Finals make up the greatest week of the whole semester. Not only are we excited to go home and rest or earn some money, but we’re forced to take a bunch of exams during all of that excitement.

I really do appreciate exam week. There aren’t any classes, and all I have to worry about are tests. Sometimes the tests are harder than usual, but sometimes they’re exactly the same as all of the others we’ve taken during the year. On top of that, without classes there is oodles of time to study and pack. It is amazing how much more time to relax you get during exam week.

However, this also comes with some down sides. This time you are leaving for a few months and could possibly forget some important things in your apartment, or dorm if you’re not the last one leaving. On top of that, the packing list tends to be too long and a much bigger burden than the one for winter break. Frankly, the packing list should probably be started within the last week of classes and then be subject to scrutiny after that point.

On top of that, we are pretty much fed up with the semester, but studying is still important. Knowing when you have your exams is the key to having a study plan. You don’t necessarily need a plan that is set in stone, but it is good to have some sort of idea. It is always better to study for the most difficult and most immediate finals first, but sometimes the most difficult tests are not the first ones you have to worry about.

The worst problem with studying during finals is the attraction of spending more time with friends. After all, there is more free time during finals week and you won’t be seeing many of your peers during the vacation, but it is still more important to study and not spend your time goofing off. Unless they are not the most academically-inclined people, your friends will be here again when you get back. There is no reason to risk a bad final grade just to spend more time with them.

As for the keeping of the dorm rooms, it is a smart idea to start cleaning sooner rather than later. Also, talking to your suitemates about bathroom duties can be a great help. If you do not communicate with them then there is always a good possibility that you will do all of the cleaning by yourself. The same thing goes for the room. If you do not talk to your roommate about who is leaving first and what is going to be done, then most of the work could fall into your lap. With all of the studying and packing going on, it is not reasonable to put off the cleaning or to take on all of it.

Most importantly, remember to relax, but be safe over summer break. Break is always more fun when you come back healthy and ready for another long, busy semester.

Cover photo by Kasey Sutphin

Story photo from Creative Commons

Tags: cleaning, exam week, Finals, packing, Radford University, Whim, winter break

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 27th, 2010 at 12:00 am and is filed under Vent. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.