Cornell method: taking notes that are useful for studying

What is the Cornell method?

The method was developed by Walter Pauk, a professor of education at Cornell University in the United States, who described it in his textbook How to Study in College. The university’s study help center, the Learning Strategies Center, still presents it to its students.

This center’s handout splits the page into three zones. On the right, the notes column, the widest, about 15 cm. On the left, the cue column, about 6 cm, for questions and keywords. At the bottom, a strip of about 5 cm to summarize the page. On an A4 sheet, these proportions fit exactly.

The value lies in the separation of roles. The right column records the lecture, the left margin turns it into questions, and the summary forces you to say in a few words what the page contains.

How to apply the Cornell method step by step

The Cornell handout describes five steps, from taking notes to weekly review. Here’s how to apply them to a course.

The summary at the bottom is written after class, in two or three sentences. A typical evening session can take a quarter of an hour per course: reread, write the questions, summarize. It’s a suggestion, to adjust to the length of the course.

• Record: during class, write in the right column in short, telegraphic sentences, with your own abbreviations. Leave space between ideas.
• Question: the same evening if possible, reread the page and write in the left margin the questions your notes answer.
• Recite: cover the notes column with a sheet of paper, read each question and answer out loud, in your own words.
• Reflect: ask yourself what the notes you took are for, how to apply it and how it fits with the rest of the course.
• Review: every week, go back over your old pages by reciting. The Cornell handout recommends at least ten minutes a week.

How do you study with a Cornell sheet?

The “recite” step is active recall: you have to produce the answer from the question, without seeing it. To study a chapter, take your pages one by one, cover the right column and answer each question in the margin, out loud or on scrap paper. Then uncover the answer and compare.

Mark the questions you missed with a sign and start with them in the next session. When a whole page goes by without a mistake, read only its summary and try to retell the rest from it.

The left margin works like a deck of flashcards: the question on one side, the answer on the hidden part. If a question keeps resisting from one session to the next, copy it onto a card to review it separately.

Example: a Cornell page in constitutional law

Notes column, first-year bachelor’s course: “Motion of no confidence, art. 49 para. 2 Const. 1958. Tabled by at least 1/10 of deputies. Passed by an absolute majority of the members of the National Assembly; only votes in favor are counted. If passed: the Prime Minister submits the Government’s resignation to the President (art. 50).”

Cue column: “Who can table a motion of no confidence?”, “What majority is needed to pass it?”, “What happens if it’s passed?”. Summary: the motion of no confidence lets the National Assembly overthrow the Government, but the Constitution makes passing it difficult.

Common mistakes and digital variants

The method loses its value when the left margin stays empty or fills up with titles. “Motion of no confidence” isn’t a question: you can’t tell whether your answer is complete. Write instead “What conditions are needed to pass a motion of no confidence?”.

Other habits weaken it: noting everything word for word, until the column overflows; writing the questions weeks later, when the notes no longer speak to you; skipping the summary, which forces you to sort; studying by rereading the right column instead of covering it.

The digital variants keep the starting principle: questions separated from the notes, and notes you can hide.

• On a computer: a two-column table, the questions on the left over a little less than a third of the width, the notes on the right, then a merged row at the bottom for the summary.
• On a tablet with a stylus: a template page drawn once with the three zones, reused for every course.
• As flashcards: the margin questions on the front, the answer on the back, to review a notion outside your pages of notes.

Using it with Fichea

Fichea doesn’t take your notes for you. If your teacher provides a PDF or Word document (text only), or if you photograph your notes depending on your plan, you can get from it a study sheet to compare with your Cornell summaries, checking each point against the course.

For the “recite” step, flashcards follow the same logic as the left margin: a question, a hidden answer. You can create 1 to 24 per generation; spaced repetition then brings them back to you and the schedule shows the reviews for the next 14 days. The features available depend on the plan.

Frequently asked questions