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Exam Reminders on Lock Screen: 3 Ways to Keep Dates in View

Exam Reminders on Lock Screen: 3 Ways to Keep Dates in View

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4 min read

Quick Answer

Three ways work: Calendar alerts that fire before each exam, a wallpaper photo with the dates written on it, or an app that writes your notes into the wallpaper, such as NoteWall, our app. Alerts tell you when something is due; a wallpaper keeps the whole schedule in view every time you pick up the phone. Many students use both.

Why put exam dates on your Lock Screen?

An alert fires once and is gone once you swipe it away. A date written on your Lock Screen is there every time you check the time, so the schedule stays in your head without opening an app. That makes the Lock Screen a good place for the next two or three exams, not for your whole revision plan.

Seeing the date is a cue, not revision. In a 2006 study in Psychological Science, Henry L. Roediger III and Jeffrey D. Karpicke found that students who took repeated practice tests remembered far more of a passage a week later than students who only reread it, as Washington University in St. Louis reported. The rereading group had read the passage about 14 times. So let the Lock Screen remind you of the next practice test as well as the exam date.

61% vs 40%
Recall after one week: practice tests vs rereading

Roediger and Karpicke, Psychological Science (2006), as reported by Washington University in St. Louis.

Method 1: How do you set Calendar alerts for exams?

Add each exam to the Calendar app as an event, or as an all-day event for exam days, and give it an alert. To set a default so you do not have to add one every time, go to Settings > Apps > Calendar > Default Alert Times, tap Events or All-Day Events, then choose how early you want the alert.

Apple's Change your Calendar settings on iPhone page says you can change "default settings for calendar events, such as the duration for new events, whether to be alerted when it's time to leave for an upcoming event, and more." Alerts are the right tool for the morning of the exam; they are less useful for keeping next week in mind.

Method 2: Can you just put the dates on your wallpaper?

Yes. Write the dates onto a photo with Markup in the Photos app, then set that photo as your Lock Screen from Settings > Wallpaper > Add New Wallpaper. It costs nothing and needs no extra app. The trade-off is that the image is fixed: every time an exam moves or finishes, you edit the photo and set it again. Our guide on how to add text to iPhone wallpaper has the full steps.

Method 3: How do you set up exam reminders with NoteWall?

NoteWall, our app, writes the notes you type into your Lock Screen wallpaper through an Apple Shortcut called Set NoteWall Wallpaper, so changing a date means editing a note rather than a photo. It is one of several Lock Screen notes apps, and a subscription is required. Per the app's FAQ, setup takes about 2 minutes:

  1. 1

    Step 1:

    Get NoteWall from the App Store: Download NoteWall. Setup walks you through installing the Set NoteWall Wallpaper shortcut, adding notes, choosing a background and allowing permissions.

  2. 2

    Step 2:

    Add one short note per exam: subject, day, time and room, such as "Biology: Mon 9:00, Hall B".

  3. 3

    Step 3:

    Apply the wallpaper. When the shortcut runs, tap Allow for each permission it asks for.

  4. 4

    Step 4:

    When an exam moves or is done, edit or delete its note and tap Update Wallpaper. The FAQ puts an update at about 5 seconds.

The Shortcut step is where many people get stuck the first time. If your wallpaper does not change, our guide to a Shortcut that won't change the wallpaper goes through the usual causes.

Tip: list only the next two or three exams and delete each one when it is done. A short note stays readable at a glance; a full timetable turns into clutter you stop seeing.

Which method should you use?

Use Calendar alerts if you need a nudge at a set time. Use a wallpaper photo if your dates are fixed for the whole term. Use an app like NoteWall if the list changes every week and you want it in view without redoing an image. The methods also combine well:

  • •

    Alerts for the day itself: an all-day event with an alert the evening before.

  • •

    The Lock Screen for the week: the next few exams, kept short.

  • •

    A task or notes app for the revision plan: the detail stays there, not on the Lock Screen.

⚠️ Critical Point

Update your Lock Screen when the schedule changes. A wrong date in plain sight is worse than no reminder at all.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is NoteWall free?

No. NoteWall requires a subscription; the App Store shows the terms before you pay. The first two methods on this page use the Calendar and Photos apps that come with the iPhone.

Does NoteWall send exam notifications?

No. Its App Store listing says "No widgets. No notifications." It keeps your notes on the wallpaper. For an alert at a set time, add the exam to Calendar with an alert as in Method 1.

Which iOS version do I need for NoteWall?

iOS 17.0 or later, as its App Store listing states. NoteWall is iPhone only.

Keep Reading: If you found this helpful, check out these related guides:

How to Put Notes on Your iPhone Lock Screen (2 Ways)

How to Put Reminders on iPhone Lock Screen (So They Stay)

For a comprehensive overview, visit our Lock Screen Productivity Guide.

Keep your exam dates in view

NoteWall writes the notes you type into your Lock Screen wallpaper through an Apple Shortcut. iPhone only, iOS 17.0 or later. A subscription is required.

Download NoteWall
Karol Billik, founder of NoteWall

Karol Billik

Founder of NoteWall. Building tools that turn your lock screen into a productivity system. About →

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