3 Exams, 1 Week.
Reflecting on Sunday: At the beginning of the semester, I collected all of my syllabi from my classes and made a stacked chart with the dates of exams, papers, and quizzes. I found that there would be a few weeks where I had several important assignments back to back. To prepare, I have begun reading ahead and taking notes the weekend before my weeks starts. I am currently taking Abnormal Psychology, Biology, Intro to Sociology, Intro to Africa, and Macroeconomics. These classes have gifted me with 4 different textbooks, an abundance of articles and research papers, and many forms of assessments. Therefore, on weekends, I find myself reading 3 chapters of Biology, 1-2 chapters of Sociology, a chapter of Macroeconomics, and several articles. During the week, I end up having more time to focus on individual assignments, studying, and attending campus events.
I knew this week was coming up, but it is still hard to look forward to.
- Monday: Psychology Exam
- Tuesday: Biology Lab and quiz
- Friday: Sociology and Biology Exam
I feel a little stressed, but one of my best methods to help manage my stress if to schedule out my days and times. I generally make a compiled list of things to accomplish for the week and then I section if off by days. For each individual day, I section each assignment to a certain time with times for breaks and dinner included. Methods like this can be learned or discovered personally or through resources like the Center for Student Well being.
Reflecting on Tuesday evening: I feel like I am already halfway through the week and I am stressed. I spent most of the weekend studying and I woke up at 5am Monday morning to study at Panera for my psychology test. It was a little hard, but I was relieved when it was over. In fact, I was so exhausted that I went to sleep at 7pm without even meaning to. Of course this threw my schedule off and I was behind in the work I needed to get done. When I woke up at midnight, all I could do was study for my lab quiz the next day. So today, I am behind on some of my reading and I still need to study for my other two exams later this week, but today was a busy day. Outside of class, I attended a workshop from the Student Leadership Office which focused on finding and maintaining the internal motivation one needs to work towards their ideal self.
Reflecting on Friday evening: I made it through. Luckily one of my exams was moved to next week on Thursday night, giving me extra time to dedicate to biology. I am relieved that this week is over, but I will have to do it again next week with my Sociology and Macroeconomics exam. Before I start studying for those, I will definitely need to de-stress for the week and spend some time on Netflix or with friends.