It’s that time of the semester again — midterm season. While it is confusing exactly how long the midterm season lasts (it seems as if we have never-ending tests and assignments all over the semester, so what is really a midterm?), just knowing that we are going through it can generate a lot of panic among students. From tests to essays to presentations, our schedules are more than busy. It’s definitely not fun and it’s certainly easy to just focus all of our attention on doing well on our evaluations, forgetting about everything else. However, while going through the midterm season, it’s important to keep these reminders in mind.
A key, yet severely overlooked way to succeed in college is to get enough sleep. At least get 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night (ideally 8 or more) to be fully rested and ready to combat whatever you are presented with during the day. Do not see sleep as a waste of time, instead see it as the perfect method to recharge your energy and process all the information that you have acquired. If you pull an all-nighter, you most probably will not be in your five senses when working and when it’s time to go to class, you will be half-asleep. In the long run, messing with your sleep routine can have negative effects on your body and mental health.
After getting a good night’s sleep, you have a brand new day in front of you. You might be tempted by the wide spectrum of opportunities to do whatever you want. Yet, you need to slow down. The key to not just surviving, but thriving during the midterm season is to stay organized. Personally, I absolutely love Google Calendar. I think it’s the perfect system to keep track of all the deadlines, exam dates, and other responsibilities that I have; it’s easy to use, you can color-code it, and you can have it wherever and whenever you need it! Having these dates in handy will allow you to plan and maximize your study time. Besides a Google Calendar, I have a small planner where I write my daily to-do lists. In this way, I know exactly what I’m going to do during the day and avoid getting lost in the chaos that college can be. Strategies vary from person to person, so as long as you find what works for you, everything’s going to be more than fine.
If you end up writing a daily to-do list, please, don’t forget to include some breaks in it! While, of course, studying and working hard is very important, you need to let yourself relax for a while to make sure you’re in your best mental shape. What makes you happy? What allows you to escape your looming college responsibilities? It might be listening to music (and secretly dancing to it in your room) or eating dinner with your friends. Whatever it might be, use it to take care of yourself and to keep a positive mindset as you ace your midterms.
Believe in yourself and keep your calm. Midterms will be over sooner than you know it. Good luck, you got this!