Sixteen-year-old Maduafokwa Egoagwuagwu Agnes, a student of Louisville Girls High School who emerged as the overall best candidate in the 2020 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) with a remarkable score of 365 out of 400, has shared the practical study habits that powered her success.
Key Study Habits from the 2020 Overall Best UTME Candidate
Speaking with journalists in Lagos, Agnes explained that serving as the Assistant Head Girl at her secondary school motivated her to set a strong academic example for younger students. Rather than relying on last-minute cramming, she emphasized consistency and adequate rest:
- Start Preparing Early from Day One: Agnes noted that if you study consistently from the very beginning of the term, there is no need to panic or "burn the midnight oil" the night before an exam.
- Prioritize Sleep Over All-Nighters: While many students stay awake all night reading when they should be sleeping, Agnes stressed that getting proper sleep is essential for memory retention.
- Study in Intervals with Breaks: Reading too much at once without breaks leads to "fast reading" where you forget what you studied. Studying in focused intervals with planned breaks and proper rest helps information stick.
- Why She Chose Engineering: Agnes, who excels in Mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics, encouraged more young women to pursue Engineering, noting that the field is about creativity, problem-solving, and putting things in order rather than gender.
If you want to build the same steady, day-by-day preparation habit for your upcoming UTME, start practicing past questions in timed intervals on the Mentra JAMB CBT app, available on both Android and iOS.
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Every study guide, syllabus analysis, and timing breakdown is cross-checked against official examination criteria (JAMB UTME, POST-UTME, and WAEC) by subject matter specialists.
