✓ Start from the syllabus, not the notes. Midterms and final exams often cover 5–7 weeks of material across lectures, readings, and problem sets. Rebuild a topic list from the syllabus first, then weight study time toward what's been emphasized in lecture and assignments rather than reviewing everything equally.
 

✓ Work old exams and problem sets under real time pressure. Many professors reuse question styles from textbook test banks or post previous midterms. Working through these — timed, without notes — reveals which concepts are shaky and how the exam is actually structured, which is often different from the textbook's presentation.

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✓ Build a formula and concept sheet, then stop using it. Condensing the course onto one page forces active recall of what matters. The real value comes from being able to reproduce it from memory afterward, not from having it as a reference during study sessions.

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✓ Use office hours and TAs before the week of the exam. Professors and TAs can clarify exactly what's fair game and flag common misconceptions from past terms — information that isn't in any textbook and is hardest to get once office hours get crowded in exam week.

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✓ Study in the format the exam will take. If it's closed-book, practice without notes. If it allows a formula sheet, practice using only that sheet. Matching practice conditions to test conditions is one of the most consistent predictors of exam performance in learning research.

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✓ Protect sleep in the final 48 hours. Sleep deprivation impairs working memory and reasoning speed — the exact skills a midterm tests — more than an extra few hours of review typically helps.