You have achieved so much this fall! You may have made new friends, studied a new subject, found a new passion, discovered a new resource. While there have likely been challenges, you have also undoubtedly had successes as well. Take a moment to honor your successes, accomplishments, and what you have learned about yourself this semester.
For this final stretch of the semester, we’ve compiled helpful tips, strategies, and resources to help you be successful in your final exams and projects.
The Department of Resident Life wishes you success in your final exams and a restful break!
EXAM PREPARATION*
Preparing for a final exam can be daunting whether this is your first or your tenth final. Finals preparation is a process that happens over time and you should prepare for exams every day. Space out your studying and utilize different preparation techniques to achieve success. Use the Space feature to find some study spaces on campus.
If you are unsure where to start in your finals preparation, here are 10 questions to ask yourself. If you don’t know the answer, ask your professor.
1. How many questions will be on the exam?
2. What types of questions will be on the exam?
3. What material will be covered?
4. How much will the exam count toward the final grade?
5. Will the questions come primarily from the notes or the text?
6. Will partial credit be awarded for some answers?
7. How much time will be allotted for the exam?
8. Will there be any extra credit?
9. What materials (books, notes, calculators, and so on) can be used?
10. What outside material (handouts, readings, and so on) will be included on the exams?
*Content adapted from Hamline University’s Questions to Ask Before an Exam.
Tip: Refer to your class syllabus. you prepare for finals and these answers may also be found there. The syllabus outlines important themes and topics that were covered in the class. Those themes and topics can become the skeleton of your study guide.
SUCCESS IS ITS OWN REWARD, BUT FAILURE IS A GREAT TEACHER TOO, AND NOT TO BE FEARED.”
-Sonia Sotomayor
WHAT DO I NEED TO CREATE AN EXAM PREPARATION PLAN?
Ask yourself these questions to create an exam preparation plan.
What type of final exam is it (e.g., multiple choice questions, short-answer, essay, true/false questions)?
How much time is needed to prepare for each final assignment?
What classes or topics might you need to spend more time with?
• What time of the day do you feel more productive? If you feel more productive in the morning, schedule the majority of your studying/finals preparation time during the morning.
• What is your ideal study environment? Some characteristics to consider are noise level, amount of light, types of seating, amount of people, water fountains/fill station access, snacks nearby, etc. Think about what characteristics are important to you and use the Quiet Study Spaces Guide and the University Libraries’ Find A Space feature to find some study spaces on campus.
• For what classes might you need additional support? For those classes, create a study group. Use these groups to review content that you are not feeling confident about and also to cement your own learning by teaching content to others. Study groups should be made up of people in your class that represent those who are comfortable with the information presented as well as those who may struggle. Study groups should not be formed solely from your social circle. Check out UMD’s tutoring site to explore some of the study groups hosted around campus.
• What is going to motivate you to study and prepare for finals exams? It may be helpful to set up personal accountability measures for yourself. Will you spend 90 minutes in the library each day? Will you complete non-final exam assignments by a certain date so you can get a jump-start on preparing for finals? Will you set up study dates with friends to ensure you get work done? Decide what will work best for you and make a commitment.
IT ALWAYS SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE UNTIL IT’S DONE.”
-Nelson Mandela
PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE HAVE A MAGICAL EFFECT BEFORE WHICH DIFFICULTIES DISAPPEAR AND OBSTACLES VANISH.”
-John Quincy Adams
UPCOMING ACADEMIC SUCCESS EVENTS
CONQUER PROCRASTINATION NOW (NOT LATER): Tuesday, Dec. 3, 4–5 p.m.
COPING WITH STRESS: Wednesday, Dec. 4, 4–5 p.m.
SUCCESSFUL STUDY SKILLS: Thursday, Dec. 5, 4–5 p.m.
Study to learn and understand content, not to get a certain grade. Many of your classes are helping you to build foundational knowledge that will be needed in coursework down the road. Studying to understand now will help you in classes and on finals in your future classes. You know you’ve learned it if you feel comfortable teaching the content to a friend.
Be an effective reader. Skim a section or read the first sentence of each paragraph before reading all the way through. You should also take notes while reading and avoid letting your mind wander.
Do not skip over charts or practice problems in your textbooks. Review this data and practice as you go along. This will help your brain learn incrementally, save time, and eliminate the need to review content multiple times when completing problems at the end of a chapter.
When writing a paper, plan ahead. Create an outline, which can be as simple as writing down the topic for each paragraph or more detailed to include specific points, quotes, and citations. The better and more thorough your outline, the easier it will be to write your paper.
If you are beginning a project, break it down into manageable pieces and assign due dates to each. Treat the pieces as individual assignments and hold yourself accountable to finishing on time.
Tip: Double check the time and location of all of your finals as well as the due dates and drop off locations for papers and assignments.
I DON’T FOCUS ON WHAT I’M UP AGAINST. I FOCUS ON MY GOALS AND I TRY TO IGNORE THE REST.”
-Venus Williams
WELLNESS*
Wellness plays a large role in academic success. Here are some wellness tips that may be beneficial as you prepare for finals, but also for life as a student in general.
FOOD & DIET
Handling stress and anxiety is easier if your body is healthy. One way of keeping your body healthy is being mindful of what you are eating.
Eat breakfast. Whether you’re rolling out of bed at noon or up at the crack of dawn for class, make sure you start your day with a balanced, healthy meal.
Drink water. Drinking enough water can help boost your concentration. Make sure to keep hydrated as you go through your day by bringing water with you.
