A Guide to Surviving Finals in Grad School

With December comes thoughts of celebrating the holiday season, cozy snow days in, and…the dread and stress of getting through finals. Here is a guide to help you prepare for finals in a way that will not make you feel as burnt out.

Study in Chunks

Breaking up study content into small increments over time I have found has helped me manage my stress. In undergrad, I would sometimes fall victim to non-stop cramming in my studying for exams at the last minute. Though I was able to succeed despite this, I found it extremely stressful, and it took a huge toll on my mental health during exam season. To combat this, I started studying ahead of time, typically a week in advance, and broke up the content to be studied into chunks. For instance, if there are five modules being covered for a particular exam, I would break up studying each day focusing on one specific module. This made it more manageable to absorb copious amounts of information and made me feel substantially less anxious.

Take breaks

Taking breaks while studying is crucial for self-care. Non-stop studying can increase feelings of exhaustion and burn out. Taking small breaks, even to just enjoy a meal while watching your favorite show, makes all the difference. Remember that your performance while absorbing information will not increase if you are constantly focused and ill-rested. Another good way to utilize a break is to give yourself some phone time to catch up with friends and even take a quick power nap.

Prioritize

Prioritizing your studying is a great tool to maximize performance for exams. This can either be in the form of prioritizing for an exam that is sooner than others or an exam for a class you feel would be more difficult. Prioritizing is a good tool to use so you do not feel as overwhelmed studying heavily for two or more exams at once. Being able to prioritize will help with staying on-top of upcoming deadlines as well as help you do better overall.

Do activities in-between studying that bring you joy 

Doing things that bring you joy always improves mental health, so why stop doing those things during exam season? Sure, frequently doing activities to avoid getting your studying done is unproductive. However, grabbing dinner with friends on a Friday evening before a Monday exam, or putting time in at the gym in the morning before you plan on studying throughout the day are great ways to still fuel your love for other activities while still prioritizing studying. This is important to reduce burnout and excess anxiety.