Disparities Between Reported and Actual Study Habits and Perceptions Among First Year Occupational Therapy Graduate Students

Studying for exams forms a significant part of the occupational therapy graduate school experience. While successful completion of exams is a central focus for students, little time is devoted to explicitly teaching new graduate students how to most effectively study. Instead, when they enter their occupational therapy programs, students experience a steep learning curve, and often rely on previous habits or trial and error to discover the most efficacious study strategies. The purpose of this study was to examine the study behaviors, habits, and beliefs of new graduate students to gain insight into the prevalence of use of various study strategies. Further, the study investigated the use of active study strategies and self-regulated learning approaches connected to studying. First year occupational therapy students (n = 64) completed intake and exit questionnaires, which were distributed at the start and end of their first semester in the program. The surveys focused on study plans, beliefs, and actions. Findings suggested that students intended to use more study strategies than they actually used. Results also indicated that students relied more on passive than active study strategies. Although passive study strategies were prevalent, participants believed in the efficacy of active study strategies, indicating a disconnect between intention and behavior. Explicit instruction in active study strategies may be beneficial to students so that they can more effectively use approaches they, and the evidence base, believe to be most effective.