During test season, many children wait until the very last minute to prepare for their exams. Last minute preparation correlates with less sleep. Studies cite that amount of sleep can affect grades.

For many students, staying up all night cramming for exams causes them to be fatigued and less motivated in the morning, which correlates with lower test scores. As well as less sleep, children need to prepare better with their scholastics in terms of time management.

Test taking skills will be one of the most important factors to college success. As many high school students transition into the highly intellectual world of college, they are accustomed to hours of cramming before a test. Some would achieve actual success from these poor studying techniques.

A scientific report states that college students who did not wake up or go to bed at consistent times everyday were more likely to have lower grades. Although studies can’t definitively say that less sleep correlates with lower test scores, students who sleep less may have other bad habits besides from poor sleep habits.

“Students in 10th – 12th grade will get less than 7 hours of sleep a night,” concluded a survey from around 1,000 parents. Although there are limitations since parents had to voluntarily be chosen, the research is still relevant and supported by other scientific studies. “But the importance of sleep doesn’t end there. So, other factors like sleep timing and like sleep regularity are important to provide a more holistic perspective that includes all these dimensions of sleep health,” from CNN. These factors are very important to grades because as a student, when your sleep schedule is messed up, you wake up lethargic and are less motivated during a day in school. Your circadian rhythm is messed up as a result of these disruptions in your sleep pattern. Set a bedtime for yourself, and stay more organized when planning your time with activities.

In order to be successful, set a bedtime for yourself and limit the time you waste on your phone and socializing. Another important thing is to manage your time so you’re not cramming to study the night before. Study a section a night if a test is on Friday and you’ve known about it since Monday. These tips will help build the habits that will help propel you into a successful college freshman year.