Managing Exam Stress

Exam season can be a challenging time for students, with stress and anxiety often accompanying the pressure to perform well. Some stress can be helpful, keeping you alert and motivated. But too much can have impact on your sleep, concentration, mood and even your physical health. We know how overwhelming exam season can be, and this is why we’re here with honest advice and simple strategies to help you feel confident and prepared.

What is Exam Stress and Why Do So Many Students Experience It?

Exam stress is the mental and emotional pressure students feel in the lead-up to or during exams. At any level of exams, whether this be GCSEs, A-Levels, or even university exams, it is incredibly common – and totally normal!

There are many different signs of exam stress that will vary from person to person, however, some common signs include:

-              Racing thoughts or anxiety

-              Trouble sleeping

-              Changes in appetite

-              Headaches or stomach aches

-              Feeling overwhelmed, panicked, or low

Knowing how to manage exam stress is a key part of staying healthy and performing your best.

There are many practical and proven ways to help manage exam stress, but here are our top 5 at Young Careers…

1.        Create a Revision Routine that Works for You

A structured plan can help to reduce uncertainty and make large tasks feel manageable. It also helps your brain learn more effectively over time – this technique is called spaced repetition.

Spaced repetition is done by breaking down subjects into smaller topics (e.g. ‘Romeo and Juliet: Key Themes’ vs. ‘English Literature’) and then planning them out in a weekly planner. This helps to provide a clear structure of your revision and can help to ensure you cover all your necessary topics. By scheduling in sessions to review what you’ve already covered, you’ll be able to see the progress you’ve made in your revision.

It's important to remember to keep it flexible. If something takes longer than scheduled, adjust your plan. Don’t aim for perfection but aim for progress.

2.        Prioritise Sleep, Nutrition, and Movement

Your brain needs the right fuel and rest to perform. Lack of sleep and poor nutrition can increase cortisol, making it harder to think clearly or retain information.

Sticking to a regular bedtime, even on weekends, and eating ‘brain foods’, such as oily fish, berries, eggs, and leafy greens, can help to reduce the stress hormone and enhance your brain’s performance.

Daily exercise, even if it’s just for 15 minutes, has also been found to help boost memory and focus, and this can really help to maximise your brain’s performance when revising and during exams.

3.        Challenge Negative Thinking with Positive Self-Talk

Your thoughts can have significant impacts on your emotions. Negative self-talk increases anxiety and lowers motivation. By replacing these thoughts you can help to improve our confidence and performance.

Here’s a method we find useful:

1.        Notice negative thoughts – e.g. ‘I’ll never remember all of this’

2.        Pause and ask yourself, ‘Is this true or helpful’

3.        Replace the thought with something realistic – e.g. ‘I might not know everything I need to know now, but this is part of the process’

4.        Reach Out

Talking about how you feel reduces stress and makes problems feel more manageable.

You're not the only one who will be feeling stressed over exams; talking to friends going through the same thing, parents/carers and teachers at school can help you to understand where your stress is coming from and make it easier to take on your revision step by step.

5.        Shift Your Mindset: At the end of the day your grades aren’t everything

Putting too much pressure on yourself can cause ‘catastrophic thinking’. Reframing your goals builds emotional resilience.

It’s also important to remind yourself that there are multiple paths to success, such as college, university, apprenticeships, gap years etc. Throughout the exam process, you are building skills (i.e. time management, persistence, and focus) that will last you well into the workplace and further.

Your exam results aren’t everything to future employers and there is an increasing focus on soft skills, including communication, teamwork, creativity and resilience. These aren’t measured by exam scores but can be equally as valuable.

There’s a lot to deal with when it comes to exams, and exam stress is incredibly real. However, with the right tools, support and mindset you can help to minimise the impact of exam stress on you as an individual.

Progress is so much more important than perfection. You don’t need to get every answer right. What’s most important is that you show up for yourself, even if it is in small ways. There’s no point pushing through exhaustion and taking a break when you feel like this is a great idea. It may not feel like it in the moment, but every small ste