Finals. The word is often intimidating and leaves an unwanted aftertaste in many students’ mouths and minds. The academic world that is currently being experienced by many youth and adults today can be regarded at being at its most rigorous. Now, more than ever before the pressure from oneself, family, friends, teachers, and peers is at its peak. One blemish on a report card or resume’ can lead to unwanted results. Finals are just one of the many things in the current academic system that offers no room for mistakes.
There are several ways an individual can approach this daunting period. One way is by being well prepared. Anxiety is often stemmed from the lack of preparation. A couple things that can prepare for oneself for finals or finals week in general are writing note cards, reading material, and being well-rested.
` Another way that one can approach finals is by asking previous students of the current class or classes how the finals are conducted. Though the finals may have changed over the years, the more familiar one can be with the final, the more comfortable they can be. This would alleviate a lot of stress and pressure.
As stated by urban dictionary finals week is “The worst week of a college or high school student‘s life.” Twitter, a prominent branch of social media, is often used as an outlet for venting during finals week. So prominent is the discomfort of this particular week that #finalsweek has even been on the trending page. This is an indication of the popularity of the subject.
Knowing that finals week is a stressful time of the year for students, many educational institutions have their ways of relieving or alleviating the stress accompanied with it. One particular way that UMaine has attempted to relieve the stress for many of its students is through the establishment of what they call a “brain-spa.” This spa offered students ways to relieve their stress. During their stay at the spa students had the opportunity to learn many different ways to relieve their stress, learning therapies and relaxation techniques. Kelly Shaw, resident psychologist, describes the spa as an ideal way for students to escape from the stress that they have to deal with daily. “Many of the things that we have available are things that our clients benefit from,” Shaw describes the facility.
Stress can often be regarded as an overwhelming matter. These are a couple ways that students can deal with the stress of finals week.