How to Cram for an Exam in 24 Hours
If you are reading this, you are probably in panic mode. Maybe you procrastinated until the very last minute. Maybe “NEPA” took the light for three days straight. Or maybe, let’s be honest, you just didn’t feel like reading until the timetable slapped you in the face.
It happens. I’ve been there, staring at a mountain of handouts while the clock ticks loudly in the background.
But here is the good news: you can still salvage this. It’s not going to be pretty, and you won’t get 100%, but you can pass. You just need a strategy. You need to know exactly how to cram for an exam in 24 hours without crashing and burning.
This isn’t the time for long lectures or “I told you so.” This is emergency surgery for your grades. Here is how we do it.
Step 1: The “Triage” Method (Pick Your Battles)
The biggest mistake students make when cramming? They open Chapter 1 and try to read everything.
Stop. Do not do that.
If you try to read the whole textbook in 24 hours, you will remember nothing. You need to be ruthless. In medicine, “triage” is when doctors decide who needs help first. You need to do the same with your topics.
Grab a piece of paper and divide your topics into three lists:
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The “Must-Knows”: These are the core topics. The ones the lecturer kept shouting about in class.
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The “Maybe-Knows”: Topics that might come out but aren’t huge.
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The “Ignore” Pile: Everything else.
Focus 80% of your energy on the “Must-Knows.” Forget the introduction. Forget the history. Go straight to the definitions, the formulas, and the key points. As we discussed in our guide on how to prepare for an exam in a short time, prioritization is the only way to beat the clock.
Step 2: Hunt for Past Questions (The Nigerian Cheat Code)
If you ignore everything else in this article, please listen to this one point.
Nigerian examiners love repeating questions.
Whether it is WAEC, JAMB, or a university semester exam, questions get recycled. It’s a fact. Instead of reading a boring textbook for 5 hours, spend 2 hours solving the last 5 years of past questions.
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Look for patterns. Is there a specific theory they ask about every year?
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Memorize the answers to the frequent questions.
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Check the JAMB IBASS or your school’s library for archives.
Often, you will walk into the exam hall and see a question you just practiced the night before. That feeling? It is pure joy.
Step 3: Use the “Blurting” Technique (Active Recall)
Most students study by staring at their notes and highlighting things. This feels like work, but it’s actually lazy. Your brain isn’t fighting to remember anything; it’s just recognizing words.
To really learn how to cram for an exam in 24 hours, you need “Active Recall.”
I call this the “Blurting Method”:
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Read a section for 15 minutes. Focus hard.
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Close the book. Hide your notes.
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Grab a blank sheet of paper and write down everything you can remember. Scribble, draw diagrams, use Pidgin if you have to. Just get it out.
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Open the book and check what you missed.
The stuff you missed? That is what you study next. This hurts your brain more than passive reading, but it forces the information to stick. It helps you build effective study habits that actually work under pressure.
Step 4: Fuel and Sleep (Avoid the “Heavy Eba” Trap)
I know you want to pull an “all-nighter.” You want to drink three cans of energy drink and stay awake until 7 AM.
Don’t do it.
Your brain needs sleep to move information from short-term memory to long-term memory. If you don’t sleep, you will get into the exam hall and your mind will go blank. It happens every time.
Aim for at least 3 to 4 hours of sleep. It’s not enough, but it’s better than zero.
Also, watch what you eat. This is not the time for pounded yam and egusi. Heavy food makes you sluggish. Stick to light meals. Hydrate like crazy. Water keeps your brain sharp. Remember, health is better than wealth—or in this case, health is better than an extra hour of useless staring at a book.
Step 5: The Exam Morning Strategy
The morning of the exam is psychological warfare.
You will see students standing by the door holding big textbooks, arguing about complex topics. They will try to confuse you. They will say things like, “Did you read that handout on Quantum Mechanics?”
Stay away from them.
These people are panic-spreaders. If you listen to them, you will lose confidence in what you do know. Put on your headphones. Listen to music. Review your summary sheet one last time.
According to research from Harvard University, high stress blocks memory retrieval. So, keep your heart rate down. Tell yourself, “I have done what I can.”
Final Thoughts
Look, cramming isn’t the best way to get a First Class. We all know that. But sometimes life happens, and you just need to survive to fight another day.
Follow these steps. Focus on the big topics. sleep a little. You are smarter than you think, and you can pull this off.
Have you ever pulled off a crazy exam miracle? Tell me your story in the comments below!
