Studying during the summer months can be a challenge. With the stress of impending exams and a lot of distractions, it can be easy to switch off from your studies and your wellbeing. Brian Murphy outlines three simple tips to help you stay focused during this time.
Many things can distract you from keeping your focus and harm your wellbeing in the process this summer. Here are a few tips to make sure you keep both in tip-top shape.
Plan
You need to prepare a detailed plan for each day, week, and month. The old motto of ‘fail to plan, plan to fail’ comes to mind. The key to a successful plan is to make it realistic yet stretching, and adaptable. Here are some suggestions:
- Break your day into three slots: morning, afternoon, and evening. Focus your morning on technical content, your afternoon on practicing questions and applying the technical content reviewed in the morning, and, your evening on an overall review of material for the day.
- Take breaks. You must designate time during the day for exercise, activities, and meal breaks too.
- Identify the areas and topics that are not your core strengths and put considerable focus on these in your plan.
- Use the competency statement and learning journal as the anchor documents to ensure that each area of the course is covered in your plan.
- Aim to cover each area of the course at least twice.
- Don’t leave out areas/aspects of the course. Everything on the course is examinable.
- Set aside a Friday afternoon as a ‘catch up’ day.
You may not get everything on your plan done in a day, but be sure to review your progress against the plan at the end of each day and week, and re-plan, re-focus as required.
Find balance
It’s important to balance your time between studying technical content and exam approach/past exam paper practice. In preparing your plan, you need to consider three aspects of study:
- Technical material review (you may need to revert to CAP1/CAP2 material);
- Case studies; and
- Past exam papers.
It’s important to get the balance between these three correct. It is pointless attempting case studies and past exam papers if you haven’t studied the relevant technical material and content.
When attempting case studies and past exam papers, focus on applying the knowledge you have assumed during your review of the study materials. When practicing past exam papers, focus on your time management. You will have approximately 25 minutes per indicator in the exam, so you need to practice questions under this time pressure.
Maintain your wellbeing
Finally, and most importantly, don’t lose focus on maintaining your wellbeing. There is so much written about wellbeing that a rehash isn’t needed here. However, the following areas are particularly important as you embark on the summer of study:
- Physical exercise. Get out for regular exercise during the day, whether that is walking, cycling, running – whatever you enjoy doing most.
- Maintain hydration. Mild dehydration can impair cognitive function and can lead to difficulties with concentration and focus.
- Nourish yourself properly. Continue to eat healthily and treat yourself periodically.
- Relax. Ensure your plan for the coming weeks includes non-study activities such as listening to podcasts or watching Netflix. Allocate time in your plan for this and stick to it, so that these distractions don’t take over your study plan for the next two months.
- Sleep! It is so important that you maintain a regular sleeping pattern during study leave and don’t get into bad habits of late nights and late mornings. Try sticking to a typical day as you would while working.
- Socialise. Talk to your colleagues and friends who are also on study leave. Everyone is in the same position, so focus on motivating one another. Also, socialise with family members and friends not in the depths of study leave. They will bring a light relief to talking about indicators for the summer.
If you are experiencing stress or anxiety, reach out to someone – a family member, colleague, or friend. The Institute is also here to help – CA Support is a dedicated service that provides wellbeing and mental health supports at all stages of your career, including now as you embark on a summer of study. The fully-trained team is available to provide listening support, professional counselling, health coaching, and lots more. Check out
the CA Support website for more information.
The run-up to exams can be intense and feel all-consuming at times. It can be useful to remember that this period of your professional life is laying the foundations for a long, diverse, and interesting career!
Brian Murphy is Partner, Consumer & Technology Business Audit, at Deloitte, and lectures on the FAE Core and Audit Elective at Chartered Accountants Ireland. Brian is also a past Chair of Chartered Accountants Ireland Leinster Society, and the current Chair of CA Support.
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