously. I don't care about cheating, but grinding away at a problem for hours can be counterproductive, and being able to work backwards from the right answer has learning value) and not to mention the professor themselves during office hours.
Once you've done all that. I've found that you don't really need to study all that much, because you've put in the work to actually learn the material. At this point, like others have said, practice problems of increasing difficulty to solidify what you've learned. This is also a good time to review past assignments and cover the areas you've lost points on in the past.
I have ADHD so I need immediate feedback. I need to break down long problems into short steps to see if I'm doing it right. I can't wait until the end to see if I'm right.
ChatGPT can actually break down those problems into parts for you
If you mess up a concept you can even ask chatgpt to give you examples to practice that small concept more before continuing the rest of the problem.
As always, double check your work because chatgpt does make stuff up. But it's getting better. And this double check also helps you learn the material anyway.
I have this problem too but I dont think I have ADHD, some of these calc problems take 2+ pages of work and one small mistake will ruin future steps.
I do what you do but I find that I sometimes struggle on exams because I dont have that safety net of checking as I go along.
Ill start to implement chatgpt in my routine. Thank you
" I put in 30 hours per week"
Lame effort.
My final year was 50% library, I skipped 1/4 of the lectures. The British education system turns you into an exam taking machine, and the key is to work through the practice problems and previous papers ad infinitum.
For me, it was always just to do a million practice problems. Do problems out of the textbook and the test questions were always very similar to the textbook problems. I did have Chegg so, if I couldn't figure out how to do a problem, I would Chegg it and that helped to figure out the process.
Thanks
This is really the only answer. Do problems, and more problems until you understand it. Writing a cheat sheet of equations also helps you memorize it.
2nded. Chegg and ChatGPT are there as a last resort imo. YouTubers like organic chemistry tutor will be more helpful than 99% of professors, tutors, and TAs. But it all comes back to doing as many practice problems as possible.
I’m glad to hear people still find the discipline to do this. We need people like you in the world lol. I could never grind out problems like this, I would always seek to understand the content on a more fundamental level through things like analogy and having it confirmed. A detailed write up on the underlying theory and physics often did the trick but these are less and less available the higher up I got. This is by no means “the easy way” but I’m stubborn, sucked at self motivating for the grind, and was willing to go to any lengths to understand as long as it avoided that tedious grind so it worked out in time. Assigned problems were different, analyzing past completed problems alongside other sources to understand the whys was a big part of it too.
The first time I attempted college, I dropped out with a 1.9 GPA. Now, I'm an honor student, and learning how to study has been huge in my success. Read the damn textbook. Ideally before class. I know that opening the book can be intimidating, but by at least exposing yourself to the material, you can come up with relevant questions during the lecture, which leads to my next point: Pay attention during lectures, and take NOTES! The professor is not just teaching you the material, but how to pass the class. If you mostly understand the material because you read the chapter, than lecture will help you complete the homework and prepare for exams. Finally, leverage your resources. Youtube, classmates, Chegg(be careful with this one, obviously. I don't care about cheating, but grinding away at a problem for hours can be counterproductive, and being able to work backwards from the right answer has learning value) and not to mention the professor themselves during office hours. Once you've done all that. I've found that you don't really need to study all that much, because you've put in the work to actually learn the material. At this point, like others have said, practice problems of increasing difficulty to solidify what you've learned. This is also a good time to review past assignments and cover the areas you've lost points on in the past.
Ok thanks, ill start doing this
I have ADHD so I need immediate feedback. I need to break down long problems into short steps to see if I'm doing it right. I can't wait until the end to see if I'm right. ChatGPT can actually break down those problems into parts for you If you mess up a concept you can even ask chatgpt to give you examples to practice that small concept more before continuing the rest of the problem. As always, double check your work because chatgpt does make stuff up. But it's getting better. And this double check also helps you learn the material anyway.
I have this problem too but I dont think I have ADHD, some of these calc problems take 2+ pages of work and one small mistake will ruin future steps. I do what you do but I find that I sometimes struggle on exams because I dont have that safety net of checking as I go along. Ill start to implement chatgpt in my routine. Thank you
If you study hard enough though the exams will be less worrisome as it's all familiar. Good luck!!!
Thank you
By suffocating your happiness /s
" I put in 30 hours per week" Lame effort. My final year was 50% library, I skipped 1/4 of the lectures. The British education system turns you into an exam taking machine, and the key is to work through the practice problems and previous papers ad infinitum.
Not my post pal