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Towson | Life > Academics

What I Wish I Knew as a Freshman: How to Gear Up for Finals Week

Amie Yansane Student Contributor, Towson University
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Towson chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

By Amie Yansane

It’s the week before Thanksgiving, and every student knows what that means: the semester is coming to an end. With the semester nearing its finale, many students across many campuses will have to deal with the dreary weather paired with final exams.

Finals season is no joke. I remember a first year nearly panicking every day, thinking about my final exams and if I would perform well enough to keep my grade. Now, as a senior-to-be, I have learned that finals season doesn’t have to be as stressful as it sounds. So here are some tips I wish I knew as a freshman.

  1. Add all of your final exams to your calendar
    This is just the start of gearing up for finals. Although it might be an obvious thing to do before finals week, it could be one of the easiest things to slip your mind. If it’s not the day of your final, it might be the time you could forget, so mark your calendar to the tee for each exam!
  2. Create a designed schedule for each exam
    I’ve known since my freshman year that not every final was created equally, and each one required varying amounts of study time before the exam date. For example, my U.S. History class only needed a total of 9 hours of studying since the coursework wasn’t as dense, while Molecular Biology required at
    least 18. In preparation, I would create a schedule for studying each subject during the week of Thanksgiving break, detailing the days I would study leading up to each exam and the duration of my study sessions. As I created the schedule, I would also include the specific topics I would have to master
    before the exam, also leaving an extra day or two to review everything that I studied. Having a specific study schedule for each class not only improved my scores but also organized the preparation week for finals.
  3. Rest!
    This might be a harder one, but I believe rest is the key to performing well on exams. So before each final you take, make sure to listen to your body and give yourself the rest it may need for the upcoming exam. You can also take the time to meditate to release any anxieties about the upcoming exam. Whatever works best for you for rest, do it! It may be exam season, but your health comes first!

    As you all are getting ready to go into your breaks and even start taking final exams, I hope you are preparing yourself for the success you are bound to have. So use these tips if they’re a good fit and enjoy your exam season. Don’t worry because you’ve got this

Amie Yansane

Towson '26

Amie is currently a sophomore at Towson University pursuing a BS in Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, and Bioinformatics with a minor in Biology. Currently, she's conducting research on bacteriophage host-interactions in her university's Chemistry department. Although her major and research interests aren't what you would expect for a culture writer, she aims to intersect her interests in film, TV shows, books, fashion, and politics in everything she writes. When she’s not writing in her journal or writing a think piece, she’s engaging with her peers the Honors College, or the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society. When she’s not engaging in campus activities, you can find her watching Ugly Betty, running a few miles on the treadmill, or making bracelets for her loved ones.