OK, there are seven weeks left in the semester. It’s crunch time. Projects to the left, tests to the right, homework in front, and failure nipping at your heels. What’s a student to do? Fortunately, there are ways to perform well academically and stay happy as the end of the semester draws near. These methods fall into two major categories: how to work, and how to relax.
The most important way to make a workload easier is with good time management. Nan Williams, assistant director and learning skills specialist of the Advising and Learning Center, outlined “a three pronged approach.”
“It’s a look at three different things: the biggest is the whole semester, we look at the week, and then we look at the day. So when you’re looking at the semester, basically you take the syllabus from each of your classes and you plot out on your semester calendar . . . all of your due dates. When are my exams, my projects, my papers, my presentations, put them on a calendar, put it on the wall. So at a glance you can see what you have left to do for this semester,” added Williams.
Another important part of time management is dealing with large projects. The best method, according to Advising and Learning Assistance Center Director Jeannie Stiegler, is to “break things into small chunks,” and talk to the professor about exactly what he is looking for. She advises students to “look at the big project, and break it up, and then always have a check. It’s like a feedback loop. On circuits, if it’s not all on, if something’s going wrong, it’s better to catch it before you have to hand it in and the professor says, ‘This is not what I wanted.’”
Other tips for academic success include studying in between classes, always reviewing one’s notes before and after class, maintaining contact with the professor, and above all keeping up with the homework.
Indeed, time management is essential for maintaining a stress-free work schedule. After all, more important than setting down when to study for Class A and when to study for Class B, is not stressing out about the work that needs to be done and the grades that will be the end result. The key is “organizing your life, and then you also have time to relax and have fun,” said Williams.
It is always easiest to relax after all the work is done, but a sense that the work is getting done can be just as satisfying. “It’s easier to relax . . . if you feel that you’re doing everything else you need to do,” observed Williams.
So the end result is not to get a good grade, but rather to learn something and have fun also. Projects and tests are a means to an end, no more. All the calendars, studying strategies, and help sessions are not as important as being relaxed about one’s work. Far more than anything else, maintaining such an attitude is the key to surviving the end of the semester crunch.
“There’s always going to be, in a semester, sort of peaks and valleys, and at the end of the semester there’s always going to be a lot of things due. But it’s sort of knowing that yes, I’m going to be busy, but I can handle it,” said Stiegler.
