Let's face it: Finals Week is pretty much the worst week of the semester (especially when the weather is such a summer tease). But some of the things we do during the week actually make it harder on ourselves to perform well. Here are four things to avoid doing this week that could (potentially) make your exams suck less:
Pulling all-nighters
Maintaining a reasonable sleep schedule is a major key. Short of accidentally sleeping through your exam, pulling an all-nighter is one of the worst things you can do to yourself during finals week. Fatigued brains neither retain or recall information very well, and those are, like, pretty important parts of studying, right? No staying up late in the library because you feel like that’s what you’re supposed to be doing — just go to bed.
Not having a clear outline/schedule
While you may work best with a deadline throughout the year, finals week is not a time to over-caffeinate and under-sleep the day before (see #1). Instead of overwhelming yourself with information on an adrenaline rush, pace yourself with realistic study goals and a schedule that breaks down what you’ll need to study, when you’ll have time to study, and — most importantly — when you’ll have time to nap.
Social media
As aforementioned, setting realistic goals is an important part of maintaining your sanity during this stressful time — and tuning out all social media for an entire week is definitely not realistic for everyone. However, rewarding yourself with a healthy dose of Snapchat stories, Instagram stalking, and those food videos on Facebook every now and then can be good for you. Just make sure your 15-minute study break doesn’t end five hours later.
Calculating your final grade
A lot of students try to figure out what effect different final exam grades will have on their overall course grade or GPA. For example: “I need to get at least a 90 on this test to get an A in the class,” or “I just need to make a 325 on the final to keep my GPA out of the negatives.” While remembering the importance of a test’s outcome can be good motivation to study, often this tactic can backfire and cause more anxiety, which could actually cause you to do poorly. Focus instead on how you can best prepare for the specific challenge in front of you, and remember that a single test score or GPA doesn’t define you.
Keep working hard fam. Summer is just around the corner!!!
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