The 9 Phases of Finals Week

The 9 Phases of Finals Week

Finals week as told by a college senior. Spoiler alert: it never gets easier.
Emily Lowry
Emily Lowry Dec 16, 2016
129
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Finals. A word most college students pretend is not part of their vocabulary. A word that instills fear. It triggers immediate anxiety. I have somehow managed to survive through 6 previous semesters in college, yet I still don't think I have learned how to do finals week.

I am currently sitting in the library writing this article instead of studying for my exams. I have handed in a final paper and taken one exam. Two exams stand between me and winter break. Two exams in one day. You would think I'd be ecstatic to be so close, but I honestly feel so far from break. I have reached a point where I have studied for hours on end, but I would feel guilty for doing anything but study before my exams. So, with all this time given to us with reading days, how do college students do finals week?

Phase I: We survived our classes!

The end of the semester likely brings on lots of sleep, Netflix, and (obviously) booze. Whether you have formals or random parties, you likely waste your first few reading days hungover.

Phase II: I should probably start my work

That moment when you realize that you have a lot of work and immediately proceed into phase III.

Phase III: Denial

Let's be honest with ourselves here, how many of use actually start studying when we say we will? There are so many better things to be doing!

Phase IV: Panic

When you actually start studying for exams and writing papers, you start to go crazy. You may stay in the exact same seat in the library for 12 hours. You may not shower for days. Maybe you stress eat your way through the rest of your meal plan.

Phase V: Motivation

This is the point where you are likely hopped up on various forms of caffeine and think you're being the most productive you've ever been. In reality everything you're writing is crap, but that's for a later phase.

Phase VI: Denial 2.0

This is when you start binge watching a new show on Netflix thinking you actually have the time for this. Or maybe you convinced yourself that this would be a good study break. Spoiler alert: you were wrong!

Phase VII: Cramming

In a last ditch effort to pass your classes, you pull one (or several) all-nighters to finish your papers or learn a semester of organic chemistry before an exam. While this gets s**t done, we all know all-nighters are stupid, yet we continue to pull them.

Phase VIII: Doom

As you hand in that last paper or walk into your last final exam, you will likely feel a sense of doom. While the end is near, you know you haven't produced your best work. You tell yourself that you'll do things differently. Well, I'm here to tell you that nothing ever changes. Finals week always goes the same, whether you're a freshman or a senior.

Phase IX: Relief

Congratulations, you made it! You survived finals week. Now go home, get some sleep, and forget about your grades until they are released. When you get your grades, you then have permission to cry.

Here's to another "successful" finals week!

Cover Image Credit: pinterest.com
Emily Lowry
Emily Lowry Dec 16, 2016
At Franklin and Marshall College

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I'm A Woman And You Can't Convince Me Breastfeeding In Public Is OK In 2019

Sorry, not sorry.

Megan Crabb
Megan Crabb Oct 27, 2018
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Lately, I have seen so many people going off on social media about how people shouldn't be upset with mothers breastfeeding in public. You know what? I disagree.

There's a huge difference between being modest while breastfeeding and just being straight up careless, trashy and disrespectful to those around you. Why don't you try popping out a boob without a baby attached to it and see how long it takes for you to get arrested for public indecency? Strange how that works, right?

So many people talking about it bring up the point of how we shouldn't "sexualize" breastfeeding and seeing a woman's breasts while doing so. Actually, all of these people are missing the point. It's not sexual, it's just purely immodest and disrespectful.

If you see a girl in a shirt cut too low, you call her a slut. If you see a celebrity post a nude photo, you call them immodest and a terrible role model. What makes you think that pulling out a breast in the middle of public is different, regardless of what you're doing with it?

If I'm eating in a restaurant, I would be disgusted if the person at the table next to me had their bare feet out while they were eating. It's just not appropriate. Neither is pulling out your breast for the entire general public to see.

Nobody asked you to put a blanket over your kid's head to feed them. Nobody asked you to go feed them in a dirty bathroom. But you don't need to basically be topless to feed your kid. Growing up, I watched my mom feed my younger siblings in public. She never shied away from it, but the way she did it was always tasteful and never drew attention. She would cover herself up while doing it. She would make sure that nothing inappropriate could be seen. She was lowkey about it.

Mindblowing, right? Wait, you can actually breastfeed in public and not have to show everyone what you're doing? What a revolutionary idea!

There is nothing wrong with feeding your baby. It's something you need to do, it's a part of life. But there is definitely something wrong with thinking it's fine to expose yourself to the entire world while doing it. Nobody wants to see it. Nobody cares if you're feeding your kid. Nobody cares if you're trying to make some sort of weird "feminist" statement by showing them your boobs.

