Several years back, I worked with the owner of a small veterinary clinic. Jennifer took the Highlands Ability Battery (HAB) with me when she was a vet student at UGA as part of a Careers In Veterinary Medicine course.
Jennifer was curious about what she might learn through the HAB since she had no prior experience with assessments other than school-related tests and entrance exams. She enjoyed taking the HAB although she still recalls her frustration with one section in particular.
What surprised her were the descriptions of her talents. Up to this point, she assumed that if she could do something, anyone else could, too. Taking the HAB allowed her to see how to best use her abilities, especially when working with others. She understood she had talents to share and let herself off the hook from being the best at everything.
Before taking the HAB…
Jennifer used what seemed to be the norm when studying. She poured over textbooks and articles, reading, and re-reading. She knew she was studying “hard” because of the amount of time she spent with the books. She had a group she studied with which also relied heavily on reading materials. Before taking the HAB, Jennifer was convinced she was doing all she could do to be a successful student.
After taking the HAB…
Jennifer’s insight into her auditory ability completely changed her approach to studying. With the HAB, she saw that her musical background translated into the scholastic ability of auditory learning. She took that kernel and immediately applied it to new study strategies.
She changed to a study group in which a variety of learning styles were represented, including hers! She realized how much unproductive time she had spent by limiting herself only to reading. Now she incorporated discussions during which material was reviewed out loud. It made a huge difference in the number of hours she spent studying and she had more energy for other student activities. To this day, Jennifer uses the learning strategy she developed as student when she faces new challenges.