It's that time of year, again! As much as we would all like to pretend that they aren't inevitable, finals are going to be here no matter what we do. It is time to buckle down, pull out those textbooks, and fight our way into the library! Or maybe just watch one more episode of Netflix.
Stage 1: Denial (1 week until finals).
Stage 2: Anger (three days until finals).
Whether this is anger at yourself or anger at your professors, it is definitely there bubbling under the surface. You are angry that you waiting this long to start studying, you are angry that cumulative finals exist, you are angry that your professor is definitely out to get you, and you are angry at your friends from other schools who are already done and are at home cuddling with their dogs.
Stage 3: Bargaining (two days until finals).
This often begins with bargaining with your professors to make the exam easier (or maybe just not cumulative) and to change that quiz grade from four weeks ago that you are suddenly certain you got an A on. When that inevitably fails, you begin bargaining with whomever the gods of finals week are that you will never procrastinate again if they just help you pass. . You spend the hours calculating exactly what percentage you need to keep or enhance your grade. You will give up drinking. You will give up Netflix. You just need to pass.
Stage 4: Depression (one day until finals).
After too many late hours locked in the library staring at your textbook or computer screen, it has finally come to this point. The only thing you want to go is sleep, drink, or hide from your responsibilities (possibly all three). You start to rethink your entire major and whether it is too late to change to something easier or just drop out completely and become a stripper and marry rich. There is no hope that you will pass that final and your parents will disown you.
Stage 5: Acceptance (10 minutes before finals).
You are standing outside the door to the classroom, not caring that you haven’t slept or showered in a few days. You are scrambling to look over your study guide one more time and attempting to download it into your brain in the next 10 minutes. But then, it hit you. You walk over and throw it in the trash. You cannot learn a semesters worth of material in 10 minutes. You are not your grade on one final. You can do this, you are a smart capable college student (and if not, there’s a reason repeat deletes exist)!
