By Amanda Gabriel
Elm Staff Writer
As the semester approaches these final months, finding motivation to finish assignments and study for final exams can prove tough. Ending on a high note may not be as hard of a climb as the task appears. With a little advice, focusing your energy on good grades can improve your study habits and grades.
Procrastination is one of the hardest conflicts to overcome as a college student. For me personally, the farther I am in the semester, the more I tend to push my assignments back because I am too tired to sit down and focus long enough to complete anything.
Instead of pushing everything until the last minute, try writing the due dates for all your remaining assignments on your calendars. That way, you will be able to collectively visualize everything that is due on one sheet of paper instead of switching back and forth between syllabi.
by the Chester River.
Once all of the due dates are written down, fill in the other days with specific study times for each of the assignments. If you have two assignments due in the same week, you can plan accordingly and complete one the week before.
Many times, I decide to procrastinate because the weather is so nice and all I want to do is sit outside in the sun with my friends. This is not the best way to spend large chunks of my time, so instead I have tried sitting in a quieter place than on the campus Green, and bringing my work instead of my friends. It is okay to socialize sometimes, but April and May are crucial months to prepare and save yourself from stress during the last week of classes.
Another factor that may play into how much effort is put forth into assignments is your current grade. If your grade is not as high as you would like it to be, then you may think that there is not enough time to bring it back up. This is a huge misconception; there is always something a student can do to help bring his or her grade up.
Besides studying harder, try going to your professor’s office hours and ask if there is any extra work you can do on the side to help your average.
On the other hand, if you have a higher grade in a class, you may not think you need to work as hard to finish off the semester. This is again a misconception, because working hard should always be a priority of a college student. A student can just as easily drop their grade as they can bring it back up.
In summary, regardless of your grade, try not to slack off, and put in your maximum effort in the home stretch by pacing yourself and your time.