I’m a big fan of the spring weather. Allergies and sinus problems aside, there is nothing I love more than flowers and trees blooming on the quad. The bright green grass and sunshine make for a beautiful, if not incredibly distracting sight. You can try and take the long route, but realistically, you are still in awe over how fast the flip-flop and shorts weather is approaching. No matter how hard you try, class and work don’t seem to compare to your excitement for break, the end of class and a little freedom.
Is it the weathers fault, or maybe the time of year? Or could we blame our lack of concentration on the sheer fact that we are all just a little impatient to get this semester over with?
Honestly, I think it has to be a little bit of both. We can’t deny that the weather plays a role in how we behave on campus. Take the cold for instance. The snow is fun for all of about 5 seconds until you realize your fingers are freezing and the new white layer on the ground is going to call for extra clothing, and thus extra sweat in most academic buildings. The quads lay empty with the exception of a few snowmen. The traffic is quick, no “social-stopping” traffic jams, or homework goers on the lawn.
Nice weather is a different story. When the sun is shining and the wind is cool, but not cold, and the birds chirp in an extra happy tune, we are slightly more excited to get out of bed—class on the other hand is a different story. Once you make it outside the atmosphere is different. No snow, no cold, no snowmen. The grass is green, the sky is blue, and everyone you’ve ever met seems to be lounging on the lawn—whether any homework is getting down is an entirely different story. There are people everywhere, music drifting, and smiles all over. Now tell me if you’d be in a hurry to get to class? Even professors seem to be more relaxed about that little rule we call, “being on time”.
So how do we curve this springtime craving and buckle down for the last few weeks of class? The weather most likely will stay nice—would we really want it to change?!—so we need to figure out a different way to handle ourselves rather than dropping the books and taking a much needed springtime catnap on them… I don’t care how comfy the quad is, don’t do it!
My advice to you is to pull out you planner, agenda or calendar and reevaluate everything you have coming up. Whether it’s assignments, projects, exams, or tests—write it down! Make sure you know when every commitment you have is scheduled, including when and where you need to be. By getting everything in order you will feel a sense of relief. You won’t have any looming academic surprises, or scary assignments you weren’t expecting—everything is right there in the open.
Once you do this, plan time for some fun stuff! Do a date night, or go see the school play! Take time for yourself and remember that while the semester may not be quite over, you still can have a little fun while balancing books and down time! Just know where the line is between fun and finishing. You don’t want your spring fever to get in the way of finishing the semester out strong—and with good grades. You definitely need to treat yourself to some fun, but you won’t be singing with the birds you if let you rose (cough, cough springtime) colored glasses get in the way of why you’re really on campus—homework and class first, then you can play (or nap!) on the quad!
-Ring Queen
I’m reading Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice
The days after spring break always seem the longest. Minutes seem to tick by just a little slower than they did through January and February. The last days of March and the beginning of April seems to always go by slowest as we have just had a taste of summer, gotten comfortable living our days doing things we most enjoy, then we are drastically stripped of this privilege and are forced back in those classroom seats. The mid-semester rut seems universal. Although there is a feeling that we are all in this together, we never ending up feeling much better knowing that fact. It is actually a lot worse to not only feel the mid-semester rut first-handedly, but our friends and professors complaining about how they are lost in a work rush only brings us down further. There are ways to fight back though! I am here to give you hope.
The first order of business after a nice spring break is not ensure that you are not trying to take on too much at once and overwhelm yourself. Chances are, you are doing the exact opposite, not doing much of anything. Before you even think about starting to get back into the swing of things, ensure you have a good night’s sleep. You want to wake up fully rested on the day you actually decide to get some stuff done. Step one: sleep.
After a good sleep, wake up and have an energizing breakfast. Simple isn’t it? Doesn’t it remind you of what your parents have suggested you do before a big test at school? That’s because it’s the same thing. The corny things you might have done years ago before a big day, say the SATs, actually have some truth and reason behind them. You want to start off the week after spring break with energy. That means having some hearty eggs or oatmeal, orange juice, fruit, etc. for breakfast.
