The dreaded week has come. It's time for finals to begin, and if you're the person with a color-coded planner and notebook, you'll be fine. But for the rest of the kids that are struggling to survive this week: make sure you say some of these things to them.
"Try your best."
Seriously, our culture has created the ideology that a number defines who you are as a person. The idea that an exam score represents how intelligent you are. Finals is one of the most stressful weeks of college, and the two weeks leading up to them are possibly worse, so make sure you encourage your friends that their best is enough.
"You're more than a number."
Back to what I said above, we've created a society where a number reflects your intelligence. Sometimes, the best you can possibly do is a 75% on your final (which some of us would be happy with).
"It's almost over!"
The fact that we only have one more week until we get a nice, long, relaxing break from school is something that we're all looking forward to. When we're freaking out about how long the week seems, sometimes it's important for us to snap back to reality and realize that we only have a little bit left to go.
"Remember to reward yourself."
Something that a lot of students forget during finals week is to give themselves a break. Go to the dining hall with your friends or hang out for a little bit. Go walk and get a coffee, then get back to it. If you don't give yourself a break, you're gonna be worn out and brain dead.
"Get some sleep."
This sounds so hard to do, but seriously, you need sleep. You could cram all night and drink Redbull or Starbucks till three a.m., but it's not going to help you retain any information. Start studying earlier in the day if you have to, but make sure you get at least six hours of sleep before your exam because it'll boost your performance.
Finals is a rough week for all of us. We have baggy eyes and baggy sweatpants on all week with a coffee in our hands, but make sure to say these things to your friends or yourself to push through the week.
