You’re sitting in a hall. Tables are arranged in multiple single-file lines, with massive gaps between them. This is the first time you and your classmates are gathered together in silence. Usually, everyone’s chatting away or goofing around.
Thump. Thump. Thump. What’s that sound? Thump. Thump. Thump. Oh, that’s just the sound of your heartbeat. The hall is so quiet you can hear it.
Click. Click. Click. Someone’s playing with their pen. Irritating, but there isn’t much you can do. Besides, you’re too busy recalling what you studied last night for six hours straight.
“You can start now,” says the invigilator. You start sweating. Your breathing starts to increase. Then, the thing you fear happens — you blank out.
Cue test anxiety.
Alyssa Indrajaya has always found those feelings interesting. So interesting that she decided to pursue a PhD in Psychology at the National University of Singapore.
Indrajaya completed a diploma in psychology from De Anza College in 2021. Source: Alyssa Indrajaya
How to cope with test anxiety, according to a PhD in Psychology
Test anxiety is something almost everyone experiences; there’s no way to avoid it, no matter how well you’ve studied for it. Even Indrajaya and I are familiar with it, and just remembered how it feels sends shivers down our pain — never again.
A study found that 44% of students who studied reported feeling nervous during tests, and 66.2% experienced some level of anxiety during examinations, even though they were well prepared. Fifteen percent of the students indicated that they were depressed while taking the exam.
Indrajaya wants to find a way to get rid of the feeling by developing better learning strategies through cognitive psychology; even if she can’t, she hopes it will at least improve how students approach exams.
“My psychology PhD focuses specifically on learning strategies,” she shares. “And would self-testing, self-questioning, and teaching others what you have help lessen the load of test anxiety and make you feel more confident?”
This is the straightforward question Indrajaya wanted to answer: Can certain learning strategies lower test anxiety and help students remember better?
Indrajaya was born and raised in Indonesia. Source: Alyssa Indrajaya
Making test anxiety less of a “monster” to defeat
With the results of her study, Indrajaya feels one step closer to her dream.
“Growing up, I always wanted to help people — that’s why I studied psychology,” she says. “Over time, that became a goal to help students learn better.”
Not all test anxiety is harmful. Indrajaya explains that a little bit of anxiety can actually help you concentrate.
“But when the levels get too high, that’s when it becomes a problem,” she says. “You can blank out before the test, start laughing nervously, feel your heart race, and even perform badly despite preparing well.”
For many young students, this can feel overwhelming.
Long‑term or constant test stress can lower confidence, hurt academic performance, and affect mental and physical health. It can also create a deep fear of failure or being labelled as a “troublemaker” or “a failure.”
Research from the mental health charity YoungMinds shows that harm to students’ wellbeing increases during major exam seasons like SATs, GCSEs and A Levels — as many as 13% of students even report suicidal thoughts during this time.
Indrajaya hopes her work can help change all of this.
“I hope students will stop seeing exams as a monster they have to fight,” she says. “They can overcome their test anxiety — and that can lead to a healthier, happier life.”
Indrajaya is focusing on clinical psychology, a branch of psychology concerned with the assessment and treatment of mental illness and psychological problems. Source: Alyssa Indrajaya
3 ways to reduce test anxiety
While Indrajaya does not necessarily have concrete answers now, she has three ways for you to reduce your anxiety before and while taking exams.
Quiz yourself often, maybe even others
Constantly testing yourself is a way to reduce your anxiety.
You can conduct the trial exam the same way the real exam would — this can mimic the environment you’ll be in.
Besides, quizzing yourself can help you find out which topic you actually lack understanding in. Plus, it can refresh your mind on the topics and help you view them from different perspectives.
“I do it myself, too,” Indrajaya shares. “You can test yourself before the exam, before a lecture, and even after a lecture.”
Listen in class
This is key. In a classroom, you’ll have many distractions. Your friends are chatting away or you’re distracted by your open tabs on your laptop.
Besides, your professor may sound really dull, but this can help you lessen the burden of studying for exams. Why? Well, most of what you will be tested on will be taught in your classes anyway, even if it isn’t…directly taught.
Reread. Relisten. Reread.
Now, this way isn’t unknown.
“The way I would learn things, I would always reread them,” Indrajaya shares. “Relistening to lectures and rereading is important to a certain extent, but it’s a more passive strategy.”
This will help deepen your understanding, uncover new details, improve fluency, and even boost your memory through repeated exposure.
