Finals week is here, as well as the stress and anxiety that come along with it.
Having survived many a finals week ourselves, we wanted to share some of our favorite tips for how to do your best and come out the other side relatively unscathed.
Have favorite study and survival secrets of your own? Be sure to share those too!
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Don’t Panic
First and foremost, don’t panic. If you’re feeling behind and overwhelmed, this can be easier said than done. And we’ve seen many college students literally psych themselves out into a failing grade. If you feel yourself starting to go into full-on panic mode, stop yourself and try to regain your sense of calm.
How? Take five deep, cleansing breaths. Repeat a calming mantra, something like, “It will all be ok. I will do the best that I can and that’s all I can do.” It may sound silly, but being able to talk yourself off a ledge and regain perspective will help you think more clearly and stay on track. And be easy on yourself — if you’re behind, don’t beat yourself up for what you “should” have done. Concentrate on what you can do now.
Respect Your Study Style
The pressure of finals can often lead to following other’s advice on how best to prepare — like joining a study group, using flash cards or other aids, studying at a specific location, even recommendations on the best time of day to study. But trying new study methods is really something best done over the course of the semester, not when it’s crunch time.
Now is the time to focus on what works best for you. If you work best alone, skip the study groups. If you’re able to focus better in the evening, don’t try to force yourself to get it all done during the day. If writing things down helps you retain them better, then integrate that action into your methods. Everyone learns differently, so respect your own study style, even if it goes against the norm.
Unplug
Even though we’re a generation of multi-taskers, the truth is our brains just aren’t wired to handle it. You might be able to study, listen to music, check Facebook and eat all at the same time, but you won’t be able to absorb as much while you do. And, even small interruptions while studying can set you back significantly —answering that quick text can cost you up to 15 minutes of time as your brain refocuses on the task at hand. So turn off your cell phone, study away from the computer, put a “do not disturb” sign on the door — whatever it takes to limit your distractions.
Focus Your Efforts
When time is of the essence, sometimes it’s better to focus on what you know you don’t know. Go over the previous tests from the semester and concentrate on the items you missed the first time around. Or, if you have to cram, do it strategically — focus on a single subject for the full 24 hours leading up to the exam. While many experts say cramming means you won’t retain the information, we know plenty of women for whom cramming actually increases their retention by sending their brain into a kind of learning-hyperdrive. But trying to tackle multiple subjects simultaneously can derail that process, so make sure you’re finished with one course’s exam before moving onto the next.
Do Something Mindless
Ever noticed that big ideas often come to you while driving your car or taking a shower? If your finals include things like essay exams or short-answer questions, taking a break from studying to do something completely mindless can give your brain the time it needs to internalize what you’ve learned and start making the creative connections that can lead to A+ essays. So while cleaning the fridge or doing a load of laundry might seem like procrastination, it can actually be a useful tool in the study process. Just make sure the activity is something you can truly do on autopilot. Things like playing a video game, watching TV, or catching up with friends keep your mind engaged and don’t provide the same opportunity for sub-conscious processing.
Prevent the Mind-Blank
For exams in subjects like math and science, there can be a lot of formulas to memorize in a short period of time. Whenever possible, try to make sure you understand the theories and concepts behind the formulas, rather than just memorizing the formula itself. This can help prevent your mind from “going blank” during the exam — that dreadful feeling when you know you knew something, but just can’t get it to surface at the moment. By understanding the concepts behind the math, you’ll have engaged multiple parts of your brain and will be able to recall those formulas much more easily.
Sleep Versus the All-Nighter
Most experts will tell you to try to maintain a normal sleep schedule during finals, and definitely get a good night’s sleep before an exam. Great advice if you can manage it, but the reality is most of us end up pulling at least one all-nighter. But what if you’re in the middle — how do you decide when to call it a night and get some zzzz’s, or just stay up and keep going?
Use the 90-minute rule. Studies have shown that it’s not necessarily the length of sleep that refreshes us so much as when in our sleep cycles we’re awakened. Our bodies are geared towards 45-minute sleep cycles, and you need at least two of those to get any benefit. So set your alarm to coincide with that natural rhythm — after three, four and a half, or six hours, etc. Getting three hours of sleep will do you much more good than four if that’s all you have time for. Even a 90-minute nap can help. But if you find yourself with less than 90 minutes to devote to sleep, you’re actually better off just staying up all together.
Switch Your Coffee for Black Tea
Speaking of all-nighters, if you’re relying on large amounts of coffee to get you through the night, switch to black tea. Coffee is known to stimulate your body’s release of cortisol, a stress hormone that can increase feelings of anxiety. Black tea, on the other hand, has been shown to reduce cortisol levels — giving you the much needed caffeine pick-me-up, but without creating that anxious feeling that can make concentrating even more difficult.
Eat Something. But Not Just Anything.
It’s easy to get so wrapped up in your studying that you forget to eat. And that can lead to headaches and loss of concentration. So remind yourself to eat periodically. If you have to, set an alarm to go off every four hours so you can keep your blood sugar levels from dipping too low.
And when you’re short on time, the temptation to order a pizza or hit the drive-through can be hard to resist. But heavy foods are only going to send your body’s energy towards digestion, robbing you of much needed brain power. Stock your fridge with ready-to-eat lighter fare, including nuts, fruits and veggies, granola and lean proteins. A can of tuna or a healthy microwave meal will do much more to keep you going than that slice with extra cheese.
Guard Against Catastrophe
Over the years, we’ve heard our fair share of final exam horror stories — getting the time wrong, showing up to the wrong room, oversleeping — you name it! And the fact is, it can happen to almost anyone. So the day before the exam (before you’re too exhausted or too rushed), double-check all the details.
Confirm the exam time and room number. Stock your bag with everything you need — pens, blue books, calculators, your iPad, whatever. If you’ll be driving, make sure you have plenty of gas in your tank. If you’re taking the bus, have change or your pass handy. Don’t leave any kind of “getting ready” item till the morning — you want getting out the door to be a complete no-brainer. And if you know you’re going to be up late or are prone to oversleeping, use a wake-up call service like Snoozester to make sure you’re up in plenty of time. Plan for the worst-case scenario, and you’ll be able to advert disaster.
Plan to Celebrate When It’s All Over
This one, we probably don’t have to remind you about! But just in case — make sure to schedule a fabulous night out with your friends for when finals week is all over. Having something firm (and fun) on your calendar will give you something to look forward to, and can really help make the stress and exhaustion of finals much more bearable. You’re brain needs that sub-conscious “light at the end of the tunnel” so it knows there’s an end-point to the madness. Trust us — it works!
So, those are our best tips for getting through finals week. What are yours? We’d love to hear what’s worked for you. So if you have ideas, please share them and we can all get through crunch time together!
