Student Syndrome. There’s also a wiki page for it!
Student syndrome refers to the phenomenon that many people will start to fully apply themselves to a task just at the last possible moment before a deadline. This leads to wasting any buffers built into individual taskduration estimates. [1]
It was noted by Eliyahu M. Goldratt in his novel titled Critical Chain.
The student syndrome is a form of procrastination, but it usually includes more of a plan and sincerely good intentions. For example, if a student or group of students goes to a professor and asks for an extension to a deadline they will usually defend their request by noting how much better their project will be given more time to work on it; they request this with all the right intentions. In reality most students will have other tasks or events place a demand on the time they fully intended to commit to improving their paper or project. In the end they will often end up close to the same situation they started with: wishing they had more time as the new delayed deadline approaches. The student syndrome is defended by a layman’s understanding of the functioning of the human memory, most nota
bly the concept that a person’s short-term memory fades over time, and thus studying at the last possible moment (cramming) will allow more to be remembered during the exam, even though cramming damages long-term retention and is significantly inferior to a spaced presentation (which exploits the spacing effect).
This same behaviour is seen in businesses; in project and task estimating, a time- or resource-buffer is applied to the task to allow for overrun or other scheduling problems. However, with Student syndrome, the latest possible start of tasks in which the buffer for any given task is wasted beforehand, rather than kept in reserve.
Do you suffer from Student Syndrome? What are your thoughts? Comment below.
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ya its true.. Studying at d last minute helps to score upto 80% minimum.. In vtu ..but it doesnt stays for long in d brain.. After d exam is over.. I many times wonder at d answers i write.. I dont remember d same answers i write pages n pages ..If seen after a month or so..