Finals week can be a stressful time for everyone, but especially for students. Your life is already difficult as it is: there’s no need to add to it with a week like this. But as stressful as finals week is, it is survivable. As long as you take care of yourself and work hard to keep yourself sane, you can get through this with no issues whatsoever. Here are some tips and tricks to keep your finals week manageable.
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Make a study plan - If being organized works for you, you might want to consider making a solid study plan to help you plan out your finals week. For example, maybe you can study Physics from 3-4pm on Wednesday, and then Math from 8-9pm on Thursday. If you outline and create a study plan, you can follow it and get your studying done in no time!
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Do your work ahead of time - Your work is important, but so is your time management. Take it from someone who’s struggled with procrastination her entire life: start your work ahead of time. If something is due two weeks from now, start it today - at least the first sentence. It doesn’t have to be done all in one go! Take the time you need to get done what you need to do.
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Find time to relax -- This is a crucial part of preparing for finals week. Even though it seems like the world may be ending, you still require free time in order to be a fully functioning human being. It is your job to take care of you - if you need scheduled breaks, take them. If you need to be alone in your room while studying, do that. Your mental health is important to your finals week experience.
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Work with your friends - If you’re more extroverted (like I am), you might feel uncomfortable working in isolation. If that’s the case, ask your friends to work together - even if your best friend is working on English Literature and you’re working on Spanish, you can still sit next to each other in the library and make flashcards together. Having a support system while you study can be extremely helpful.
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Talk to your teachers - If you’re having any trouble, don’t be afraid to email your teachers or schedule a meeting to talk to them. They will be more than willing to help you with any questions or concerns you may have. Your teachers want you to succeed; they will certainly help you if they can.
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Create a study group - If you can reach out to some of the people in your class, it may be a good idea to get together to study. If you don’t understand a specific concept or problem, your peers could answer your questions. Likewise, you could answer any questions for them that they may have. Working together could be very important for the entire class to succeed.
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Ask questions - There is really no such thing as a stupid question. All questions are good questions - if you don’t understand something, it’s worth asking about. No solution is obvious, no answer is wasted. Chances are if you don’t understand something, someone else is having trouble with the same thing. Ask your question - it can help both you and someone else!
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Your textbook is your friend - There is no better advice for me to give you than to read your textbook. Not cover-to-cover, but skimming the sections that you know will be on the exam can be incredibly important.
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Get some sleep - Again, your mental health will be a star player in your finals week experience. Try to get at least eight hours of sleep every night; it will keep you ready and awake for the work you have to do.
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You’ve got this - You do! Even if it might seem stressful, it is one week - five days, really - to get through. Just five days! You’ll get through this.