Dr. Bryan Blum’s School Survival Guide: How to Thrive During Finals

TLDR: Creating and maintaining a schedule for studying, sleeping, eating, and breaks will help reduce stress and anxiety during finals.

One of the best parts of being out of graduate school is no more papers, tests, or homework. Well, there is still grading, but that’s a different problem. Every year, students of all ages dread the upcoming final exam schedule before the sweet, sweet release of summer. I won’t say these five TIPS will eliminate the final blues, but they sure will help. Here are five ways to do your best and minimize your stress.

1. Create a schedule

Procrastination is the enemy of the student—and yet it’s so appealing to so many. Just do it tomorrow. You can get it done later. You have plenty of time to write that paper. And then, all of a sudden, it’s three hours before a deadline and you only have a cover page. This can be avoided by dedicating specific times to work. The more structured your day is, the easier it is to prepare and work.

2. And stick to it

So many times, when a schedule gets created, it gets ignored. Procrastination strikes again. A way to get around this is to remember why you want to get work done in advance. Write up a story about all of the times when you procrastinated and read it to yourself before wanting to skip out on scheduled study time. Sometimes it takes a reminder to avoid reliving the same mistake over and over again.

3. Prioritize sleep

Opposite our procrastinators are our overachievers—the ones who study all night and become friends with the newspaper delivery person in the morning when returning to their beds (newspapers still get delivered, right?). This can actually be as bad as procrastinating because your brain stores information in long-term memory during sleep. If you don’t get enough of it, you won’t remember what you studied and will have put in all of that work for nothing. Going to bed early and waking up to study more is actually more effective than pulling an all-nighter. Your body needs enough energy in order to function at its best. Speaking of energy…

4. Prioritize eating full meals

One cannot survive on coffee and energy drinks alone. The body needs fuel and rest. Just like sleep, it’s actually more productive to take time to eat than it is to keep studying and live off of protein bars. Think of your body like a fancy car. You can’t give a Porsche cheap gas; it will ruin the car. Keep your brain Porsche running smoothly by giving it what it asks for: real food.

5. Take breaks

In addition to being a Porsche, you are also a Kit Kat bar—you need a break (thank you, I’ll be here all week). Take some time to have fun. You will reduce stress and replenish your energy levels if you do so. Now don’t fall into the procrastination trap, but if you schedule breaks and stick to that schedule, your body will thank you for it. Plus, there’s only so much reading your body can do before your brain becomes mush. No mushy brains.

If you are reading this and feel your anxiety spiking, it may be beneficial to have some help navigating this time. Here at Therapeutic Interventions and Psychological Services, we work with stressed students to help them achieve their best. Schedule your free 15-minute consultation to see if we can help.