Somehow, the time has already come for another round of finals. It’s weird to think that the semester is already over, let alone the fact that the year is done. The end is in sight, but it can seem impossible to tackle that looming mountain of projects, exams, and presentations. Since it’s just about the most stressful time of the semester, it’s easy to lose track of your goals and neglect your physical and mental health. Although it’s easier said than done, I’d like to take the time to give you a few reminders as you navigate through these last few weeks.
- Finals aren’t everything.
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Okay, I’m not telling you that you shouldn’t try to do well on your final assignments, but remember that they’re just a fraction of your grade. Finals are meant to be an accumulation of the experiences you’ve had in a class, so try to keep in mind that you also have an entire semester’s worth of grades under your belt already. Even if you don’t do as well as you would’ve liked on your exam or project, it’s not the end of the world. When a final is particularly stressful, it can be easy to forget that it’s likely not as make-or-break as it may seem.
- You won’t do your best work if you’re not taking care of yourself.
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Please engage in self-care whenever you can—your body and mind will thank you. So often, finals season is the time of college students competing to see who is busiest, which is not a healthy environment to participate in. If you can, save yourself the trouble of pulling an all-nighter to finish your work, no matter how tempting it may be to push your assignments until the last minute. Take meal breaks and naps when needed, hang out with your friends for a little while, hop in the shower to clear your head, and whatever else you need to do. You aren’t going to be as productive as you could be if you aren’t practicing healthy habits.
- You’re going to make it through.
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Sometimes it feels totally impossible that you’ll finish all that work. You stress yourself out because it feels like the studying and homework keep piling up, and there’s never enough time in the day to accomplish everything you need to do. You’ve made it through stressful times before, and you’ll make it through again! I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve sat in one of the back corners of the library, surrounded by students who were equally stressed, and thought to myself, “How am I supposed to get all of this done?” But guess what? We’ve done it and we’ll do it again.
- Finish strong.
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It can be tempting to give up when you become too burnt out to put much effort into your work. You’ve done so much work this semester, and that tedious final assignment might be the least of your concerns at this point. Still, this is the last thing you’ll have to do for that one agonizing class. You’ve made it this far, and you shouldn’t give up. In just a few weeks, you won’t have to think about school for a while, so pound out those last assignments as best as you can.