Keep hydrated! There is no way you are going to make it through the week after spring break fatigued from dehydration. And if you’re drinking coffee, you best have an extra few glasses of water too since coffee is known to turn your insides into a raisin (okay, so its not that dehydrating, but trust me, and besides, an extra glass of water or two can’t hurt).
Find a nice place to work. Whether it’s the library, a coffee shop, or your room, get yourself in a comfortable working atmosphere. Just don’t chain yourself to a desk or chair for too long. Take short breaks every hour or so to readjust your eyes and to get up and stretch; get that blood flowing.
If after a good night sleep, a hearty breakfast, and a few glasses of water, you still aren’t motivated to work, make a list or update a calendar to remind yourself how soon your assignments are due. If you still aren’t feeling up to do your work and will be procrastinating until everything is due at once in May, try to make earlier deadlines for yourself such as you want an outline for that final paper done in a week. Giving yourself small tasks will keep you focused, more productive, and help you still feel accomplished.
Giving yourself something to look forward to is a good way to get through the mid semester slump. Planning something fun with your friends from a weekend road trip to a simple dinner out with friends could give you something to look forward to as you slave away (on Facebook…). I’m kidding. Have a trustworthy friend change your password on Facebook and have them promise not to let you know the new password until you are done with whatever assignments you are working on.
So get up! Get out! And get stuff done!
-TravelBug
I’m reading Leadership: Theory and Practice
Chances are you have probably failed a test, quiz or exam at one point or another. If you haven’t, bravo, but if you have then you understand the feeling of anxiety and panic thinking that there is no way you can overcome such a huge blow to your grade. However, there is a way that you can make up for those points and possibly avoid receiving an F in the future.
- Staying on top of your homework in the beginning of the semester/quarter will alleviate future problems. There is a reason for homework, although some people call it busy work. Homework is designed for you to refresh your memory about what you learned in class that day, and to bring back any questions you may have about your assignment. Homework to a student is what exercise is to an athlete – they go hand-in-hand. In order for an athlete to grow, he or she has to exercise and practice. In the same, we have homework and assignments so that we are practicing the material before an exam is given. Nothing feels worse than getting an exam where you are unsure about over 50 percent of the questions.
- Reach out for help from your professors. They’re not scary people who will look down upon you for letting them know that you don’t understand the course material. If you fail an exam, go to your professor and ask them about the reason you received low marks on some of your questions. Ask them what you can do next time to improve, and let them know that you’re struggling. Keeping quiet and hiding in the back of the classroom doesn’t prove to the professor that you actually care about your grade. Faculty members more than likely will not approach their students, so it’s wise to show them that you care by letting them know you’re having difficulties understanding what their teaching.
- Be honest about the decisions you are making. This point is for the people who blame everyone else but themselves for failing their exam. Simply put: if you choose to go out and party knowing you have an exam at 8 a.m., then that’s your prerogative. However, if you fail that exam the next day or miss taking the test, then that’s your fault. It’s your responsibility to make choices based upon priorities that you have and the impression you want to make. Professors are very keen on knowing the students who legitimately try to learn the course material versus the ones who are just taking a class because they’re required to do so.
- Never give up on yourself. Failing an exam is rough, and makes you feel like all of the studying in the world isn’t good enough. In fact, a lot of students will give up on themselves after receiving an F because they feel like they will never learn the course material. However, beating yourself up for something that you didn’t fully understand is not going to solve the problem or make you ready for the next exam. Take the time to find out what the problems were so that you can fix them and be prepared for your next test. By pushing forward you will find that it isn’t the end of the world and that you can succeed after failing an exam.
-Compton
I’m reading Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics
Tip #1:Get organized
The first step to exam taking is knowing when the exam will be. Get a planner or calendar that allows you to see and take note of exams in the week and upcoming weeks. Having a planner can also help one to set specific study times, classes, tutoring, etc. The planner/calendar will help you organize your time and prepare for the exam.
Tip #2:Find a quiet place to study
For many freshman, the first year of college means dorm life. Dorm life means that there are people around 24/7 and not everyone in the dorm will be running on the same schedule. Finding a quiet, secluded, space to study will allow one to focus more. A good place to look for is a quiet nook in the library or quiet area of a classroom building. Sometimes studying with friends might not be the best way to study. Go to a place where your friends might not find you, and bother you.
