10 Stages Of Writing A Final Paper | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

10 Stages Of Writing A Final Paper

We all have to go through it eventually.

35
10 Stages Of Writing A Final Paper
Google Images

Now that it's finals week, we all have to face the facts: those paper assignments we got at the beginning of the semester are finally due. There's nothing holding you back anymore: no excuses of too much other work, or having a test to study for, or that "it's not due for another three week I've got plenty of time!". We all have to face the music. Here're the 10 stages we all know and love of writing the dreaded final paper.

1. A Few Weeks Before the Deadline: you get the assignment and think: "great! This isn't due 'till the end of the semester, I don't have to worry about this for like a month!"

It's at this point that the prompt seems easy, and the page length seems manageable. Fifteen pages on American democracy? No problem!

2. And now, you promptly forget about the assignment, burying it with all your other work that's due at the end of the semester. Paper, what paper?



3. But suddenly, the professor mentions the assignment in class and it hits you: wait, it's only one week away now??

This is when the panic starts to set in, and your frantically going through all your assignments trying to find the prompt. How could you forget this??

4. Once you find the prompt and the second stage of panic dies down, it's time for stage two of procrastination.

You do some lighthearted research, maybe write down a loose outline. At this point, your still able to convince yourself that just looking at the prompt is the equivalent to actually starting the essay.


5. As the deadline starts to get a bit closer, you can finally prompt yourself into actually getting words down on the page. Sure they're not great words, but it's better than nothing, right?


6. It's about three days before the paper's actually due. You think you're in good shape, but then after you read over your rough draft you realize: what on earth was I thinking? This is the second stage of panic, where you doubt every argument you've made, and don't even know if what you wrote down qualifies as English.

Time to rewrite the whole thing!

7. Two days until the due date isn't too last minute to email the professor, right?

Dear Professor,

How do I put this eloquently?

Please send help!

Sincerely,

A Severely Screwed Student

8. And with one day to spare, you finally get to your last draft. It's been a long time coming, but you're finally free! Go and watch some Netflix, you deserve it.


9. But wait!! You realize you have a ton of citations to do before you can hand it in. This is the last stage of panic, the "where-did-I-even-get-this-quote-from" and "does-this-even-technically-need-a-citation?" kind of panic.


10. When the citation catastrophe is averted, and you finally have your paper done, it's time to print that thing out and hand it triumphantly to your professor.

But of course, that's not before a mini printer crisis, followed by another mini melt down, until finally, you straggle into class, holding that 15 page paper in hand. You practically throw it at the professor, begging them to take it away from you. And then, the relief.

You made it through! And it wasn't that bad in the end, right?


Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
campus
CampusExplorer

New year, new semester, not the same old thing. This semester will be a semester to redeem all the mistakes made in the previous five months.

1. I will wake up (sorta) on time for class.

Let's face it, last semester you woke up with enough time to brush your teeth and get to class and even then you were about 10 minutes late and rollin' in with some pretty unfortunate bed head. This semester we will set our alarms, wake up with time to get ready, and get to class on time!

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 5 Painfully True Stages Of Camping Out At The Library

For those long nights that turn into mornings when the struggle is real.

1024
woman reading a book while sitting on black leather 3-seat couch
Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

And so it begins.

1. Walk in motivated and ready to rock

Camping out at the library is not for the faint of heart. You need to go in as a warrior. You usually have brought supplies (laptop, chargers, and textbooks) and sustenance (water, snacks, and blanket/sweatpants) since the battle will be for an undetermined length of time. Perhaps it is one assignment or perhaps it's four. You are motivated and prepared; you don’t doubt the assignment(s) will take time, but you know it couldn’t be that long.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 14 Stages Of The Last Week Of Class

You need sleep, but also have 13 things due in the span of 4 days.

732
black marker on notebook

December... it's full of finals, due dates, Mariah Carey, and the holidays. It's the worst time of the year, but the best because after finals, you get to not think about classes for a month and catch up on all the sleep you lost throughout the semester. But what's worse than finals week is the last week of classes, when all the due dates you've put off can no longer be put off anymore.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 20 Thoughts College Students Have During Finals

The ultimate list and gif guide to a college student's brain during finals.

85
winter

Thanksgiving break is over and Christmas is just around the corner and that means, for most college students, one hellish thing — finals week. It's the one time of year in which the library becomes over populated and mental breakdowns are most frequent. There is no way to avoid it or a cure for the pain that it brings. All we can do is hunker down with our books, order some Dominos, and pray that it will all be over soon. Luckily, we are not alone in this suffering. To prove it, here are just a few of the many deranged thoughts that go through a college student's mind during finals week.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

28 Daily Thoughts of College Students

"I want to thank Google, Wikipedia, and whoever else invented copy and paste. Thank you."

1416
group of people sitting on bench near trees duting daytime

I know every college student has daily thoughts throughout their day. Whether you're walking on campus or attending class, we always have thoughts running a mile a minute through our heads. We may be wondering why we even showed up to class because we'd rather be sleeping, or when the professor announces that we have a test and you have an immediate panic attack.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments