This is how I used to study. I would get different colour highlighters. As I read through a chapter, I would highlight important parts with one colour, the very important parts with another colour and if there are definitions that I needed to memorize, I would use yet another colour. After I finish read the chapter, I would browse throught the chapter and look at the stuff I highlighted. If you are limited for time, perhaps you can just browse the very important stuff afterwards....for me it seemed to help if I did this on the morning of the exam itself. Also if you have to memorize a list of things, use the first letter of each word and try to form a word in your mind, that way you'll remember the first letter of every word in the list. The word can be a silly word - not a real word because this is not always possible, just something that when you pronounce it and spell it, you can easily remember your list. Whenever I got desperate, I tried to remember the page and how it looked, the way the words were, to see if I can remember it easily. Think positively, know that you can accomplish what you set out to do. The mind is very powerful and can help us actualize what we think about strongly.