Mental Health Matters Here Stress

Exam Stress

It is normal to feel anxious and nervous about exams, but the key is to put these nerves to positive use. Below are some helpful tips, resources, and people who can support you in the lead up to your exams.

Who Can I Speak To?

Your tutor

If you are feeling stressed about your upcoming exams, please talk to your tutor in the first instance who will be able to help you and offer you subject-specific support. They can also refer you for additional support at college if you would like this.

If you would like additional support with your learning, please contact the Learning Support Team on gss@activatelearning.ac.uk.

Intervention Progress Coach

You can also contact the Intervention Progress Coach team who offer specific modules on managing stress, getting organised and improving confidence. They may be able to offer you one-to-one or group support sessions. You can contact them by emailing ‘ipcXXX@activatelearning.ac.uk’ - replacing ‘XXX’ with your campus name. For example, if you are studying at Reading College you would email ipcreading@activatelearning.ac.uk , or if you are studying at Guildford College you would email ipcguildford@activatelearning.ac.uk.

Student Support and Safeguarding

If you’re really struggling with your mental health, the Student Support and Safeguarding Team are available to support you and signpost to support in college and in the community. You can contact them directly by emailing safe@activatelearning.ac.uk.

You can also self-refer to our Counselling Service who offer a confidential space to discuss your worries and concerns. You can self-refer or ask your tutor to refer you, to the following people:

Surrey: Renuka Ahluwalia

Online, Oxford and Blackbird Leys: Jan Jones

Banbury: Christina Howkins-Griffiths

Reading: Gill Brooks

Bracknell: Gill Brooks

Looking After Yourself

Watch the video on our Top 10 Wellbeing Tips and Tricks to help keep you mentally healthy during exam time.

You can find out more information about anxiety, its signs and symptoms, and strategies for dealing with it here: Mental Health Matters Here

Accessibility Transcript

Preparation

Preparation and staying organised are key to success.

Test Taking Strategy Tips. See transcript for alt text

Accessibility Transcript

Here are some daily and weekly revision planners to help you plan and stay on track. Click to open and download the daily and weekly revision planner

The Learning Support team has lots of resources on ALO Learning Support: Support Services (instructure.com) and information on how to contact them. A particular resource “Helping you develop good study skills” may be helpful if this is your first time revising. Helping you develop good study skills (1).pptx (sharepoint.com)

Practical Tips

In the week before your exam, make sure you ask your tutor which room you will be sitting your exam in. Also, if you know or think you should have exam access arrangements, please speak to your tutor to confirm these are in place. If you still have questions after speaking to your tutor, please speak to Group Learning Support by emailing: gss@activatelearning.ac.uk.

Leave yourself enough time to get to your exam - plan to arrive 10-15 minutes early. Plan your route ahead and think about a back-up plan, for example, if your public transport is delayed or cancelled.

Make sure you eat a healthy breakfast. Don’t worry if you forget or run out of time, we have a Breakfast Club available on site – Between 8:15 – 9:00am students (wearing their student lanyard) can select one FREE breakfast option at Recharge by asking for “breakfast club offer”. Option 1 - Standard cup of tea, americano coffee or bottled water and 2 slices toast with spread/jam. Option 2 - Standard cup of tea, americano coffee or bottled water and cornflakes/rice krispies with milk (dairy/soya available).

At some of our campuses we will have Pets as Therapy dogs which you can sit with to calm your nerves. Speak to your Student Enrichment Officer or Head of Student Experience for more information about where they might be on the day.

What To Expect

Remember

There are items to bring with you and items you cannot have on you, so please make sure these are removed and placed in your bag before the exam.

To view the list of items, click on the below:

Items to bring with you:

Items you cannot have on you:

Items to bring with you

Remember to bring the following with you:

Student ID Card or other form of ID e.g., driving license.

Water bottle (with no label on it)

Clear pencil case

Black pens

A pencil

A ruler measuring in cm and mm

A calculator

A protractor

A compass

A rubber

Dont worry too much if you forget anything, our invigilators have a small number of spares.

Items you cannot have on you

Please remember that you cannot have the following items on you, so please make sure these are removed and placed in your bag before the exam:

Mobile phones and other electronic devices not allowd.png

Watches including smart watches

Earphones or EarPods

Bags, coats, hats

Food

Correction tape or fluid

Revision notes

What does the start of an exam look like:

We know that “fear of the unknown” can sometimes feel scarier than the actual exam!

Here’s a short reminder about what the start of an exam looks like. Click on play to start the video

Accessibility Transcript

Further Information and Support

Mind is a mental health charity who are focused on providing support, resources, and information to help people to understand their mental health. They have lots of resources on exam stress including: What is exam stress, how might exam stress affect me, and tips for coping with exam stress. This includes guidance on what to do before, during, and after exams to manage your stress levels and to take good care of yourself.

Information for 11-18 year olds – Exam stress - Mind

Ofqual is the department within the Government who are responsible for regulating qualifications, exams, and tests in England. They have worked with experts at Liverpool John Moore’s University to create the following guide on how to cope with exam pressure.

They cover lots of useful information including how to reduce negative beliefs, how best to plan your revision, and how to control physical reactions to anxiety.

Coping with exam pressure - a guide for students - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

YoungMinds is a charity supporting young people with their mental health. They have produced a guide of information on exam stress, self-care, and how to deal with your results if they aren’t what you had hoped for. You can access this resource here:

Exam Stress | How To Deal with Exam Stress | YoungMinds

They have also produced a resource for parents and carers, which you may like to share with loved ones so they know different ways of supporting you through your exams.

Exam Time & Exam Stress | Parents Guide To Support | YoungMinds

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