Summer is almost here! It's three more weeks till endless (i.e. three months) freedom. However, the freedom will be hard fought, for before us lies the dreaded Finals week(s): the sleep-deprived, stress-and-junk-food-and-caffeine-fuelled hellish time period of two weeks when all the positive vibes and GPAs take a dive. The tunnel seems endless, and the light at the end flickers dangerously, bordering on being extinguished. Having survived four Finals weeks, I may or may not have come up with a starter pack/survival guide for this excruciating time of the year.
1. INVEST ON A PLANNER.
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This might seem like a no-brainer, but the number of people who don't utilize a planner is astounding. Now, it doesn't need to be a fancy Moleskine one which probably costs more than my soul at this point. A regular notebook will do, as long as it has all of your study plans on it. Break down those huge syllabuses and final projects into manageable pieces and work on them everyday.VERY IMPORTANT: STICK TO THE PLAN. Trust yourself to make a good personal study/work schedule and follow it.
2. DO NOT MULTITASK.
No matter how good you are at it generally, I highly discourage you to multitask while studying for finals. Not only will your split attention require more time to be spent on the task at hand, you will also end up learning and remembering less because you were trying to enter unrelated pieces of information in your brain at the same time. As difficult as it might seem, try to compartmentalize your thoughts and focus on one thing at a time. It'll save you a lot of time (and sanity).
3. DO NOT DRINK THAT RED BULL
To be honest, I love caffeine. I once cried tears of joy in an Organic Chemistry lab when we had to extract caffeine from tea and I met the love of my life for the first time in its purest form. But no matter how much caffeine/energy drinks save our grades (and social life) on a daily basis, going overboard with them during finals week is never a good idea. Limit yourself to 1-2 cups of coffee at most. Instead, opt for non-caffeinated tea as your hot drink of choice to keep you up during late night study sessions or drowsy evenings.
4. TAKE BREAKS
No seriously, you NEED to take breaks. After you reach a certain point in your study session, you can't process any new material. Various studies have shown that working non-stop for 20-25 minutes followed by 5 minutes of break is very useful for retaining information and being on a steady learning curve. Taking a walk outside is strongly suggested, as is dancing to your favorite song. Binge-watching TV shows, however? Not so much
5. EAT HEALTHY
I know, finals week isn't the time to start paying attention to your diet. But all I'm saying is that atleast eat SOME fruits or vegetables each day. Drink a glass of fruit juice instead of soda (you can add some sparkling water to it if you like); drink a cup of green tea instead of another cup of coffee; eat an apple instead of a bag of chips or snack on some almonds instead of M&M's. These small steps will help you feel better AND make it less likely for you to fall ill due to the stress.
6. SLEEP
We all know about the importance of sleep, yet we all ignore it. Take it from someone who has pulled multiple all-nighters during her first finals week: it never pays off to stay awake for those extra hours. Give your brain some much-needed rest.
Does this work? You be the judge. If it's any consolation, I'm still alive and somewhat unscathed. So there is hope yet.
