Many of us may have written countless final exams by now, but we are living in an unprecedented time and it can feel extra challenging to manage our academics, whether it is living in a different timezone, or being in too cozy of an environment (#WFH with no home office) because we are staying indoors most of the time. While we can’t make exams go away, here are 5 P’s to help you remain calm during finals season:
1. Plan. This can include everything from your schedule to your meals! It will end up saving you time. Some tips on planning:
Creating a personal or study schedule: take advantage of the free or built-in apps on your device like Microsoft OneNote, Google Calendar, iCal to create an hour-by-hour, daily, or weekly schedule for yourself to stick to. For a study schedule, try to be specific and outline what you plan to accomplish during those time blocks rather than just stating the subject.
Meal Prep: Find ideas on the UBC Foodie Blog or by searching ‘budget meal prep for college students’ on Google or Pinterest, and try to use the same ingredient for multiple meals!
Map out an evening routine to de-stress for the night and prepare for the next day! Try to minimize screen time closer to your bedtime as blue light from your devices makes it hard to fall asleep. Instead, opt to do some offline activities like reading or journaling. Many smartphones now have a handy feature when you can set a reminder at a certain time to get the most optimal hours of sleep.
2. Prioritize. Putting your physical and mental well-being first is crucial while putting yourself through extensive hours of studying! During this time, you need lots of energy and a clear mental headspace to continuously process and absorb new information. That being said, knowing how to prioritize will help reduce the number of unchecked tasks and the feeling of inefficiency. Here are some ways to get started:
Use the Thrive Five as a guiding principle for self-care: Moving More, Sleeping Soundly, Eating Well, Giving Back, and Saying Hi!
Write down what self-care activities YOU enjoy doing (not just what the internet recommends you to do), and incorporate at least one of those items into your routine for the day or week.
Every day, focus on accomplishing the 3 most important things rather than your entire to-do list. Only move additional tasks up if you have extra time left. A good tool for this is the Eisenhower Matrix.
Dedicate blocks of time to study standing up instead of sitting at your desk.
Pause for Rest. Your study blocks are just as valuable as your breaks. Following step 2, you should have a good idea for how you want to take your breaks. How often should I take a break? How long should I have a break for?
A method that has worked for many students like myself is to rest every 90 minutes, and have a break for 15-20 minutes.
Another system is the pomodoro technique, which you work on a single task for 20-25 minutes at a time, then take a 3-5 minutes short break, and repeat. After completing a set of 3 to 4 work periods, you can have a longer break to relax. This is great for helping you focus and tackle tasks one at a time!
Proof. How many times have we convinced ourselves that we knew the course material, only to panic the moment we open the exam and our mind blanks out? To make sure you don’t waste those precious hours of studying, do knowledge/ concept recalls with yourself, or your study buddies over a video call! This can be as easy as writing out your own exam-type questions on a piece of paper, explaining major concepts by drawing a mind map on a whiteboard, or simply talking it out as if you were teaching it to someone.
Put the nerves away. You have made it to the day of the exam! To calm those exam jitters, take a couple of deep breaths, do a power pose, repeat affirmations (“I have prepared all that I can for this exam”; “I am calm and capable to ace my test”) - and that’s it - you are ready! The UBC Dietetic Student Rep Team is rooting for you!
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