Fall Final Crunch Time
Danielle Rowe
With less than two weeks to go for finals, it’s time to take advantage of DSU resources for excelling. The Karl Mundt Library is an excellent place to prep for finals and asking help from tutors. The library is open longer, until midnight. At 10:00PM during extended hours, apple cider, fruit, and freshly popped popcorn is available to students for free!
Listed are the extended library hours for before and during finals. Library closed on Saturdays, but open Sunday, December 4th 2:00 PM-Midnight. On Monday – Thursday, Dec 5th – 8th library open from 8:00AM until Midnight. Sunday, Dec 11th- 2:00 PM- Midnight. Monday – Wednesday, Dec 12th-14th hours open from 8:00AM-Midnight. Transfer student Taylor Mosco will make use of the later library hours, “I am preparing by spending more time in the library and using my time wisely with trying to stay as organized and ready for exams,” said Mosco.
Also, to help with preparing for successful finals, read the following tips provided by the Huff Post.
1. Study in Chunks: Dartmouth Academic Skills Center stated you should study in 20-50 minute increments and give yourself a 5 to 10 minute break between each session. For best results, study throughout one full week.
2. Listen to Classical music: Even though the majority of college students are into the fast hard hitting rock, rap, or country, this may not be the best choice for study retention. Certain types of music, like Mozart’s compositions, which follow a 60 bpm pattern and have been shown to activate both the right and left sides of the brain in listeners and will help increase the likely hood of retaining relevant information.
3. Change Study Locations: The New York Times explained that rather than sticking to one study spot, you should switch things up when reviewing for exams.
4. Drink Cocoa: Packed with antioxidants as well as cognitive and mood enhancers, the unadulterated cacao bean has been recently lauded as a super food, This increases optimal energy, but make sure to stay away from processed chocolate bars and stay with coco powder.
5. Gather up Study Buddies: Study groups can motivate you to get started when it’s hard to motivate yourself. Plus, explaining difficult concepts out loud will help you figure out what you understand and what you still need to go over, and getting a group together will allow you to divide and conquer definition of terms and explanations of concepts. And if you can get each member to bring a snack, that’s incentive to actually meet
If mere mention of the phrase “final exam” makes your heart beat a little faster, mastering exam material may not be all you need to worry about.
6. Prevent Test Anxiety: To calm yourself down and prevent from blanking during the test and spend some time before the exam imagining yourself acing it. You also might want to induce stress while studying, and then practice quelling fear by taking deep breaths, focusing on what you know and keeping things (including the importance of the test) in perspective.
7. Work Out: According to some, just 20 minutes of cardio a day can help improve your memory. And for those of you who can, cardio outside is even better and taking a break in nature is more relaxing than taking a walk around campus, which calls upon you to engage actively with your environment.
8. Manage Time Wisely: By the time finals roll around, your time is precious where every minute counts. Which is why scheduling is essential during the weeks prior to exams. So as not to go totally bonkers during this stressful time, make a realistic study schedule for yourself. Leave yourself time for breaks, you’ll be taking them anyway and be sure to prioritize according to which class you’ll need to study for the most.
9. Ask for Help Talk to your Professor: Nobody ever wants to go to office hours, which is why professors are happy whenever students do show up. The trick is to go a few weeks before finals, when you are sure to have plenty of time to meet and discuss. Even if you only have one question, feedback from a professor will help you figure out what he thinks is most important, and will help you figure out what to focus on while studying.
10. Approach Every Class Differently: If you try to study for your calculus exam the way you would study for a literature exam, you probably won’t do very well because of the difference in subject matter.
11. Build On What Already Know: Start by studying what you know and add more difficult or recent material as you proceed, you can associate new information with familiar material. Rather than taking on intimidating amounts of new information, this will ease you into a comprehensive review and ensure you don’t forget basics.
12. Make Studying Interesting: Just as it’s harder to recall a list of 20 words than a 20-word sentence, it’s harder to recall a list of boring facts than a story to help retain information, try to connect with whatever it is you’re learning. Whether by using memory aids or making facts personal, bringing test material to life will make it much easier to remember.
12 ways study guide resource: Huff Post
