NAOMI LYNCH
Social Media Manager
Dead week.
No, we aren’t literally dead, but nearly all of the students resemble animated corpses as finals week looms ahead in a rush to cram information in their heads. While most of us are practicing our zombie shuffle, freshman students are filled with fear: These are the first grades of their college careers.
Some are seasoned veterans of the final two weeks of the semester, so here are a few nuggets of advice to the new freshman class.
Surviving during dead week
Hold the caffeine.
“My advice would be please, please, please — match your water intake to your caffeine intake,” insisted senior mathematics major Harper Horton.
According to MayoClinic.com, the maximum amount of caffeine adults should be consuming is about 400 milligrams a day, roughly the equivalent to “four cups of brewed coffee, 10 cans of [soda] or two ‘energy shot’ drinks.”
What happens if you decided to partake in additional caffeine consumption?
Insomnia. Restlessness. Irritability. Muscle tremors. The list goes on.
MedicalDaily.com suggested that excessive caffeine intake can lead to anxiety and psychosis, where the person begins to see delusions. So don’t drink too much!
“I promise you that you’ll do better if you get sleep instead of pulling an all-nighter,” Horton also adds.
Stick to your study habits:
“My number one [piece of] advice would be to not change your study habits,” said senior music industry major Hannah Boddery. “If you think coming to the library — or using a different study habit — will get you to success, then it might be possible, but it might turn you around into going to a completely different direction. So definitely enforce the study habits you have now!”
According to Fastcompany.com, if you want to change your habits, it’s wise to start small. “Habits don’t start to feel ‘automatic’ until you’ve done them for about 66 days straight, and before then, you have to use willpower — which, like a muscle, can get fatigued — to initiate the task,” the website said.
So keep with it and start changing your habits after finals.
Tackling exam week
“Don’t procrastinate. Study a little bit at a time and make time for yourself too,” said Spanish adolescence education senior Jordan Holmes. “Get together with friends to study so you don’t go stir-crazy — and take some breaks too … you’ve been working all semester for this, so make sure you keep up the good work to finish strong.”
Want to beat procrastination? “Prioritize,” said MindTools.com. Start with the things you need to finish ASAP first, and then work your way down to the low priority items. To make you study session fly by, incentivise it. Give yourself a piece of candy for each ten questions you get right. You can get as creative as you want.
Psychology senior Brianna Boylan mirrors Holmes’ advice: “Prepare for all tests during dead week and don’t slack just because it seems like there is no work to do,” she said.
“Don’t do [finals week],” BFA acting junior Brianna Covington jokes. “It’s a trap!”
“You are your biggest critic,” she said. “So don’t stress. Just do [it.]”
Listen, freshman: you’ve got this. We’re all here to help you. Take advantage of it and kick some ass during finals week!