Asked whether his hectic study schedule has ever affected his social life, top med student of the past three years, Graham Lohrmann, jokes: “Maybe you should ask the other question: when hasn’t it?”

With a seemingly endless list of accolades, the top students at Wits demonstrate that such achievements can come at a high price. Academic success means a delicate balance being struck between heavy studying, everyday activities and socialising.

Now in his fourth year at the Med School, Lohrmann has developed a study schedule that most students would find unbearable. On average, he spends two hours a day studying, with the number of hours racking up the closer he comes to a test date. “Three weeks before a test, I start to study for about seven hours each day,” says Lohrmann.

But he also says that he refuses to let this intensive studying affect his social life. When a big party or event that his friends are attending comes up, he “plans things in advance” to make sure he can make it.

However, the balancing act between studying and partying has recently had an impact on his love life. “She said I didn’t spend enough time with her.”

Lohrmann’s main priority until he graduates is studying, followed by his friends and love-life. “I guess she didn’t like being in the number three position,” he laughs.

Third year actuarial science student, Natasha Marchant, has received the merit award two years in a row for her major. She studies for three to four hours a day and upwards of five hours on Saturdays, “just to keep up to date on all the material”.

Marchant hasn’t let her strenuous mental regimen affect her love-life. She has a boyfriend of three years, who also studied at Wits before receiving his accounting degree.

For students who wish to follow in the footsteps of these top-achievers, both Lohrmann and Marchant recommend a lifestyle in which studying, while intensive, doesn’t completely overtake their social lives. “I need balance,” says Marchant, who also has many hobbies, such as singing, jogging and tutoring.

In terms of actual study tips, Lohrmann explains that memory retrieval is incredibly important and about “linking concepts to other concepts”. It’s not about rote learning for a spelling test, for example.

“Don’t leave everything up until the last minute. Your last days of studying should be revision, rather than cramming for the exam,”added Lohrmann.