By Community Correspondant Lucy F. J. Pope.

Hearts racing, palms sweating, worrying about whether or not any of your fifty different black pens will run out or even work- these are all symptoms of exam stress. These things are inevitable; it does not matter how much revision has been done, or how many flash cards have been made, studies show that 85% of students feel increasing stressed around exam time, with stress levels even higher if is the candidate’s first time around.

But do not worry. Of course revision is key (otherwise all the learning time in school has been a waste), but the most effective way to manage your stress is to have self confidence- if you believe you can, you can. Ways to build up your self confidence include exam preparation and revision techniques that are particularly helpful for you; if you learn better in lists then creating mind maps, ignore the latter as it will be a waste of precious time. Master the material, and the rest will come naturally in the exam. Finally, stay calm- it is completely irrelevant if other people have finished writing, as it is your work that will get you the grade.

When asked about January module results, students who felt that they were “calm, collected and confident” in the exam did well and achieved their predicted grades. In contrast, other students who believed their revision to be “insufficient” and who “panicked” in the examination did not do so well. Reflecting on this, if revision stress is managed properly through correct preparation and emotional control, success appears to follow soon after.

For helpful exam stress-curing tips and tricks, visit http://www.wikihow.com/Stay-Calm-During-a-Test