The week before finals is upon us, and I can say that I am both a little relieved but also super stressed. It is also very hard to get into the holiday spirit and mindset when you have approximately 4,000 things due by Friday. This time of year is very conflicting, because I don't want the semester to end but I also miss my home. However, the only thing standing in the way of the end of the semester is finals week. So, instead of panicking, here are five tips that should be able to get you through the next week and a half.

1. Take time to de-stress.

With all the stress of trying to save your GPA while getting your work done, make sure you reserve some time to let your brain rest and allow yourself to have some fun. Have a dance party, do some yoga, or just nap. Your mind will thank you after staring at books and a computer screen in the library from hours on hours. This tip make seem quite obvious, but while we are knocking off hours in the library, we may lose track of time and fry our brains out before we even get the chance to take the final.

2. Write out a to-do list.

While this may seem kind of useless, it is easier to physically see what needs to get done and by when. Having everything sorted out by date can give you an idea of what things to focus on and the importance of them all. For example, if you have a paper due Thursday, you can plan on doing small bits of it while doing less important things that don't consume as much time earlier within the week. Plus, it is a great feeling to cross something off of the list, because not only will you feel accomplished about completing a task, your stress levels will decrease because you don't have to remember every last thing that you need to do and study for in your head along with all the information needed to pas a final.

3. Plan out how you're going to study.

Of course, it's going to be near impossible to cram all of the semester's information in preparation for the final, there are different approaches you can make in order to become more knowledgeable about the subject that you want to prepare for. We as humans tend to remember what we studied first and studied last, so my plan is to study first the beginning information that I don't remember from the start of the semester, and then study the most recent information learnt from the semester, and then study the remainder of what I don't know. Therefore, I will grasp the concepts I am wary of and then be able to connect things I learned throughout the semester.

4. Make mock quizzes.

So if you have more time for a certain subject over a different one, it is beneficial to create a miniature quiz or to create a question that you have to answer in order to self-check yourself that you fully understand a concept. This can also filter out what you need to spend more time studying on, and can help out tip 3 to weed out what to study first and last.

Good luck, may the odds be ever in your favor.