Advice Opinion

To the overwhelmed student

Dear Overwhelmed,

Finals are certainly overwhelming, and I do not blame you one bit for wanting to bury your head in the sand. A while back, I wrote an article on the final countdown and how to deal with the approaching of finals. I am glad you wrote me, because the best advice I can offer for finals is to relax and plan.

What I do want to talk about more is how to relax. Several campus resources can help you relax during finals, and Daily Cougar writer Nora Olabi wrote about them in her article “No need to fret over finals.” My advice on the matter is to take advantage of these opportunities and not worry about finals — or anything for that matter.

The second thing to do is plan. Create a study plan on when and where you’re going to study for what. Plan your meals, your sleep and your relaxation time. Plan everything! It is only a one- to two-week period, so it shouldn’t be too hard. I do want to offer a separate bit of advice to make sure you do not relax too much.

One warning is to be careful of Netflix. It is a wonderful creation but can take hours of your life. This goes for all relaxation methods. Don’t take too much of a good thing. Keep balance between relaxing and finals, and you will be just fine. Talk to your professors, talk to the TAs, talk to other students and relax.

Finals are tough for everyone in one way or another, but you, just like thousands of other students, will be just fine. After all, it’s called a final because it is the end of the semester — the final thing you do in the class to prove all that you have learned. Good luck on your finals and relax.

Yours truly,

Ryan

Questions and letters may be submitted to [email protected]

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