A traditional flashcard is a piece of paper used as a learning aid. You write a question on each card and an answer overleaf. You then can repeatedly question yourself and check the answers overleaf. Universal Study Helper lets you create and store your own decks of flashcards (study sets), and test yourself or slide show them to you, conveniently, without the awkward need to cut out, label and sort paper cards.

You start out by entering your questions and answers, which can be of any form (foreign words, historical events and dates, terms and definitions, etc.) into a deck of flashcards, called a Study Set. This first stage of entering data into the program alone will help you memorize your material more easily. Once entered, study sets can be stored on your computer, to edit, revise and test on them later.

Once you have entered your items, you can begin practicing your set through several different modes of rehearsal. The “Presentation” session is a non interactive slide show where your items are displayed on the screen in sequence, and is a good way to get into a new lesson. Other options are the “Questions and Answers” session, where you are given an item (foreign word, historical event, scientific term, etc.) and asked to answer a question about it (meaning of the word, year of event occurrence, term definition, etc.), and the “Multiple Choice” session, where you have to select the correct answer from several possibilities, randomly taken from other items.

The program keeps track of your results, both for all items over a single session, and globally for each separate item, allowing you to assess your progress and identify and address your weaker areas. There are many features designed to make the study process easier and more effective, allowing you to complete studying quickly and achieve better results.