January and February are the most important months for olympiad participants as during these months in many countries the first rounds of the biology olympiad take place. If you did not finish to read Campbell and if only several weeks are left before the biology olympiad, first BREATHE. Calm down and do not overdo too much in the last few weeks because you need to have sharp mind and well rested eyes for the day of the olympiad.
Here are some tips that you can do to revise if your time is limited:
- Download this set of notes from Campbell Biology and read it.
- Download this set of questions similar to those found during olympiads from here.
- If you do not have Campbell, you can take a look at some great slides with pictures from Campbell here: http://www.course-notes.org/Biology/Slides/Campbells_Biology_7th_Edition or from here with more detail http://www.biologyjunction.com/aplectures5th.htm
- If you do have Campbell, flick through ALL the pictures, diagrams, graphs and tables. They are ESSENTIAL.
- I have prepared extensive and very comprehensive explanation sheets for all past USABO Open and Semifinal exams 2004-2014. Check them out here.
- Lastly, check the Biolympiads book ‘How To Prepare for the Biology Olympiad And Science Competitions‘ on Amazon
Hope this will help your revision and do not forget to bring some chocolates (or other sweets) to the venue because the brains can use only glucose (or if you were starving for some weeks, also ketone bodies) and when you work hard, you will need to replenish your resources.
Best of luck!!!
Martyna
