It’s hard to sleep, let alone focus on finals with the promise of home just around the corner. In a couple of weeks CMU workloads will be no more and Hunt Library will be the ghost of Mellon’s past. So how do you last through finals until Christmas break? Push those visions of sugarplums out of your head for the time being and follow these tips:
1. Watch a T.V. show. Yes. Indulge. When your brain is in overdrive, soaking in information beyond its capacity, it will be in dire need of a break. Watching a twenty-minute sitcom lets your mind cool down after a heated study sesh without wasting valuable time.
2. Change scenery. Neither your mood nor motivation will survive if you haven’ t moved from that chair in the library for five and a half hours. Fresh air is the best antidote for a grouchy demeanor and dwindling work ethic. Walk to Oakland for coffee and work in the Cathedral of Learning or Carnegie Library. Fresh faces and surroundings will revitalize your study drive.
3. Study in the room your final is in. Figure out what room you will be testing in ahead of time and pop over one night for a visit. Studying at a testing site is like sleeping on a memory foam mattress; by familiarizing yourself with the testing room, you allow yourself to be more comfortable come finals day, and thus increase your likelihood of recalling material.
4. Work out. Sweat from something other than that programming exam. Hit the treadmill, grab some weights, or take a lap in the pool.
5. EAT CRUNCHY. Stock up on pretzels, chips and granola bars. Your teeth will work, release energy, and all of that pent up stress will be no more.
Hang in there; cookies and carols are mere weeks away. The time will come to rock around that Christmas tree, but that time is not now. Until then, sleep and strive to maintain your sanity this finals season.