Five Tips for Surviving the Last Month

...of college. The end of the semester is upon us so here are five tips on how to survive the whirlwind.

1. Don't put everything off until the last minute.
The last month of college is jam-packed with final projects, term papers, presentations, and studying for finals. I have a major project due every week for the next three weeks. The best thing to do is check the syllabi for all your classes and be prepared for when major projects are coming up. The earlier you can start, the better.

2. Study gradually.
This one goes hand-in-hand with #1, but deals specifically with finals. Don't wait until the night before your History final to cram. Make flashcards, reread the chapters, hand-write out your notes, read over the lectures, do anything that you need to do to study starting a week or so in advance. Flashcards are particularly best done early. If you make them two weeks before the exam, this allows you to study them before going to bed every night and will help plant the information in your memory.

3. Take time to de-stress.
It's hard, but try to find time between studying, going to class, and sleeping to take time away doing something fun. Give yourself fifteen-minute Facebook breaks for every hour or two of studying. Spend a Saturday afternoon hiking with friends. After a day in the library, go for a nice leisurely walk around town. Read for an hour before bed.

4. Write when you want to.
If you use writing as a de-stressor, be careful that it doesn't become another stressor. Last week I started setting goals to write at least 250 words per day, but with the amount of homework I've been doing, it's been almost impossible for me to keep up with my goals and it makes me feel guilty when I don't. So now I've made a pact to relax on my word count goals until finals week is over and it's made it easier for me to relax and just write.

5. Pack as you go.
On top of homework, classes, sleep, clubs, and friends, the last month of the year probably also means packing to go home for the summer. Don't wait until the last second to start packing if at all possible. This is especially true if you live in a dorm like mine where there are hours of the day that you're not even allowed to vacuum during finals week.

Comments

LM Preston said…
Wonderful tips! I'll pass them all on to my son who's taking some college classes while in his last year of high school. He'll need it :-D

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