Tip #3:Turn your cell phone/iPod/TV/computer off
Believe it or not, Facebook is NOT a study tool. Tweeting to your friends about review problems and answers isn’t quite effective either. TURN IT OFF. Turning off your cell phone/ipod/TV/computer allows for less distractions. Most of the time, all you need is your book, a highlighter, notebook, and a good cup of coffee. If you worry that people will be trying to get a hold of you, update your Facebook status telling your friends you are studying and you will be unavailable for a trip to the cafe, but maybe after the exam is over.
Tip #4:Learn to say NO
Opportunities are perpetually lurking on a college campus. In a dorm full of hundred of kids, getting an invite to hang out isn’t usually hard to find. The hardest thing to say to a friend might be, “No”. If you have an exam in the morning and you know that you do not understand the information being tested over like the back of your hand, declining an invitation to a late-night trip to Wal-Mart would be in your best interest. No is a word in our vocabulary, DON’T BE AFRAID TO USE IT. There will always be another opportunity to play video games. In college, you only get one opportunity to take a test. Learn how to say no at the right time.
Tip #5:Study more than 1 day in advance
Some people learn better when they “cram” for exams. Rarely does a student not benefit from studying a couple of days in advance. Allow yourself some time in your schedule to study and review your notes for the exam. Reading or rereading the assigned reading assignments might be boring, but beneficial. The professors assign the readings for a reason. Organize your notes, retype them, review them. By giving yourself a few days to soak the information in, the day before the exam might not be so hectic.
Tip #6:Get sleep
Sleep is essential, especially when it comes to exam week. Getting the proper sleep the night before the exam is especially important, but throughout the week as well. If you know that you are already exhausted in a regular day after getting only 7 hours asleep, adding more studying into the equation can take even more energy out of you. When you have enough energy, it is easier to focus on what you are studying. What college student doesn’t love getting a couple of extra hours of sleep anyways??
Tip #7:Take study breaks
We are not robots, so sitting for hours looking at pages and pages of readings and notes is not exciting. By allowing yourself to take short and frequent study breaks, information will be retained more than if a student were to study for hours straight through the night. Study for an hour, take a short 10 minute break (check your Facebook if you must, send a tweet, update your location on foursquare), but get right back to serious study mode. By giving your brain a break, you can remember more of what you have learned.
Tip #8:Add free-time to your schedule
College is a serious place. It can make you or break you. College can introduce you to your best friends, show you places you want to go, and help you find out who you want to be. The purpose of college is not solely to immerse yourself in textbooks and notebooks. There are tons of opportunities, so get out there and take one!! You can’t take life too seriously, have fun, laugh often, and put yourself around friends you enjoy. Leave some space in your planner for some free-time for yourself or to spend time with friends. You will be less stressed and have a smile on your face.
Do you have any de-stressing tips for fellow college students? If so, we want to hear them!
Kat VonD
I am reading Mathematical Applications
So it happened this Wednesday, I had my first exam in my only Pass/Fail class of the semester. This means I need a 60% to pass the class, so obviously I’m not going out to pay over $100 for a book that I most likely won’t use except for 2 nights before exams during some light cramming. I also knew that my teacher mentioned that a huge portion of the exam would be key terms she had highlighted during lectures that are in the text. She was obviously putting some emphasis on using the book for studying. Being that I had not bought the book yet I was a little worried. I logged onto eCampus.com and checked for the book, the new price was $126.10, I’m not spending that much money on a pass/fail class. In comes the eBook, at a cost of only $77.60. Great!! I’m saving $48.50. Not only that but I can search through the book like it’s a webpage for all of those key terms my prof had recommended studying. So a few hours of studying and a good nights sleep later I’m sitting in a classroom waiting to take the exam. In walks Tim, a good friend and fellow intern here at eCampus, I asked if he was ready. He calmly replied, “Of course I am. I nabbed that eBook last night and saved some loot”.
SeanJohn
I’m reading Financial and Managerial Accounting
