But once you’ve made the choice to go back to school, figuring out the best way to study can be a challenge—especially if you’re trying to balance school and a career, or if it’s been a long time since you’ve stepped foot in a classroom. To help you out, we’ve come up with these four study tips to help you excel in your classes.
1. Organize Your Study Time Around Your Restorative Hygiene Courses
For those who will be studying while also working, organizing study times is important. You may study best in the mornings, in the afternoon on your lunch break, or in the evenings. Whichever time works best, make sure you set aside some time every day just for studying. Studying consistently every day over the course of your program will help you retain information better than only studying sporadically before tests or assignments. Taking a restorative dental hygiene diploma that offers evening and weekend classes will make it easier to organize your study time since you won’t have to worry about classes and work interfering with each other.
2. Find the Perfect Study Space for Focusing on Your Restorative Hygiene Diploma
Where you study has a big impact on how well you study. Your study area should be clean, tidy, and distraction-free. Working in a messy room or while the television is on is not going to help you retain information very well. Find a place where you feel you can focus on your studies best. That might be at home, in the library, or at your local cafe (caffeine, incidentally, has also been shown to improve alertness and attention).
3. Figure Out Which Learning Style Works Best For You
Everybody has their own way of learning. Some are visual learners, for example, while others prefer to read information. Make your preferred learning method work for you. If you learn best by listening, for instance, you could ask your instructor if you could record them in class and then play back that recording at home while you study. If you’re more of a hands-on learner (and many people are), you’ll appreciate the fact that much of what you’ll learn in restorative hygiene courses is through hands-on practice.
4. Taking Breaks Will Help You Better Retain What You Learn In Your Program
Studying and working at the same time can be hard and you might feel pressure to spend all of your free time hitting the books. But not taking breaks isn’t good for your mental health or for your studies. Take short breaks regularly as you study, as doing so will help you retain information better. And make sure you still schedule time for yourself during the week so that you can relax and reenergize. That way once you get back to your coursework you’ll feel motivated and ready to learn.
Are you interested in taking your career to the next level?
Contact the Canadian Academy of Dental Hygiene (CADH) today to learn how to become a restorative dental hygienist.
