Cramming is an alluring but risky study strategy. Let me explain. By the time students get to college, they probably have a lot of experience cramming for exams and likely have a good record of success using it as a study strategy. By cramming, I mean delaying exam preparation until the last possible moment and then studying material intensively. I do not mean studying ahead of time and then intensifying study just before the exam. Cramming is waiting until the last minute to study; it is not studying up until the last minute. It is often the result of procrastination, poor planning, or prioritizing other activities over studying, but multiple studies of student study habits show that a sizeable number of students see it as a useful study strategy that they employ voluntarily, even without external demands and pressures (Hora & Oleson, 2017; McIntyre & Munson, 2008; Theobald et al., 2021; Vacha & McBride, 1993).
