At Whitman College, finals week is upon us. Finals week is a time where everyone seems to collectively lose their minds and tries their hardest to read their teachers minds and absorb every last bit of information they can, in order to prepare for tests that determine a major portion of their grade. Finals week is a time when everyone buries themselves in books and notes and rejects the very notion of the word sleep. I am no exception. I stay up late and prepare for tests days in advance trying to keep myself sane and failing to do so. I sleep in short bursts and begin a war with exhaustion that, in the long term, I lose. And yet still life moves on. College events continue happening. You prepare to say goodbye to friends for winter break and try to be prepared to leave college by the time finals are done. Through it all, you must still deal with the looming specter of finals that threatens to overwhelm you. Here are my four tips for surviving finals:
1. Study hard.
The first and most important part of surviving finals is to do the work that is required to do well on the tests. This means studying, reviewing old tests, going over materials with professors, and all the rest. Although finals often occur on the same day which means fitting twice the work into the same small amount of time, you must still do your best and struggle not to be discouraged by the amount of work you must do.
2. Seek help when needed
Sometimes it's not enough to go alone. There are times when you need someone to help you get everything done. Whether that means getting someone to help you pack, or someone to study with, or just someone to vent your frustrations with, it is important to seek help when the pressures of finals become to much to handle on your own. Teamwork helps overcome even the biggest of challenges.
3. Don't get Discouraged
It is easy to succumb to stress or pressure. Sometimes when so many things are happening and you have so much to do, it becomes hard to stay positive. This is the surest way to hinder yourself during finals week. Trying to focus on work that needs to get done, because worrying about the next task is a sure way to make a mistake. The best way to do things is to make a plan of when you need to complete things by and make an effort to stick to a set schedule and focus on one thing at a time.
4. Get Plenty of Sleep
This is a big one, even for the night owls out there. While pulling an all-nighter may seem efficient it is an excellent way to make your work even harder on yourself. Eventually, you pay for the hours you miss in sleep, and it's possible to miss a final after oversleeping from exhaustion. Barring that, it is very easy to do poorly on a test when you are distracted and groggy from lack of sleep. The best way to avoid this is to get plenty of sleep. It will keep you alert and keep you from making easy mistakes.
Finals can be a difficult time for everyone, but as long as you keep a level head and follow the tips above, you may just survive and emerge victorious.
