Study Planner
Not another to-do list — a verdict: does your syllabus physically fit the days and hours you have? Get topics per day, the date to finish new material, and a protected revision window.
Spotted a mistake or have an idea? — errors get fixed and credited publicly.
Last reviewed: July 20, 2026 · Formulas verified by automated tests before every release.
How many topics a day do I need to study?
Total study time = topics × minutes each, plus ~30% per revision pass; divide by days left for the daily requirement. 40 topics at 45 minutes with one revision is 39 hours — over 30 days that's 1h 18m a day, and the plan finishes new material early so the last days belong to revision. If the requirement exceeds your available hours, the honest levers are more minutes, fewer topics, or fewer passes — not optimism.
The math and the verdict
total = topics × min/topic × (1 + 0.3 × passes) · verdict: total ÷ days ≤ your daily minutes?
The feasibility check is the whole product. Every study plan on paper fits; this one asks whether it fits your actual hours — and when it doesn't, says so while there's still time to choose a lever. The revision buffer is protected by design: new material ends early, because the second pass is where retention (and marks) actually live.
Make the daily number survivable
A verdict like "1h 18m a day" becomes real when it's structured: the Pomodoro timer turns it into three focused sessions, and the Deadline Pace calculator handles the page-count version of the same problem. Tracking a grade target instead? That's the GPA calculator.
Sources, assumptions and limitations
- Formula: total minutes = topics × min/topic × (1 + 0.3 × revision passes); first-pass window sized so revisions fit before exam day
- Assumptions: Even topic difficulty (chapter 12 never is — pad minutes per topic honestly); ~30% per revision pass is a practical planning ratio, and revision-after-a-gap reflects the well-documented spacing effect.
- Not included: Subject mixing across multiple exams, question practice vs reading split, sleep and burnout limits — a plan that fits on paper but not in a life still doesn't fit. No external data used.
- Last reviewed: July 27, 2026 by the CalcNotebook team
Frequently asked questions
How do I plan studying for an exam?
Count what's really there: topics × minutes per topic gives first-pass time; add ~30% per revision pass; divide by days until the exam. If the daily requirement fits your available study minutes, you get a plan — topics per day and a finish-new-material-by date. If it doesn't fit, you learn that today, not the week before.
Why reserve time for revision instead of studying to the last day?
Memory research is unambiguous: material reviewed after a gap is retained far better than material seen once (the spacing effect). Practically, marks come from the second pass — the plan finishes new topics early on purpose so the final days re-see everything.
What if the verdict says my plan doesn't fit?
The calculator lists honest levers in order: add daily minutes, cut the syllabus to its high-yield core, reduce revision passes. What it refuses to offer is the popular fourth option — pretending. An uncomfortable verdict three weeks out beats a comfortable delusion three days out.
How is this different from the Deadline Pace calculator?
Deadline Pace answers "how many units per day" for any goal. Study Planner adds what exams specifically need: a daily time budget check (does it physically fit your hours?) and a protected revision buffer. Reading 300 pages — Deadline Pace; passing anatomy — this one.