All students want to excel, but sometimes distractions complicate the process. If you want to improve your academic performance and don’t know where to start, don’t despair.

Being a successful student requires commitment, focus and discipline. Nothing comes easy, so you will have to work a little harder every day to become a better student.

How to become a successful student

1. Get organised

To be a successful student, the first thing you need to do is get organised. If there is disorder in your assignments, you will also have disorder in your thoughts and actions.

We recommend that you keep an agenda, either virtual or physical, where you write down everything about your activities. When to study, dates of upcoming exams, pending assignments… This will help you to set aside time for each activity and complete them on time.

2. Prioritise your assignments

Try to complete complex assignments ahead of schedule and study for complex exams well in advance. Try to organise yourself according to the level of difficulty of the assignments and their due date.

If you know that some subjects are more difficult to understand than others, allow more study time for that area to avoid delays.

3. Study timetables

Although it may seem tedious, a study timetable will help you to be a successful student; it will also allow you to determine precise study and break times. Your study days can be between one and two hours, depending on your ability to concentrate.

During these study breaks, stay away from distractions. Forget about social networks, video games and mobile phones. It will be difficult at first, but you will get into the habit of doing it regularly.

4. Attention in class

One of the best tips for you to be a successful student is to pay attention in class. Yes, it may be a silly recommendation, but more than 50% of students are not attentive to what the teacher is saying or explaining.

This is clearly reflected in their performance and grades. If you pay attention in class, not only will you understand the content, but you will have the opportunity to make notes that will help you study later.

5. Review lectures

During your study time, you need to take time to review your lectures, especially those subjects that are more difficult for you to understand. This way, you will be better able to participate in class and clarify your doubts with other classmates or with the teacher.

Being a successful student also means fully understanding your classes and actively participating in them. And for this you need to review beforehand.

6. Spend time reading

Reading is a habit that every successful student practices. We’re not just talking about reading science or maths books, but any kind of reading, whether it’s romance novels, mysteries or even books on mechanics or gardening.

The important thing is that you can encourage this activity, as it will help you to expand your vocabulary, as well as learn about new topics.

7. Identify your study technique

This is one of the most important tips for being a successful student. There is no point in spending two hours studying at home when you are not really understanding or being productive.

Not everyone learns in the same way, some people are more visual and others auditory. This is why you should identify which study technique is favourable to you, the most common ones are:

• Mind mapping
• Underlining
• Test
• Study worksheets
• Watching explanatory videos
• Summaries
• Questions and answers

All these study techniques are of great help in understanding or memorising information. As a good student, identify which one suits you, and apply it during your study time.

8. Study space

Having a specific place to study is extremely important. Your brain will associate this space with study and will be more willing to concentrate and pay attention.

It is also important that you can keep this study environment organised and clean, as clutter can lead to anxiety and distraction.

We recommend that you have all the materials you will need at hand because every time you get up to look for something, it will take you 10 minutes to regain the concentration you already had.

Go beyond what you are taught

A good student not only gets good grades, but also dares to research and go beyond what he or she learns in the classroom.

You can look for other books or sources on the internet. This way, you will not only learn more but also have a better command of the subject.

To become a successful student you only need effort, perseverance and dedication. Good grades don’t just fall from the sky. You will need to dedicate a lot of time to study and be willing to keep learning and improving along the way.