?“It’s the most stressful time of the year.”? Yes Marauders, it is Finals Week. Finals week is one of the most stressful weeks in the whole semester. Somehow during this time you have what feels like a hundred papers due and an exam in almost every class. Tensions can run high and you may pull all nighters just to prepare for your exams. To get through this tough time, I created a list of some tips I have accumulated to successfully get through the storm.
- Start Early.
If you start studying or creating a study plan early, you will feel less overwhelmed when finals week arrives.
2. Stay Well-Rested
Getting a good amount of sleep each night is essential to feeling well-rested. This will also give you higher energy levels to get the right amount of studying done each day.
3. Attend Office Hours
This is a huge tip! Attending office hours can be very beneficial because it gives you one-on-one time with your professor to ask any questions on material you may not understand. Also, this is a big way to show your professors you are serious about your work and you are trying your best with the material. This can be very beneficial when grading comes around.
4. Create a Plan and Stick To It
If you have a plan in place, you are less likely to stray from it. This will act as a motivator to get your studying done daily and to cross things off your checklist. I have to say crossing things off your checklist is one of the best feelings.
5. Don’t Stick Strictly to the Study Guide
If your professors give you a study guide, make sure you also look at information that was not on it. Professors mainly give study guides to give students an idea of what can be on the test, but they might also add other information to make sure you reading the material and know it very well.
6. Take Study Breaks
Sometimes spending too much time studying without a break can be bad for your brain. If you take small breaks in between certain content, it can be beneficial. For example, you can take a quick walk outside or watch a short video in between.
7. Do Not Study In Your Bed
One of my biology teachers taught me this tip in high school and it has always stuck with me. Your brain associates your bed with sleep and relaxation, so when you try to study in your bed, you are less productive and you can disrupt your sleep patterns. The next time you will go to sleep, your body will take more time to adjust to it and you may lose out on hours of sleep.
8. Create Acronyms or Rhymes To Memorize Lists or Difficult Information
This is a very helpful tip that I use when I study. When I have to know long lists of steps or types of information, I create an acronym to spell out the first letter of every word. This is kinda like how teachers would use PEMDAS in elementary school to remember math operations. For example, this acronym stands for parentheses, exponents, multiplication , division, addition and subtraction.
9. Review Your Notes Daily
Taking time each day to review your notes will pay off in the long run. When test time rolls around, you will know the information better and be able to recognize the words in the questions quickly.
10. Dress Nice To Your Finals
“Dress well, test well” simply implies that those who dress well on the day of their exam or presentation are likely to perform better, or at least feel, better. Dressing nicer makes you feel more confident with the information and may help you do better.
11. Put Your Phone On Do Not Disturb or Turn It Off
Your phone can take away time from your studying and distract you from learning the information. Turn your phone off during your time studying to avoid this distraction and to decrease your time spent on one subject.
12. Eat Healthy
If you eat foods that are unhealthy and that do not provide nutrients, they can make you feel groggy. This can make you feel lazy and make you not want to study even more. Instead of choosing fried food or a bag of chips , eat a salad or some apples. Your body will thank you later.
13. Have a Positive Mindset
You are not going to get anywhere or have any confidence in yourself if you do not have a positive mindset. Studies have also shown that if you write positive affirmations on your exams, you will do better because it will make you more confident in your responses.
14. Study With Other People in Your Class
Having other people to study the information with you, will help you learn the information as well as teach you new study techniques. This is also good because if someone knows some information better than you, they can help you piece together what you are not understanding.
15. Treat Yourself
This is a tough week and you are putting a lot of time into your studies, you deserve to treat yourself with a candy or maybe a coffee you like. Don’t feel bad about treating yourself or taking the time to do something you love, you deserve it!
We would like to wish everyone good luck on their final projects and exams! Stay motivated and do your best!