Many college students believe cramming for tests is not a productive or successful way to learn and retain new information.

Cramming is what happens when students try to memorize all the information they think will be on the test, usually in the final hours or minutes before the exam.

Wendy Nguyen, social work master’s program student, thinks students can cram for exams but that it does not work for everyone.

“Those who cram maybe have the brain to do it [successfully],” Nguyen said.

Nguyen believes most students can recall information better if they absorb it at a pace that allows for understanding of concepts and connections.

“I would say study over time,” said Nguyen. “Every student is different.”

Yue Pheng, an undeclared major, prefers not to cram for exams because the information can be overwhelming.

“Little by little,” Pheng said of the way he takes in new information.

Pheng gave an example of a professor giving one lecture for the entire semester containing all the information a student would need to know to pass a final exam. He believes study habits follow the same concept that a student cannot retain all that information in one cram session.

“With cramming, you don’t really learn,” said Pheng.

Dietetics major Francisco Barjas also feels cramming does not benefit a student in the long run.

“Study over time,” said Barjas. “When you cram, you don’t get time to process information.”

For students taking classes in the field they plan to build a career in, it might be helpful for them to learn information in a strategic way, so that information is not forgotten after the tests are over.

In an article called “How to retain 90% of everything you learn,” author Sean D’Souza compares ways in which people learn and retain new information.

D’Souza wrote that people only remember a combined 15 percent of information they absorbed in a lecture or while reading. However, when people teach others the information they have learned, they retain about 90 percent of it to long-term memory.

In the article, group discussions come in at third place (50 percent retention rate) as a method that is more likely to increase information retention.

Many students at Sacramento State have engaged in group studying, whether voluntarily or as part of a class requirement. However, the opinions of study groups seem to reflect that students find them useful not just in passing their classes but expanding their own knowledge.

Barjas feels group study sessions are helpful because if a student does not understand some information, their group mates may be able to provide an explanation they can relate to.

Nguyen also thinks that study groups can help produce better information circulation and retention in students who use them.

“We’re learning from each other-more ideas,” said Nguyen.