10 Game Plans To Help You Get Through Your Most Dreaded Finals
Make your upcoming finals more bearable with some of these tips.
The most dreaded part of college is coming up soon, finals season. You're slowly dragging through all your classes and you just can't wait to go on break. You're really tempted to just breeze through all your finals, but you know better than to do that. I know. Finals season is painful, awful, and just plain ugly, but here are 10 things you can do to help push through finals!
1. Go to professors to check in
Talking to your professors at this point in the quarter can be intimidating, especially if you haven't spoken to them previously. It doesn't matter if you are the best student in the class, or you barely pass quizzes, checking in with professors can be beneficial. Your professors can help guide you towards what you need to study in order to succeed on your final. Something that has helped me whenever I've gone in to talk to my professors is to come in with materials, such as something to take notes with and homework or test questions that I've had trouble with. This will help to illustrate your questions or concerns better, and the more extra notes you have to study with, the better
2. Write out your study schedule early on
Knowing when and what to study can make the weeks leading up to finals can reduce the all-nighters that you may or may not end up pulling. Carving out your time can be beneficial because you're physically looking at the time you have left before your final. Planning it out by writing or typing it out is also important because when stuff gets planned out mentally, we often times it's easier to convince ourselves that there's still more time to accomplish our goals.
These study schedules can even go as far as planning out your other usual activities around your studying. Many times, students will drop everything (even eating and other daily necessities) during finals season, which I think plays a role in why finals season is notorious for being harmful to student's mental health. Giving yourself time throughout the day to continue to do what you usually do daily while still having time to study and prepare for your tests can help to elevate the stress and anxiety that comes with finals.
3. Find resources on campus
Colleges provide services and resources that are there to help students that are available for use even during the quarter/ semester. There are tutors who can help with certain subjects if you don't want to approach your professor or for extra support. A resource that often gets overlooked is counselors. Mental health is neglected, but also an important element in your academic success and even if you aren't experiencing any mental health problems, seeing a counselor can still be beneficial. Al,so remember that most of these resources on campus are free!
4. Stay healthy
Being sick during the weeks leading up to finals can suck! In addition to mental health, staying physically healthy is also important during finals season. Missing class due to illness can really impact how successful you will be during finals.
It's important to make sure you are eating well, sleeping, and taking precautions in order to avoid illness.
5. Go to events planned by the school
If you find yourself with free time, go to a university-hosted event. These events are fun and sometimes there are free things (like food or giveaways)! More importantly, these events are structured to sneakily help you with finals.
6. Find a designated study area...
Keeping a consistent study area, whether that be in the library or in your kitchen. Make sure it's quiet and distraction free. Keeping a consistent place can help you focus on studying because it becomes a familiar place.
7. ... or find multiple
If you're anything like me, you can't stand staying in the same place for very long. Make sure the places you choose are still "study friendly" and a calming environment. Also, these places don't need to be very far from each other. For example, I like to go to different floors of the library, which leads me to interesting sections and turns into a mini adventure.
8. Go outside
Take a walk. Go on a bike ride. Just breathe.
9. Spend time with friends and family
One thing I didn't realize that I needed the weekend before my finals last quarter was my family. Stepping away from my dorm and going home was refreshing. I overlooked how a nice homecooked meal and my own room would help me with tackling my first finals week in college. If home just isn't accessible or you don't have time to go home, your friends can also be just as comforting. Go off campus and grab a meal together or do a fun group activity!
10. Take time for yourself
In addition to taking study breaks, make sure you're using additional free time to do something nice for yourself. Doing little things, like taking a nice bubble bath or getting yourself a little treat makes all that studying and preparing for finals worth it!
Whether this is your first finals week, last, or even if you just want tips to help destress in general, I hope that you'll find them beneficial and helpful!
