Finals can be one of the most stressful times of the school year. Every semester, students are tasked with condensing months of lectures, assignments, and readings into a few hours of testing. While the goal is always to ace the exam, the path to get there is often paved with anxiety. For example, Abby Manzo, a student who admits she is always dreading this time of year, and is focusing on her finals with her hardest final in her fire ops and tech class and biology. She suggests that “writing it out helps a lot, and getting exercise is a great way to help clear the mind for academics.”
Similarly Cameron Perotta reports that she also is feeling stressed, studying for her hardest finals of the semester: college algebra, AP government and politics, and chemistry. Her studying tip is to “Not to cram everything in one day- spread it out to effectively study and do the work.”
While everyone handles the pressure differently, a common theme among students is a mix of stress and the desire to simply “get it over with.” Other students are also looking forward to the three day weekend after finals and wrapping up the first semester. If you are dreading the week of finals or managing a tough schedule with studying the sentiment remains the same: finals are a high season of stress and even higher stakes, but by spreading out the work load and taking care of your mental health through exercise and preparation you can succeed and make to the end of the semester in one piece.
