It’s always strange, going back to school after Thanksgiving. There are only a few weeks left in the semester, and one of them is taken up by finals. You want to make the most of your time left by going out and having a great time and making lots of memories with your friends. But you also need to study and get yourself together so that you don’t lose those As you’ve kept all semester.

You’ll have those friends who, no matter what the situation is, will say, “You’re not gonna remember that time you stayed in to study…” Then you’ll have the friends who say “You’re seriously going out? I thought you had a test/paper/group project/thesis/final/essay.”

While both points of view are valid, you just have to focus on which one is yours. If you try and please your friends who want you to go out, you’re just going to end up stressing yourself out, because you know you have other things to be doing. If you try and prove to your friends that you do just want to get good grades and put in all sorts of extra hours, you’re going to end up being miserable and regret not going out.

For some of us, the answer is a happy medium. Pick one or two days a week to go out and devote the others to getting things done. You can plan this out ahead of time, maybe while you’re home for the holiday of food, or you can take it week by week and see what’s happening and when.

I know that this struggle will be especially hard for those going abroad or graduating, but there is still time! Have fun, get your work done, and enjoy your time in college; you’ll never get those weeks back.