Even with all of the study tips provided in this guide, there may be times when you need some additional help to prepare for a big exam or finish an important project. Luckily, there are many resources available both in person and online that can provide valuable information and insights to help you succeed in all of your academic pursuits.
Top Ten Resources
- Your School’s Tutoring Center – Just about every school offers some kind of tutoring or academic support services, usually at no additional charge. These services can include one-on-one tutoring with a peer or teaching assistant, group study sessions, writing assistance, and more. If you are struggling in a specific class, or feel that your study time is more productive when you have help, check out your school’s tutoring center and see what services they offer that may benefit you.
- Study Stack – This site is an online archive of user-created flashcards and study games on a huge range of topics which you can use to self-quiz through your browser or on your smartphone. You can also use the site to create your own flashcards; keep them private, or shared them with the world. The site is free, but you can upgrade to a paid Pro account for an ad-free experience. Topics include medicine, math, history, languages, and standardized tests, but be aware that because the content is user generated, there is no guarantee that answers are accurate.
- Quizlet – Access more than 300 million user-generated study sets on nearly every conceivable topic on this study aid website. Study sets include flashcards, quizzes, and games that allow you to vary how you study. Quizlet’s tools are available online or via Android and iOS apps. They are also now offering premium study sets created by experts in the subject.
- MIT Open Courseware – Need a refresher course, or want to prepare for an upcoming class? Thanks to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Open Courseware program, you can study the same content as MIT students free from anywhere in the world. There are full introductions to dozens of subjects, as well as study guides and video lectures. With no financial obligations, it is an affordable way to help you review or learn more about subjects that interest you.
- Information Literacy – This website, developed by the University of Idaho, will help introduce you to the skills you need to successfully navigate the increasingly deep ocean of information available on the Internet. These skills are often neglected in schools and taken for granted by those who have gained them. Information Literacy is a guide for doing the type of research that will be essential to your success in college, including how to best locate, evaluate, and utilize the data you collect on the Internet.
- Project Gutenberg – Named for Johannes Gutenberg, the inventor of movable-type printing in the West, this website collects public domain books and makes them available in a variety of digital formats, including audio books. This site can be vital if your course assigns an unusual or rare text, or if you just want to save some money in your literature courses. You can access the texts online, or download them to your Kindle or e-reader.
- Shakespeare Online – William Shakespeare is the most commonly studied writer in the Western canon, and when the inevitable Shakespeare course comes along, this website is here to help. Shakespeare Online hosts all of the writer’s works, including his sonnets, along with selections of quotes, analysis of his plots and themes, and all the additional Shakespeare information you can imagine.
- Purplemath – If you are in need of additional help in your math classes, Purplemath has you covered. This website, created by college math teacher Elizabeth Stapel, offers a number of conversationally written self-study lessons in different topics from college algebra to trigonometry, designed to help students get a handle on complex mathematical concepts. Purplemath also provides advice on how to avoid trick questions, along with resources for free online tutoring.
- Open Culture – Open Culture’s mission is to collect and curate the best educational resources on the Internet, including online courses, ebooks, media files, and more. The materials on Open Culture are free, so this is an excellent site to check before purchasing textbooks and other course materials.
- CliffsNotes – Best known for their literature guides on works by everyone from Aeschylus to Emile Zola, CliffsNotes has published hundreds of comprehensive study guides on a range of topics, including physical and social sciences, languages, and math. CliffsNotes guides are designed to supplement, not replace, your assigned reading, by clarifying concepts and terms in the material. They also offer prep guides for post-college exams like the GMAT and Praxis test.