One more week and the dreaded finals week will finally arrive. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's dying to let it come and go and leave so I can enjoy my winter break. However without a successful finals week, I'm sure even the winter break will drag. That's why I have compiled 20 tips you should checkout before finals week is here. Find your favorite tips and try something new from the list if your current techniques are not producing the results you wish they would've.

1. Create a Master To-Do List along with a small calendar to schedule out the remaining days in the semester. Divide up the work load among the days so you can avoid an all-nighter.
2. Look through old exams and predict possible questions. Try to find practice tests online; if not, ask an upperclassman you know for their old tests. If all else fails, make study guides from your class notes or textbook.
3. If your final will be cumulative, go over the exams you were given throughout the semester to understand the questions you didn’t know the first time. Refresh your mind with the old material and try to master the material you struggled with.
4. Talk to your professor or TA to get extra help. Go to office hours and if that doesn't work, go to the tutoring centers within the college.
5. Link new information you learn with the things you already know. Forming these connections will help you remember the concepts better and may even serve as a cheat to help you solve a problem.
6. Check the front of your textbook to see if the publisher provides any online study aids.
7. Set specific, measurable goals for each study session to keep yourself on track. Try not to set goals that are too big to achieve. For example, do not set a goal to study for five hours straight on one subject. The next time you try to sit, you will try to avoid it as much as possible.
8. With that being said, take short breaks while you study. Your brain can process only a limited amount of information and would benefit from rest.
9. Use or create mnemonic devices, such as acrostics, rhymes or acronyms, to help you remember information.
10. Reward yourself! with naturally enjoyable activities, such as playing X-box or clicking through Facebook.
11. Get sleep! Many people try to pull all-nighters the day before the test and rely on coffee to help them survive through the test. That is a big no-no! Stay healthy. Get some sleep and avoid caffeine.Your brain with thank you.
12. Draw it. Create tables, diagrams, mind maps or pictures to represent and organize the information. Often blocks of words in paragraphs create confusion and are hard to memorize. To make your study time more efficient, make visuals that will help retrieve information faster.
13. Explain what you know to a classmate or friend. By doing so, the details will remain in your mind, and you'll find connections to remember the details. Using your own words helps you measure your comprehension on a topic, which ultimately aids your memory. If not, go into an empty classroom and pretend to teach the material to someone.
14. Put the iPhones away! Study in a distraction-reduced environment. Turn off your cell phone, TV, and email notifications--even put away your reading books--to keep your focus clear.
15. Use colors! When making a review sheet, divide up the work with different colors. It makes the outline more colorful and fun. More than that, your notes are neater and more organized.
16. Check out the questions the end of the chapters of your textbook and attempt to answer them. Ask a friend for help if you are struggling with the questions or just refer back to the chapter for a similar question with the answer.
17. Quiz yourself. Cover up your notes and try to explain them one at a time. If you need to, create flashcards and test yourself with them. If you find yourself struggling to remember, try different techniques. There are all sorts of ways you can stick something to your memory.
18. Work with your classmates and form a study group. Try to explain things to each other and ask questions. Chances are, at least one person will understand a topic you don't.
19. If it helps, listen to calming music, do small stretches, and drink lots of water to keep the anxiety away. It's hard not to get stressed up during finals week, but a small act like breathing exercises can help calm you down and release the negative thoughts.
20. Overlearn the material. When you think you are finished, keep going. Like the wise people say: The day I think I know everything, I know nothing. It can never hurt to learn more than you already know.