How To Do Finals Week Like A Pro

By Elena Parrish on December 9, 2016

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So it’s that time of the semester again… the dreadful last two weeks. The two weeks of the semester that make you rethink your whole life. Why did I decide to do this college thing again? (Yep it’s that bad!). But that’s just the stress talking! Of course you want to be in college and to get a good education so you’re not living paycheck by paycheck and ceating a better life for yourself and for your future. This is all part of the package. Thinking back on these difficult moments is when you’ll be the proudest of yourself. When you’re walking across that stage it will feel like it was all worth it. You might even feel brave enough to attend another four or two year post undergraduate education where many more finals weeks awaits you! But for right now, let’s think in the moment and think how we can get through this hell week! As a graduating senior I’ve done this about 10 times over. Over the years I have learned and recognized tricks that work for me and how I handle stress. Ultimately managing my studies and getting the most out of my preparation for my tests. We are all at different points in our college career but I know that these tips will no doubt help you out!

#1 DO NOT PROCRASTINATE

This is first and foremost the most vital tip that you will ever receive. Not only for finals week but for life in general and getting ahead in life. We all do it in varying degrees, some more than others, but this is often the downfall of many people and situations. My mom always tells me that “time wasted can never be regained” and that has stuck with me forever. I might have rolled my eyes in the moment but I know she was telling the truth! And that’s exactly the approach that you should take this week. You may think that you’re just brushing off an assignment for a moment, but try to think how this can affect you in the long run. How can a poor grade on an assignment or test affect my future at this University? Always think of the bigger picture. You might have a goal to graduate magna cum laude. Think how procrastinating on this one assignment or test and not doing well enough can affect you grade in the course and your overall GPA. You don’t want that! So work your butt off in the time that you have! Set up a schedule and a time frame that you allocate for studying and stick to it. For me, I always have sticky notes or reminders as motivation to stay on track with my schedule. I know how much it would suck for me to try and play catch up on my work if I were to push it off.

#2 Organization

That leads me perfectly into my second piece of advice on how to handle finals week. Stay organized! It will cut back your stress by a ton. Make as many lists as you can, it really helps. Sometimes we keep things in our heads thinking that we have everything under control but sometimes we can forget things here and there. To avoid that from happening write out things like the day and time of your final exam, times that assignments are due and on what platform. Details like that will prevent disastrous moments. There was one semester where I missed a final exam because I had a mix up of the time of my test. Luckily, I was able to make up the exam but just imagine how horrible that would be if you failed a course just because of a small detail. All that hard work gone! After that semester I started to jot down every important thing on paper just to have reassurance for myself. I know that this will help you as well!

#3 Take breaks and time for yourself

          No doubt this week is the time that you put the most energy into your work and push yourself extra hard to pull the grade that you want in your class. This next week can determine your degree if you’re a senior or make the difference between an A+ or A- in a class. That is huge pressure to have on your back. So please don’t drive yourself crazy and allow this to consume yourself and affect your happiness. Mental health and stability is a big aspect to having a successful outcome of this week. In order to maintain your mental health, you must take breaks and do something that is beneficial to you. That may be going to gym everyday for an hour, watching a movie on Netflix, taking a nap, or hanging out with your friends for a bit. Whatever it is, make sure you’re doing that for yourself. Don’t allow yourself to get overwhelmed to the point where you’re having high anxiety. As soon as you feel that anxiety creep up try to take a break!

You will make it through this week. Hopefully these tips will help you achieve your goals that you have for finals and this semester. And just remember that this week will be over before you know it, and you’ll be vegging out on the couch for Christmas break without a care in the world soon!

Good luck!

programminglibrarian.org

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