Well,
the end of your first semester is right around the corner! Unfortunately now is
not the time to celebrate the end of the year; you have some busy weeks still
ahead of you! It is time to start plotting out some strategy for making it
through finals week. You will likely have some combination of term papers and
final exams and they will all take place within just a short time. Making sure
that you can complete all this work on time and still stay sane takes some
planning.
Finals
start Friday December 13. The immediate two days preceding the start of finals
(Wed and Thursday Dec 11-12) are called Reading Days. No classes are scheduled
on Reading Days – they are set aside for you to have lots of time to prepare
for your exams and write your papers. But you may want to start studying even
before Reading Days.
Remember
that you will likely have multiple exams, and these could be on back-to-back
days. You will need to be studying for both
exams even before the first one you take! Now is the time to start thinking
about prioritizing your studying. A class where you are on the borderline of a
good grade is probably one you should spend a bit more time with, especially
over a class where your grade is pretty well locked in. Try not to overdo
studying for any one class and keep mixing up your studying to give yourself a
change. Be sure to attend help sessions that your professors or TAs may offer,
and do not hesitate to contact your professors if you are have questions or
concerns.
There
are probably three key elements of success for making it through Finals. First,
find a place the study that’s quiet and away from friends and other
distractions. I remember on finals week where I had an exam very late in the week.
So, while I still needed to prepare for an exam, most of my floormates were
done and parting. My room was at the end of the hall and my friends decided to
soap up the hallway and play ice skating down the hall
and into my room (or at least smashing into my door). Obviously, though I would
rather have soaped up my socks and joined in, I had to go to the library.
My
second piece of advice is to try to maintain a regular sleeping pattern. Your
brain needs rest just like your body. Try not to pull any all-nighters, but if
you must, make sure you have a friend check in on you in the morning to be sure
you are awake and ready to walk over for the exam. Sleeping in and missing the
start of an exam is bad news. Last year I had a student sleep through his alarm,
and arrive in time for the last 30 minutes of the exam!
Lastly,
and this may seem counterintuitive given all I have just said, try to have some
fun during finals week too! You will need the occasional break away from all
serious reading and writing and studying. Go out for dinner. Get to the gym and
work out. Take a bike ride. Your body and your mind will need some stress
relief and you will feel much better and ready to hit the books again.
Stay
calm – you will make it through Finals and live to tell the tale. And
have a wonderful holiday season. Merry Christmas (and a belated Happy Hannukah)
and Happy New Year. We’ll see you all in 2014!
Steven Bachrach
Class
Marshal
