College is a momentous time in any young person’s life. It’s finally time to move away from your parents and family, be on your own (somewhat) and experience a new life while furthering your education. It’s a chance to break out of your shell and become your own person. You meet exciting new people and have the opportunity to do lots of fun new things.
And although college is a fun and exciting experience, it’s also incredibly stressful. While we all thought high school was hard work, most college students would give anything to have their high school work load back.
More often than not, the stress of college can get the best of the students. Especially at the end of semesters when every college student must face their worst enemy… finals week.
(Photo 1) For very few, it means an easy week of turning in assignments that were worked on progressively all semester and maybe taking a test or two, which should be no problem thanks to continual studying.
But for every normal college student, it’s a crazy stressful week of finishing up the projects you knew about all semester but neglected, constantly telling yourself, “I’ll have time to do it later,” and cramming for tests that you have to get a 90% on to pass the class.
Many college students turn to their friends for help (photo 2) during the stress of finals. It’s always nice to have a friend in your class with you, especially if it’s not your strong subject. Many friends can tutor you or help you study, some will even go as far as to make study guides for you and even reteach you some things. It’s a good feeling to have friends who will take the time out of their stressful week to make sure you are on the right track for your final.
It’s important to not let what others are doing bother you during finals. (Photo 3) In college, everybody is on a different curriculum at a different pace, taking different classes. It might seem like you are stuck in a rut and that you are helpless and can’t get out, and that everyone around you is going on with their lives like they aren’t struggling at all. Chances are, they are struggling. But everybody deals with their problems in different ways, and it’s important to make sure you don’t gauge your success off of others.
Another important thing to keep in mind during finals week is procrastination (photo 4). Do not do it. For some students, it comes so easy. They get so wrapped up in work, extracurricular activities, and the rest of their lives that they put school on the bottom of their priority list. This can really hurt you at the end of the semester when you’re rushing to get everything done. Procrastinating is so easy, and usually a lot of fun. It’s important to be able to realize you are doing it and stop yourself.
Getting enough rest is very imperative in college in general, but definitely for finals (photo 5). The average college student is already under enough stress with studying and finishing projects, but not getting enough rest can make the situation a lot worse. Naps are a great way to fix this problem. They’re great at any time of day (or night) to keep yourself moving.
Stress can make you do crazy things (photo 6) and having an abnormal sleeping schedule can result in unhealthy decisions. It is likely that you will eat poorly during finals week- especially when your college is encouraging you to spend all of your flex on five pound bags of gummy bears and chocolate pretzels.
Packing is more than likely the last thing on your mind during finals week, and you have to rush to get it done the second you’re finished with your last exam. It can definitely be a huge pain since students tend to neglect their rooms and organization is not their number one priority (photo 7).
Stress affects everyone in really different ways (photo 8) and the combination of lack of sleep, poor diet, and overall anxiety can make some do really strange things and act in a strange way. Everyone seems to be on edge- but it’s nothing to take personally.
(Photo 9) Some students manage their stress with different things. Some try to exercise to get their mind off of it, some will just blow everything off and take the bad grades. But some manage their stress cosmetically, with facials or massages. This can be a quite relaxing and is always a good option to blow off steam.
Even though you try to deal with the pressure of the end of the semester and finals, sometimes, unfortunately, it can defeat you (photo 10). But all you can really do is stay positive and hope that next semester you’ll learn from the mistakes you made this time, and manage your time better throughout the semester.
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