Cover up. Be modest. Be mindful. Be respectful. Don't want to see my boobs? Good, I don't want to see yours either. Hard to believe, I know.

Megan Crabb
Megan Crabb Oct 27, 2018
At University of Missouri

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7 College Graduates Give Advice To Seniors Entering The Real World

R.I.P. to sleeping in.

Megan Parsons
Megan Parsons Jan 29, 2019
191
views

There are two types of feelings about graduating––my life is over and I have no clue what's next, or you're excited about making real money and growing up. Graduation can be scary. The future can be scary. College becomes comfortable and the thought of leaving your friends and your comfort zone can be overwhelming. Thinking of what is next may make you panic, but you're not alone. Countless other people graduated and are thriving in the real world. Here are the best pieces of advice seven college graduates have to help you in the real world.

1. "Your best resources are your professors." - Meghan

There are cool, helpful people that are in your career field or know someone who can get you to your dream job––your professors. Whether your path is grad school or a career, networking with them is one of your best options. The amount of wisdom and knowledge they possess is overwhelming. That's why people tell you to get to know your professors they're a great resource for your entire career. Their knowledge goes way past theory and practices––they can give you great advice about your strengths, companies you should apply for and the best graduate schools for you.

2. "Stop planning and start enjoying." - Hannah

You still have time in college left, so stop stressing so much about checking everything off your checklist. It's important to have goals and achieve them, but enjoy your time left in college. Enjoy time with your friends, go sleigh ride down the hill with a trashcan lid and stay up late watching movies with your friends, eat junk food and talk about your lives and explore cool places and just live. You'll never get your time in college back, but you have the rest of your adulthood to worry about your career and checklist. You don't want to look back and realize you wasted this time.

3. "Shake as many hands as you can." - Noah

Did someone speak to your class? Shake their hand and introduce yourself. Introduce yourself to your professors and the people at career fairs. Be kind to your peers and help them when they need it. You never know where it may lead to in the future. People are placed in our lives for a reason––it's up to us to build connections with them.

4. "Your bucket list is important!" - Chava

You'll never have this amount of free time again. You'll never get the chance to study abroad, have a spring break and three months off in the summer. What are the things you desperately want to do? Do you want to travel across Europe, hike the Appalachian Trail, snorkel with dolphins or travel to a cool city? This is your chance. There are all kinds of study abroad and options for you to travel while in college. Don't let these experiences slip through your fingers. Yes, college is important, and I understand having to work, I do too. But realize that this free time you have now is valuable. Don't spend it all working––we have the rest of our lives to do that.

5. "Honestly, adulting is kind of a trap but it's a part of growing up." - Maggie

Adulting is rough. You're faced with the expense of living on your own, working every day from 8-5, upholding several responsibilities and it can be overwhelming. Even if you feel prepared now, you will feel belittled at some point. Even though it's rough, I've learned to embrace it. If we look back for our entire lives, we will never learn to embrace where we are. Enjoy every part of your life. Enjoy being in college and when you've graduated, enjoy adulthood. Did I enjoy college? Yes, absolutely. But I don't wish for it back. Because I know that each phase in our life is beautiful and it's up to us to enjoy it.

6. "Learn to budget now, your future self will thank you later." - Maredith

One of the most important things to do is to determine what you need from what you want. We live in a world that is name brand driven. Not only in clothing but in cleaning products, food, and cars. We tend to look at people that are in later stages of life and say "I wish I had their life" with their fancy clothes, nice cars, and material items. We then start to emulate our lives to be like their's and not taking into account we're not in the same stage of life as them. No newly college graduate will have a career that will allow them to live the same way someone in an established career would. It's not glamorous but that's okay. If you do right now what no one else will do, you'll be doing things in 20 years what no else can imagine. If you save now, you will be set up to live a life so much more comfortable than others.

7. "Find the courage to live authentically as yourself." - Liz

Find the courage to live authentically as yourself. There is nothing more freeing than knowing you are perfectly made by our God. Surround yourself with friends who love you, support you and build you up to believe in the beauty that was inside you all along. Be confident in yourself; college is tough, but the real world is tougher. When you find these friends, you won't worry about what is to come. You will understand that when you have people you love, you have everything you need. We focus what too much on what is to come––but I say embrace it. Embrace it hand-in-hand with those who you can depend on.

"Life is tough, but darling, so are you."

Megan Parsons
Megan Parsons Jan 29, 2019
At University of Kentucky

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