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Finals Bear Down; Writing Center Steps Up
By Miranda Hucks
Each semester, students can be overwhelmed with papers, tests and the dreaded finals week. Some students have learned different techniques to cope with these overwhelming times.
The advice Sable Adams gives for preparation for finals is simple.
“Long nights, lack of sleep, plenty of snacks and studying, studying, studying,” said Adams, a junior English major, last week.
Last Thursday, the Mars Hill College Writing Center hosted the “De-stress Zone” that provided students snacks, beverages, and relaxation along with tutoring.
“I wanted to make the Writing Center not only a place to help but a place students can come for help that’s inviting, welcoming, and comfortable,” said center adviser Virginia Bower. “We want the students to distinguish us from their classes and teachers because that’s not what we are. We want to help them learn, and when they come here it shows that they are willing to do just that.”
Writing Center workers Kim Perry and Katie Kunzmann said they believed the “de-stress” event was very helpful in promoting the writing center while providing a comfortable atmosphere. Around exam time, the center starts to get a lot busier and it helps to “de-stress.”
“I like to plan everything I have to get done for finals by making flash cards and re-reading and re-writing notes,” said Kunzmann. “Sometimes it gets tough because I sometimes put papers off until the last minute, and it makes it worse helping others in the writing center knowing that I still have to do my own papers.”
“I usually study at least 20 hours a week,” said Adams. “I can say that I study the most for one of my LAA courses.” But this week she said she isn’t as loaded down.
“I have experienced everything known about being stressed upon final exam time,” Adams said. “I have taken 19 credit hours every semester except for this one.”
Some people aren’t as productive when it comes to getting things accomplished. Senior Jenny Daws said she is pretty stressed every semester at this time.
“I've got lots of crazy hard biology tests to study for that I'm trying to keep track of,” Daws said. “I'm in the fashion show. I've got Bonner hours to get [in], plus there are tons of fun things going on around campus that I want to take part [in] such as the winter formal, the play, and the Christmas concert. But on top of all that, some of my best friends are graduating so I also have to find time to hang out with them as much as I can before they leave.”
Daws said her first two years experiencing exams were engulfed with stress.
Her way of coping? Daws would talk to a professor to get advice on what to expect and how to make it through. She learned that everyone gets this way at some point, and all usually ends well.
“It's definitely hard trying to keep it all balanced and to stay focused,” she said. “I find myself forgetting things a lot more than usual during finals week. I think my brain just gets overwhelmed and shuts down so that even the simplest of tasks aren't working. Once I finally get to studying I'm just a little bit more insane than usual. It takes me a while to get motivated, but whatever it is that gets me to sit down and finish my work, I’m glad it does; it always seems to get me through!”
Alex Turner, a senior business major, has a slightly different view.
“I always feel like the week and half before finals is the most overwhelming that we experience all year, but as soon as it all ends, it's so liberating to know you're completely done with everything for the entire semester,” Turner said.
She said that she always stresses out over school work and likes to do study groups to help her prepare.
“In study groups, we can all kind of hold each other accountable to make sure that we show up to study, and that we actually do something productive with our time,” said Turner. “But I sometimes get the most stressed out about end-of-term papers more than I do about tests. I like to study right up until the last minute to make sure I gain as much knowledge as possible!”
Megan Weaver is a first-year Writing Center worker. She said that she likes to prepare in advance so that during exams she isn’t overwhelmed.
“The fact that it’s exam time doesn’t really hit until Reading Day,” said Weaver. “I like to end the semester well before even worrying about exams.”
The Writing Center is open each week from 3-8:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. This semester there are six tutors. Each tutor usually helps students from 15 minutes up to 1 ½ hours.
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