The most rigorous span of the semester, the final exam window escalates campus tension and exacerbates anxiety. Students across the country have already bunkered down in preparation for interminable weeks of agony. In a testing-mad environment of the type exemplified by American education, exams cause stress, and that stress cannot be avoided.
It can, however, be tackled.
In exams, as in all things, preparation differentiates the effective from the overwhelmed. Therefore, Odyssey presents a series of crucial do's and don'ts to cut the insurmountable finals burden to mere inconvenience.
Do distribute your workload.
Tempting though the prospect may be, resist all urges to designate a specific time frame or especially a specific day for study. Unlike a paper or project, which the average student thrives on eliminating at the deadline with ruthless efficiency, proper study requires information retention; storing resources in memory demands lower intensity over longer spans, which limits the viability of procrastination.
Do let your breaks feel like breaks.
Many people attempt to use their study pauses for "productive" tasks, in the hope of reducing their guilt over breaks they consider undeserved. Productive breaks fall into two categories: They either generate stress or enable procrastination. Breaks are fine and even necessary, but breaking students only reap the mental rewards if they maintain inward honesty about them.
Don't make a beeline for the library.
Libraries are wonderful institutions with many esteemed characteristics, not least of which is mandatory quietude. This induces many students to make a second home among the shelves until finals week passes, but silence alone will not substitute for comfort. You will have the most success in the environment that is most routine to you; whether that is the library, your own room, or a bustling coffee shop, you decide.
Do maintain a healthy mentality.
Marathon runners cannot stop running suddenly because they cannot continue once their body temperature drops; the natural inclination is to treat study the same way, for fear of falling out of "the zone." Unfortunately, this mentality takes study down a dark path that can produce burnout and fatigue. Though losing a study rhythm and struggling to reengage mentally can cause frustration, do not ignore physical signals to stop for food or rest.
Don't study in large groups.
For most purposes, the best group is the smallest group. Group study works only for specific study tricks such as flash cards or Q&A if your group is not constantly engaged in study, it will quickly become engaged in something distracting. Attempt to cap groups at two or three, as larger groups struggle to spread the study around.
Don't set a rigid schedule.
This one seems counterintuitive, but tight schedules disguise more pitfalls than perks. Budget too much time, and waste the excess studying tired material; budget too little, and suffer when the exam exposes the gaps. Schedules offer some structure, but don't hesitate to throw them out - trust your instinct when you feel versed in the material.
Do head out contemplating a positive.
One old baseball story tells of a manager who visited his pitcher on the mound, told him not to hang his next pitch, and returned to the dugout. The pitcher hung it, the batter hit it, and the game was lost because the manager left the pitcher contemplating a negative. Focus on what you do know and will do in your exams, and you will be in fine position to succeed.
I wish you the very best of luck. Your studies await you.
