It’s that time of year again. You can practically feel the summer sun and can’t wait to put on that new bikini of yours. The smell of suntan lotion and coconut oil has never sounded so alluring. The only problem is there are still a few weeks of school left and you can’t completely forget everything you’ve learned over the semester just yet. Before you can go on your tropical summer vacation or sell back all your textbooks you never opened, you must conquer the week you’ve been dreading since January: Finals.
Here’s everything you need to know to breeze through your last week of school.
- Don’t stay up til 4 a.m. cracked out on coffee and adderall.
Not only is this super unhealthy, but all-nighters keep you awake studying information that you won’t remember anyway and only make you exhausted during test time. Instead, study until around 12 or 1 a.m. and then get up early to finish studying even if it means getting up at 6 a.m. Make hot tea or eat a good breakfast so it gives you the incentive to wake up early. A little sleep is better than no sleep at all.
- Highlight your notes; it’s actually fun…
If you ruffle through my old notebooks, you’ll find a variety of neon colors throughout the pages. That’s because I go highlighter happy in my notes- meaning anything that is important and might be on the test, I highlight. It helps to remember small details, and it’s just fun!
- Study with friends (and no, I’m not talking about Rachel, Monica, and Chandler).
This tip does not mean study while watching ‘Friends.’ Netflix is still going to be there when you get back, I promise. It means get to the library and study with real life people. This advice is not for everyone though. If you’re Chatty Cathy then skip this and go to number 4, but if you know how to stay on topic then using friends as resources may be beneficial.
- Use Studyblue.
This website is AWESOME, and honestly the only reason I passed my astronomy final freshman year. You can sign up through Facebook and create notecards online so that you don’t have to waste paper and time writing them all out. Students can even find other classmates through StudyBlue and share notecards as well. Best of all, it’s free!
- Meet with your professor.
Although it may be inconvenient, send your professor an email asking to meet with them. Most professors have to hold office hours and they actually do enjoy when students reach out to them for help. Tell them about why you’re stressing for the test, ask them for advice on how to study, or figure out what you need to make on the exam to get a good grade in the class. This shows professors that you care which may even convince them to bump that B up to an A at the end of the semester.
- Dress to impress (that cute guy in your class).
It’s practically an impulse to roll out of bed in your sweats and show up to your exam looking like a hot mess. However, a study at Northwestern University found that dressing well has a big impact on a person’s performance. It enhances self-confidence as well as gives you another excuse to look good in class and not get judged. If you feel confident on the outside, it brings out your confidence on the inside.
- Use weird, inappropriate acronyms
Making up weird acronyms to remember a list of words is the easiest way to recall difficult information. Especially if the acronym is something like B.O.O.B.S., you won’t forget that during a test.
- OPEN YOUR FREAKIN’ TEXTBOOK
Tear off that plastic wrap from the textbook hiding under your desk and read it! Yes, it’s extremely boring and long. But surprising enough, the test will most likely cover the material in the required reading. Obviously you can’t reread everything assigned over the course of the class, but skim through the pages to find bold words and important points you may not have gone over in class. Sometimes professors will put information on the test that can only be found in the book and not in the notes.
- Bubbling answers in is annoying, but make sure you actually do it.
Once you finish that last essay question after circling 40 multiple-choice answers, the first thing you’ll want to do is turn in that test and be free. WAIT. Resist the urge to leave and stay in your seat. Turn back to the very front of the test and read through each question again to make sure you answered it correctly. You’ll thank yourself later when you get an A instead of regretting forgetting to bubble in a question.
- Reward Yourself with a tub of Cherry Garcia Ben and Jerry’s (and maybe some pizza too)
It’s hard to find motivation to keep studying if there’s nothing to look forward to in the end. Create some type of incentive that pushes you until the end of the week so that you can reward yourself for all the hard work you accomplished. Whether it be a trip to the beach or an expensive dinner out, find some way to celebrate your accomplishments the end of the semester.
Featured image via cottonbro on Pexels
