This exam season the KitKat team has launched the KitKat Study Guide to remind students to take more breaks.
The ‘study with me’ inspired content on YouTube and Spotify oozes with oddly satisfying, ASMR-inducing sounds and visuals (think floating KitKat fingers and hypnotic lava lamps!) – guiding students into deep focus mode and offering reminders to take a break.
New research1 from the KitKat team reveals 83 per cent of students suffer from study fatigue with 66 per cent admitting to having their head in the books for more than five hours without a break!
It’s a sad face emoji for students as the research also found two in five students feel lonely during exam periods, with many looking to online resources to help them feel supported (58 per cent) and less alone (51 per cent).
The KitKat Study Guide provides the perfect study buddy and quirky reminders to take a break, based on the Pomodoro study technique promoting regular breaks for improved productivity. Following 25 minutes of power study, the guide ends with a five-minute break encouraging students to step back from the books and return feeling refreshed.
Time management expert and author, Kate Christie says “Students aren’t taking regular breaks, fearing they will run out of time or momentum, but breaks are key to improving concentration, enabling retention, and overall wellbeing during the stressful exam period. A break is a ‘wakeful rest’ and its purpose is to recharge your brain. The best way to ensure you have regular breaks is to build them into your study schedule – a simple rule of thumb is to study for 25-30 minutes and then take a 5-minute break.”
“In fact, research found that students who do take the time for a micro-rest claimed to return from breaks with reduced stress levels (42 percent), feeling more productive (38 per cent) and with increased concentration (35 per cent).”
Nestlé Head of Marketing Confectionery Melanie Chen said “At KitKat, we are all about encouraging better breaks. The majority of students feel there needs to be more guidance on how and when to take study breaks (89 per cent) and the best part about the KitKat Study Guide is that it does the heavy lifting for you. The KitKat Study Guide is fun and unconventional, treating students to soothing, satisfying sounds and chocolatey visuals while championing regular study breaks.”
Chen continued “We also know exams can be a lonely time, which is why the KitKat Study Guide has been created as a study buddy that provides support, some quirky jokes – a bit of calm amongst the chaos of exam season. We hope students use it, enjoy it and are reminded to take regular, well-deserved breaks!
To unlock the secret to better study breaks this exam season, check out the KitKat Study Guide on YouTube and Spotify.
Other key research findings from the KitKat study habits research:
- Students also feel that guided study sessions on YouTube would help them to manage their time more effectively (58 per cent).
- 27 per cent of students avoid regular breaks because they are not sure how often they should take breaks and 23 per cent say they are not sure how long a study break window should be.
- Despite feeling the pressures, students find it tricky to stay on-task with many admitting to being procrastinators and actively seek out other things to do instead of studying (30 per cent)
- Students wish they had a better study technique and a more structured approach to studying (57 per cent) with many (1 in 4) admitting to ‘cramming’ everything in at the last minute and pulling all-nighters in the lead up.
- When students do find time to take breaks it’s usually to have a snack (61 per cent), go to the bathroom (52 per cent) or to scroll on social media (45 per cent).
- Students admit to relying on luck – wearing lucky items of clothing (18%) or using a lucky pen (16 per cent) to help boost their chances during exams.
- Due to the pressure to surrounding study, students are finding new and interesting places to fit it in including in bed (52 per cent), in the car (38 per cent), on the bus (35 per cent), on holidays (26 per cent, at work (20 per cent) and even while on a plane (13 per cent)!
