Personally, I found that making a schedule for finals week helped me block out time for studying, breaks, sleep, and exercise. Designating specific time blocks of my day to certain tasks gave me the confidence that I would get everything done that I needed to, while also not feeling burnt out or frustrated. Managing stress and maintaining balance in your finals week will make you feel confident and calm as you take your final exams and wrap up the semester.

It is important to note that studying the same material in different ways will help ensure you are prepared and knowledgeable for the final. In my college experience, it was always difficult not knowing how the final would be structured or what types of questions would be asked. Understanding vocabulary, concepts, and how they apply and connect to each other will prepare you for any type of final you are given.

Trying out different study methods will help you view the information from different perspectives.

Here is an example schedule of managing time during finals week from morning to evening:

11:00pm-7:00am: Sleep

7:00am: Wake up, eat breakfast, get ready

8:00am-10:00am: Find a quiet place to study with limited distractions

10:15am-11:30am: Class/group review session

11:30am-12:30pm: Grab lunch, hydrate

12:30pm-1:30pm: Take a walk, exercise, meditate, grab a treat (do something good for yourself and take a break from studying!)

2:00pm-5:00pm: Study, try out practice problems, find practice exams online, & take breaks!!

5:00pm-8:00pm: Eat dinner, attend any meetings/sports practice, attend to personal matters

8:00pm-11:00pm: Relax and get ready for bed

Lastly, here are some tips to help manage your time and ace your finals:

Get 8 hours of sleep a night. It will help your focus and allow your brain to function optimally.

Don’t procrastinate studying. Waiting till the last minute will be ineffective and won’t get you the grade you probably want. Cramming the night before (or all night long) won’t help you, so make a plan and be prepared.

When you begin studying, focus on learning what you don’t know that is most relevant to the final. Even though we can plan a schedule of our time, it doesn’t mean it will go perfectly according to plan. Sometimes things come up unexpectedly, and we can find ourselves in a time crunch. Using your time effectively and studying what you need to know the most will help you be prepared even if the schedule doesn’t go according to plan.