Dear Freshmen,
I know you are excited for Thanksgiving Break. We all are! But this isn’t the time to sit back and watch the countdown slowly fall to 0. It’s time to do some serious preparation for the next few weeks that are so crucial in college. FINALS! You may have already taken finals in high school or private school but college is different. Most of the time there is a large project or paper and a final on top of that. So here’s a little advice on how to approach this next week before turkey, football, and family.
1. Don’t just give your meal swipes and board bucks away
Your friends may already be asking for some swipes or board bucks, and you are willing to give them, being the great friend that you are. Think before you do that though. It may feel like those 20 or 30 swipes are enough to sustain you for the next 3 weeks, but you can’t know that for sure. Start calculating it out. Most likely you only have enough for one or two meals a day. You tend to be even more hungry during finals because of stress and studying. So wait until after Thanksgiving Break to be that friend. Feed yourself first; you paid for it.
2. Start those big papers now
I know. That huge 10 page paper isn’t due until Dec 10th. Why would you start it now? Well, why not? It’s always good to start outlining those huge papers early and then write them later. So take the opportunity to figure out what you are going to write about. Finding a topic weeks in advance is a whole lot better than waiting until the last second and getting stumped on a solid thesis.
3. Take inventory of study materials
You do have to worry about it. Now is the time to see if you have enough flashcards or if your highlighters have enough ink. If not, make a list of things you need to study and bring it home. If you are short on money I’m sure your parents would not object to helping you out on this one since it is for school.
4. Don’t save reading for break if you can avoid it
If you have reading due the day after Thanksgiving Break, read before you leave! I can’t emphasize this enough. You don’t and won’t want to read when you are home with your family and friends. But you’ll decide to save the reading for break anyway and haul all your heavy books just to leave them in your bag untouched and drag them back to Boston. Just get it done! You’ll be glad you did when you’re home without any reading hanging over your head.
5. Clean up your notes
Not what you expected huh? Well this is a great way to get super organized and get a head start on your studying. All those notes that are jumbled, chicken scratched, or in different notebooks deserve better than that. Compile your notes in one place nice and neat. This makes it easier for you to dive into studying when you get back from break.
6. Don’t waste your time packing everything
You’re going home for like 2 seconds. I know the official break period is 5 days, but believe me, it will go by quicker than a weekend. So don’t waste time packing for a long visit home when you could be doing school work and studying. There’s nothing wrong with getting a head start on bringing stuff home now for the semester ending, but school and your assignments are a little more important than that. Don’t stress about things you don’t need to.
7. Email teachers/go to their office hours to talk about grades
You may hate, even despise talking to people, especially that really intimidating teacher who terrifies you. If you don’t want to talk to them in person, try emailing. Even checking Canvas if the class is up on the site is an option for when office hours make your skin crawl. Finding your grade and standing in the class is very important. This is where you assess how much studying and preparation you need to do for each class. The reason why “in person” meetings about grades are the best is because you can get a better sense of what the teacher will give you in participation, which teachers typically don’t share over email or Canvas. No matter how confident you are in a class, it really never hurts to see your teachers before the semester ends.
8. Figure out if you need study foods or snacks from home
I don’t know about you, but I love eating snack food when I cram for exams. Take a look at your food stash before you go home and make a quick list of foods, if any, that you want during finals. The prices are probably better in your hometown than Boston store prices. Maybe parents will chip in a little bit too if you give them the puppy dog eyes. They may freak out when they see the long list of Doritos and spray cheese, but just remind them that it is for a good cause, your education.
9. Use your calendar
A calendar or some kind of organizer/planner is so crucial for the next month. Before you leave for break, write out your schedule for December since school in November will officially be over. Figure out when your finals are, look to see if you need to take off from work for your exams (a lot of people forget to do this), even look to see when your big due dates are for papers and projects. Get organized now, and you’ll have a better plan of attack when you get back from break with everything laid out neatly for the next month.
10. Clean your room
For some reason when people rush out of the dorm for break they forget to do one crucial thing: CLEANING! Why would you leave your room with food on the desk, underwear all over the floor, and your bed covered with clothes you decided not to bring home? It will be so much nicer to come back to a nice clean room to relax in after a day of traveling. So clean out your fridge, make your bed, and vacuum your carpet. You won’t regret it.
This may seem excessive for Thanksgiving Break, but I think freshmen don’t realize how fast the next month will be. At times you will wonder if there are enough hours in the day. The answer is “no”, there aren’t. So don’t procrastinate and learn why the end of the semester is bittersweet.