Talia Gray, Features Editor  

Believe it or not, we’re less than a month away from the last day of classes here at UNCG. That realization may give you a surge of relief or a sense of overwhelming pressure. Either way, the prospect of final exams, projects, holidays, and breaks means that things are about to get hectic for everyone in our campus community. With that in mind, here are some helpful tips and reminders for ending this fall semester strong.  

Communicate and Investigate  

Now is the time to gather information so you can avoid any surprises in these last few weeks of the semester. With final exams and breaks quickly approaching, it is important to know what to expect from your courses as well as the people around you, so you’re not caught off guard (and can best apply the tips in the Plan and Organize section). On the academic side of things, it’s time to review the final exam schedule— they’ll be here before you know it. Simultaneously, you may want to check your syllabi and/or Canvas pages for more information about the final exam/assignment in your courses. Is it a test or a presentation? Is your class meeting in person on the assigned final exam day or will your final assessment take place on the last day of class? On the other hand, you may have a final project that has its own submission deadline. You might have a combination of all these scenarios across each of your classes, so it’s important to review your course calendars and ask your instructors what you can expect from your finals.  

Also, it would also be worthwhile to look into on-campus resources that you might utilize for your courses. Places like the Communication Lab, the Academic Achievement Center and the Math Help Center may be useful resources to help you prepare for final assessments. Since these resources tend to get busy later in the semester, consider scheduling an appointment(s) as early as possible. If you’re unsure which resources would be most helpful, consider asking your professor. 

Finally, you should begin discussing travel or holiday plans with family and friends. With several fall and winter holidays coming up, coordinating any travel plans or social gatherings should be done sooner rather than later, so you may work around your final exams and projects.  

Plan and Organize 

Once you get clarity on all of these end-of-semester obligations, you should plan your course of action. By this time of the semester, it’s probably clear to you which organization systems or study habits do and don’t work for you, but the pressure of final exams may be a cause for trying something new. Below, you will find several study and assignment tracking methods that might help you get through final exams smoothly.  

1. Checklists 

Daily or weekly checklists are a great way to track your progress in your course assignments. If you have a journal that you use often or a reliable notes app on your phone, you can easily create checklists for yourself to ensure that you can complete all your assignments in a timely manner. Your checklist could take other forms to suit your needs, as well. Trello is a digital platform for project organizing that may be helpful for creating more in-depth checklists for assignments or longstanding projects.  

If simple checklists do not suit your study habits, you may adapt to a To-Do, Doing, Done system via Trello boards or a simple dry erase board. Rather than checking off items like you would in a simple To-Do list, you move items to the appropriate category based on how much progress you have made. This is a great system for tracking large projects and collaborating with others.  

2. Digital Calendars  

Keeping up with a digital calendar may be another option for tracking your assignments and upcoming deadlines. In many cases, you may sync existing calendars (like Canvas and Outlook) so that all approaching important dates are on one calendar platform. With a digital calendar, you may also carve out time for your own studies. While having a strict day-to-day schedule may be too stringent for most people, allotting an hour or two at the same time each day for studying or doing homework is great practice to keep yourself from procrastinating. Furthermore, adding this study time to your calendar makes balancing your responsibilities a lot easier. 

3. Study Groups  

Since finals are quickly approaching, you may want to consider organizing study groups with your friends/classmates. Study groups can help you stay accountable for actually studying during the time you’ve set aside. If need be, you may consider sharing your goals with your study mates, so that they might help you as much as they can. Outside of accountability, study groups might share lecture notes with one another to ensure each of them has the most relevant information. Consider using platforms like Goodnotes, OneNote (located in your Microsoft suite), or Notion for sharing digital notes rather than paper ones. 

Similarly, you all may consider creating flashcards for important concepts and vocabulary. During your study sessions, you might consider quizzing each other to promote everyone’s understanding of your course content.  

Enjoy!  

Last but certainly not least, find some time for joy in these next few weeks. As the semester gets increasingly hectic, you may begin to feel more stressed or become overwhelmed with studying and planning holiday travel. Just as you schedule time for studying, consider setting aside time for socializing with your friends and family, as well as time for yourself and your hobbies. It is perfectly reasonable to plan your studies so that you can avoid doing schoolwork while you’re traveling or celebrating holidays. You may feel inclined to isolate and bury yourself in your studies, but that is not a sustainable practice. If you start your preparations now and study regularly, cramming information days or hours before your exams will likely not be necessary. If you find that feelings of stress and/or dread are becoming overwhelming, consider visiting the Student Health Center’s Counseling services for support.  

Let’s all work together to finish this semester the best we can! If you follow some of the tips in this article, you’re sure to have an optimal finals season and gain some tools to start the spring semester relaxed and rejuvenated.