Surviving finals week

Author: Aylie Baker and Tess Russell

This morning, in an effort to put off doing our homework for just a little bit longer - what's 10 more wasted minutes after an entire week of unproductivity - we got out some magic markers, inhaled their sweet and intoxicating fragrance, and channeled all of our modest artistic abilities into comprehensive finals "master" calendars. We then proceeded to siphon off every 40-minute block of time from now until Dec. 16, effectively relieving ourselves of those oppressive constraints of "freedom" and "flexibility." The good news is that we can now tell you exactly what we'll be doing from 9:40-10:20 p.m. next Wednesday (brushing our teeth, while cleaning our Uggs, while working on those journal entries we've forgotten to do all semester). The bad news is that finishing all of our assignments will, apparently, be impossible. (Granted, we did allot ourselves a generous four hours of sleep each night.)

Between professors squeezing in last-minute papers and labs before classes end and final exams fast approaching, this is undoubtedly one of the most trying periods of the academic year. We can't tell you how to best cram for your Poli Sci final, but we can say this: while it's important to keep your nose to the grindstone, you should also be sure to take the occasional mental health break or, at the very least, inject some much-needed cheer into your standard study routine. The following tips should help get you started.