As the end of the school year inches closer, the dread of final exams starts to creep in. You’re already wedged between papers and projects, which leaves little movement for you to engage in other activities. Now you’re tasked with having to study tirelessly all for the sake of one exam. Having to reproduce the same amount of sacrifice and bandwidth for multiple exams is very taxing for the average student. 

Most students have side jobs to help support themselves throughout college. During exam season a lot of other responsibilities get placed in the back seat whilst exams stay at the forefront. Romantic relationships can also take a toll during this time. They tend to become less of a priority for many, and understandably so. The time that you may have spent with your partner will likely be time spent studying. It’s really necessary because of the variety of exams that you’re preparing for. Study dates via phone call could be a viable option, but it could also be a huge distraction. And it’s still not the same as physically spending quality time with that special person in your life.

Another stipulation that comes with college exams has to do with mental health. The anticipatory strain that end-of-the-year exams have on students can cloud their mental focus. Our minds become so hyper-focused on the one-end goal of passing our exams that our judgment becomes narrowed. But it could also become clouded. This means that taking time to ourselves, or just taking a break tends to fall by the wayside. That leaves us vulnerable to falling victim to common mental follies. The stress will eventually grow into a ghastly beast that will attack and consume you. All the while, you’ll just be sitting there, with a thousand-paged book in hand, seemingly fine. Just another college student studying “diligently.” 

Even though we’re tested periodically throughout the year, end-of-year final exams can have an especially strong grip on us as students. That’s due to the sheer amount of our future at our current schools, or future schools riding on them. Exams are entirely too important to blow off or overlook. Hence why they drum up so much stress and anxiety within us. I have yet to find my own way of coping with this injurious emotional exam cycle. For those second through fourth-year students, how do you cope? Do you have any methods of your own, or suggestions?