Creating and reviewing flashcards that summarize critical concepts is a terrific method of making your GRE studying more efficient and helping you to be a better test-taker. Use key concepts from your notes to make flashcards. This provides you with yet another chance to think about what you’ve learned and put it into your own words, both of which are proven to help with knowledge retention.

A great part about flashcards is that they can be used almost anywhere. For example, if you take public transportation to and from work, you can use that time to review your flashcards. Or if you’re waiting in line at the grocery store, take out your flashcards and give yourself a 2-minute quiz. You’ll undoubtedly discover that there are several opportunities to fit in “quick-hit” flashcard study sessions throughout your day, and believe me when I say that they add up! You can add an extra 20 minutes to your daily study time by fitting in five minutes here and 10 minutes there. Over the course of a week, you’d fit in an extra 2 hours and 20 minutes of GRE studying!

Some students prefer to use traditional paper flashcards, while others prefer digital flashcards. Whatever format you select, make sure to use your flashcards as frequently as possible. Shuffle the deck or randomize your cards before each use to add a new level of difficulty. Your brain will have to work a little harder to remember the material if you reorder the cards each time you study them, and your retention will improve.

Keep in mind that the number of flashcards you use will increase as you proceed through your GRE study plan. So, to make flashcard study more efficient, divide your cards into two piles: one for concepts you’ve mastered and another for concepts you haven’t. Naturally, you’ll want to look at the “not mastered” pile more often than the “mastered” pile. However, as we’ll see next, you won’t want to forget about what you’ve already learned, so be sure to look at your “mastered” pile every so often.

Warmest regards,

Scott Woodbury-Stewart
Founder & CEO, Target Test Prep