Ah, finals… a week-long vacation to the land of stress, caffeine, and migraines. To current and soon-to-be college freshmen everywhere and anywhere, here are some of the things you've heard before, and some of the things people probably forgot to tell you before your first round with college finals.

1. You will have to study.

You may be that person in high school that slipped by without having to ever pick up a textbook or review your notes. In college, that person doesn't exist. You can choose not to study, sure, but you can also expect to fail if you don't.

2. Prepare study material ahead of time.

I cannot stress how the importance of how helpful it was for me to have flashcards and study guides put together before I really started studying for finals. One, it is a massive time-saver and two, it allows you more time to actually review the material, instead of having to take time to write up all those flashcards when you could be studying.

(And it'll save you from being this guy when your hands feels like falling off after you made a hundred flashcards in one half hour.)

3. Go to the review session.

You might think to yourself "I know this, I don't need to review". Yes, you do. Trust me, just go to the review because you won't be wasting your time.You cannot survive on caffeine.

(Yes, this is exactly what it feels like when your group makes a breakthrough on something you didn't understand.)

4. You cannot survive on caffeine.

I consumed just as ridiculous an amount of coffee during finals week as any other college student probably did, but the human body is not meant to run on nothing but caffeine. Food is so important for actually maintaining energy, and your body needs the nutrients.

5. Ask questions.

Speak up in class when you don't understand something, and go see your professors during office hours. They are there to help you and want to see you succeed, but you need to put in the effort to reach out when you need help.

(Seriously, be this person. Everyone else will silently thank you because they're wondering too but won't ask themselves.)

6. Get an outside opinion.

This applies more to writing papers, but get a friend to read over your work, or better yet, go to the writing center if your school has one. Whatever you need to do to get a second set of eyes to look over your speech, paper, or presentation. Often times, your eyes begin to glaze over little, fixable mistakes from looking at the same material for so long.

(Read the same essay a few times and this is all your eyes will start to see, trust me.)

7. Keep your spirits up.

No matter how worried or anxious you feel about a test or paper, remain positive because you are so much more likely to fail if you tell yourself ahead of time that there's no hope. When all is said and done, keep your head up. There is a lot to be said about the power of positive thinking.

8. You can study and socialize.

While it is important to spend a lot of time in the library or at your desk studying, don't forget to give your brain a break. Go get pizza with friends and simply stay away from your school work for an hour. When you come back, you'll have new energy and feel ready to get into the material that was probably making you go cross-eyed before.

9. Stay organized.

In high school, I always had a planner, and you can ask my mom - I never used it. Since getting to college, I've written in my planner my day to day life, color coded it, and I've made constant to-do lists on top of that. Around finals week, there are few things more beneficial to your grades and sanity than staying organized.

10. You are way more than a letter grade or a GPA.

At the end of the day, whether you aced that test or failed it, you are no less of a person than you were before. Bad grades happen to all of us, but never let one less than spectacular score make you think you are not capable of great things.

11. Don't forget to take care of yourself.

This is easily the most important piece of advice you can ever get about finals week. Your mental health and sanity come before a grade on a test or a paper. It's easy to get lost in the chaos of study groups and peer reviews and last minute cramming, and then you realized you haven't consumed anything other than your three cups of coffee. The human body is not designed to run effectively on caffeine and all-nighters. Prioritize your health and well-being for the best possible scores on a test or paper.