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Mareena
I did study with people and I know it was one of the main reasons I passed. Personally, I like smaller groups (at most 4) where the people have a mutual respect and are equally committed to the goal of passing. It takes these things to not go off on each other while in this high stress situation. Also, every one in the group needs to bring their A game. Its not productive if everyone waits until the day of the study session to review and identify holes. Everyone needs to come to the study session with their questions already identified and an outline of the session needs to be nailed down. There's a lot of temptation to stop early or clown around, but no one really has time for that. An outline helps everyone stick to the script and come prepared.
3. Any good strategy you want to share?
Pun
: Probably heard this too many times, but prepare well and eat well and sleep well before quals. Write up notes of stuff that are hard to remember, and spend your last two days on it.
Becky
: Doing all the 312 problems I could find was very very helpful. Doing all of Kord's exams and making sure I knew how to do them was a must especially for the very short answer to make sure I had memorized what was needed. I was ready to derive tons for 106 but never had to on the test.
I recommend making sure you are all organized before January. I then went through each class ~5 days per class and condense the information as much as possible. This was more of a review and memorize time. I also review pset and exam problems for each class to make sure I could apply things.
John
: The two big changes I made between the first time and second time I took the test were 1) use flashcards for equations and basic concepts and 2) take practice tests much more seriously.
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If any quals-takers would like some envelopes to put tests in, or would like to borrow/take my note cards, first ones to come ask me for them have dibs. With the notecards I'd recommend making your own, because just making them is a good learning process, but if you want to see what I did or would rather just study mine I'd be happy to help.
Mareena
: BE ORGANIZED AND MAKE A SCHEDULE! This is not something you just jump into. There is a lot of material to learn and a lot of room to be stressed. You can prevent a lot of unnecessary stress if you are organized and prepared. Sounds cheezy but color coding things helps with organization.
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Another thing I don't think I expected was how emotionally draining studying for the qual is. Know yourself and make sure you work in a scheduled time to recharge. It has to be worked into the schedule or else it wont happen. Whether its working out, going on a date with your hunny, or reading a chapter in a book for leisure, you've got to recharge. This is a marathon of studying, not a sprint (okay, maybe for some people it was a sprint, but definitely not for me. I worked my butt off studying!) Do the things you need to do to keep your endurance up and your mind at peace. It can be done.
4. Things that did not work for you?
Becky
wish I started a few days or a week earlier to leave more room for down time, especially because my oral was early and I would have like to be able to rest my brain a bit more, so about 5 weeks before really get going
John
I think the main thing was not taking advantage of the practice tests.
In terms of taking the test, the thing that doesn't work is to panic. You will miss some questions. You will probably see something on 101 that you have never heard of before in your life. Don't worry about it. Like I said earlier, if you can write a bit about the concept. Maybe make a simplifying assumption. If you can't even do those things (101) just cut your losses and move on. 211 is going to be a LONG test, use the extra time you have saved to really knock that one out of the park, etc. "Don't panic" is a pretty cliche piece of advice, but it is surprising how easy it is to panic if you don't take advantage of the practice tests.
Mareena
Working in large groups. I found those setting were less focused and tended to break into smaller subgroups anyway. Four max was my limit.