Finals season is always difficult and stressful in college. However, during regular circumstances, there are great resources such as free on-campus tutoring services, supplemental instruction (SI), study groups, and office hours.
Now that all spring semester classes are online, there may be a sense of confusion on how to approach finals in these coming weeks. Despite not having key services in person, you can still finish the semester strong!
Virtual Services Offered
Despite the campus being closed, Georgia State has tried to transfer many of the academic resources online. Many professors are offering office hours on Zoom, SI sessions are being offered virtually, and you can still form study groups on Zoom, too. Although receiving help in-person is preferable, at least we still have this! In addition, GSU is providing all students with Adobe Creative Cloud for the rest of the semester, so if you need that for certain classes or a portfolio, take advantage!
How to Keep Up with Everything
Adjusting to taking a full set of classes online mid-semester has been quite challenging for both teachers and students, especially considering the grim circumstances behind it. It’s all over Twitter and Instagram – almost nobody is in the mood or mindset to complete all this online work being assigned.
For some students, it feels like class workload has increased since going online, making everything even more overwhelming. The best solution to this is staying organized and writing down what needs to be done on a daily basis in a planner. iCollege frankly looks scary right now, so depending on it to keep up with all the assignments might not suffice. Writing things down old-school style can help keep you afloat, as well as reminders on your phone!
Communicating with Instructors
It’s important to remember why classes are online in the first place: COVID-19. During this time, instructors should be patient and understanding of a student’s situation. If you’re struggling to keep up in a class due to circumstances like being sick or taking care of people who are, or even being an essential worker, don’t hesitate to tell your teachers! They’ll likely be more considerate and work out some sort of plan so you can still finish the class with a good performance.
These are very stressful times to be in. Staying organized and on top of your assignments and studying is crucial as finals sneak up, but remember to take care of yourself, and communicate ASAP with instructors if something isn’t working!