What are the secret study techniques that top students don't want you to know about?

 I remember my dad used to say, “there is no substitute for hard work”.

That statement would pass right over my 18 year old head and I’d be back with my friends partying or on the sports field. Anywhere that didn’t resemble a classroom or a desk…

Until one day I failed university and was faced with a cross road. Drop out, or hang in there and decide to “work hard”.

I chose the latter. Two years of “hard work” and I ended up graduating with top marks and a much brighter future.

A decade on, and those two years of hard work have had a large impact on where I am today.

I've since met dozens of top students from all over the world, and there is a common theme: They take their studying seriously and put in the effort.

There really are no secrets.

They spend time to learn the material, they ask questions and take notes in class, they go to office hours, they commit information to memory, they know the marking criteria, they do the practice tests, and they consistently improve themselves.

Of-course there’s some students that are highly intelligent that don’t need to work as hard.

But for the majority, there really is no substitute for hard work.