If I had to pick one thing that I don’t like about college, it would be having to take finals.  As much as I look forward to Christmas and summer break, I sometimes dread the approach of both because it reminds me that final exams lie in the near future. Some of my classmates may not detest finals to the degree that I do, but then again, they probably don’t procrastinate like I do, either. I have a tendency to put things off…when it comes to papers, lab reports, or final projects, I always think, “Oh, I’ll just work on it tomorrow.” Before I know it, all those “tomorrows” are gone, and it’s time to turn in all that stuff AND take final exams!

But, in the midst of all the craziness and stress at the end of each semester, finals week can be…fun…in a weird sort of way. When you’re downstairs in the Derby Center at 2am and need to ask someone a question or need someone to drive you to McDonald’s for a late-night snack, there’s plenty of people around. I doubt that there are more than a dozen people who actually get a full 8 hours of sleep during this time. Most of us are lucky to get four…. And not having to get up at 8am to go to class also makes taking finals a bit more tolerable.

I speak from experience when I say that the best way to prepare for finals is to begin early. It eliminates tons of unnecessary stress that comes from procrastinating and trying to cram the night before a final exam. The earlier you begin studying, the better you will do.