November is a month of chilly nights when a glimpse of winter is just starting to show. More importantly for students, November means a highly anticipated break from school. The only downside to that break is the finals waiting when we return to school. As hard as it is to stay serious about studying, several students offer advice for how and why to get through the final weeks of the semester.
First years Iliana Barr and Kody Nace agreed that their most dreaded final exam would be in HUMA, or the Humanities First Year Experience. HUMA is a course full of ancient readings from authors such as Homer.
“We’re going to have to reread a lot of material and Sparknotes a WHOLE lot,” Barr said.
For Nace, that reading seems ominous.
“As far as study skills go, I wish I was better at getting through really dense text and picking out what’s important,” Nance said. “Also, time management is a biggy.”
For anyone in the same boat, other students offer advice to make the preparation process less stressful. They suggest separating daunting assignments into smaller parts.
“Break really dense text apart into chunks and figure out the main idea of each section,” said Emma MacEachern, a sophomore majoring in business analytics and technology.
“I read the textbook to get a general idea of whatever is going on, and then I go to office hours and ask the professor. It sucks to go through a lot of reading since most of it won’t come in handy on the test, but it’s always good to have that extra information on hand,” said Logan Gloster, a student planning to major in neuroscience.
To manage time effectively, MacEachern suggests planning out a study schedule.
“Keep your planner or calendar updated at all times for when big things are due. Stay as organized as you can.” MacEachern said. “During finals week, plan ahead on how you are going to study for each test and when you are going to study for them based on when the test is.”
Although it is tempting to procrastinate, Gloster emphasizes the benefit of finishing strong.
“It’s honestly really obvious. It feels so much better to relax after knowing all of your work is completely done.”