Don’t skip meals. With so much to do, it’s easy to forgo eating in order to get to class or the library, but remember to make time for a meal. Pack foods you can eat on the go so you’ll have the energy to keep going.
EXERCISE
Fitting time to move your body isn’t always the easiest thing, but take stock of some of these tips to help you get or stay on track to fitness.
Head to the gym. Use of RecWell facilities is included in your student fees so why not take advantage! Head to the gym between classes or when you get up in the morning to squeeze in a workout.
Take advantage of open spaces. UMD is an arboretum and has outdoor areas across campus. Take advantage of these spaces to take hikes, play frisbee, or just walk around. Why not make it more fun by bringing a friend?
SLEEP
College students aren’t exactly known for their early to bed–early to rise attitudes, but getting sleep is an integral part of staying healthy.
Take a nap. If you have the time during the day, a short nap can do wonders for your energy levels. Just make sure not to nap too close to bedtime or for too long.
Get a full night’s rest whenever possible. While the amount of sleep each person needs varies, most people need 7-9 hours to feel fully rested. Lack of sleep doesn’t just make you cranky, it can also reduce your ability to concentrate and to excel at class. Work out bedtimes during finals with roommates to make sure you each get the sleep you need.
Avoid all nighters. While you may feel like you need to study all night to do well, you might be doing yourself a disservice. Not getting enough sleep can impair your ability to do well in your classes, regardless of how much you’ve studied, so make sure you get at least a little sleep before your big test.
Avoid caffeine, eating, and drinking right before bed. All of these activities can throw off your body’s internal clock, so try to limit meals, alcohol, and caffeine consumption to a few hours before bed.
MENTAL HEALTH AND STRESS MANAGEMENT
Students can get run down with so much going on. Here’s how you can help beat the stress.
Create a routine. If you get yourself in the habit of studying, working out, and sleeping at certain hours, it will be easier to fit in all the things you need to do in a day without feeling too stressed out.
Put limits on work hours and give yourself a break. You can’t work all the time—fun and relaxation have to be part of your routine as well. Limit the times when you will work to give yourself time to sleep and rest up.
Be realistic. Sometimes there’s just no way you’re going to get everything done in one day. Be realistic about your goals and understand that you can only do so much.
Understand you can’t do everything. While you might want to go to class, work, play a sport, and participate in clubs and social activities, the reality is that sooner or later you’re going to get run down by trying to do so much. Focus on doing the things you truly love and forget about the rest during finals season.
Cut back if needed and get help. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, reach out and ask for help from professors and friends. They may be able to give you more time or help you to complete projects and study more effectively. If you’re feeling like you’ve got too much on your plate, cut back work hours, drop a class, or cut out some extracurricular activities to make your schedule more manageable.
Relaxing with hobbies. Whether you like to paint or to destroy aliens with your friends in video games, making time for the things you love is an important part of keeping yourself from getting too stressed out.
Give yourself plenty of time. It’s easy to put off starting on a big project or studying for a test until the last minute. You’ll be much less stressed out, however, and will likely do better, if you give yourself more time to work on it.
Spend time with friends. There are few things that can cheer you up like being around the people you like most. Eat dinner with friends, hang out and watch tv, or take a walk to get away from the stress of homework and finals preparation.
*Content adapted from Rutgers University’s 101 Health and Wellness Tips for College Students.
HELPFUL CAMPUS RESOURCES
ACADEMIC COACHING
You can schedule a free 30-minute academic coaching session to develop and refine study strategies, enhance skills in various areas such as time management, note taking, test preparation and learn of other campus resources to support your academic success. To schedule an in-person or virtual appointment, visit go.umd.edu/learn . For more information, email learn@umd.edu.
ACADEMIC SUCCESS AND TUTORIAL SERVICES
As an initiative of the Academic Achievement Programs (AAP), the Academic Success and Tutorial Services program provides free peer tutoring to all UMD students for over twenty 100- and 200-level general education courses and for historically difficult courses in areas such as biology, business, chemistry, computer science, economics, mathematics/ statistics, and physics.
THE COUNSELING CENTER
The Counseling Center is the primary campus provider of free and confidential therapy to help UMD students manage personal, social, and academic challenges. The Counseling Center also offers wellness workshops and a variety of resources to help students with common student concerns .
GUIDED STUDY SESSIONS
The Guided Study Sessions (GSS) program offers FREE, regularly scheduled group review sessions for students in traditionally difficult courses. GSS Leaders have previously taken your course and earned an A, so they know what it takes to stay on track in lectures and prepare for exams. Go once, a few times, or attend every session—it’s never too late to start attending GSS. Visit the GSS Schedule to view the available sessions.
LIBRARIES
The University Libraries offer plenty of resources including those for getting started on research and places to study. There are six libraries on campus and all have different hours .
HELPFUL CAMPUS RESOURCES
KEYSTONE CENTER
Located in the J. M. Patterson, the Keystone Center is where you can go to work on homework or group projects, use the computer labs, or study for exams. It is staffed with upper-level undergraduate and graduate students who can provide you with assistance in answering questions in fundamental engineering and STEM courses: CHEM135, MATH140, MATH141, MATH241, and MATH246.
MATH SUCCESS PROGRAM
The Math Success Program offers free, drop-in math coaching and tutoring services for all UMD undergraduate students. The program is open Sunday - Thursday from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays are held in ESJ 0224, Sundays are virtual and require an appointment. Visit the Math Success Program website to get more information and access the program.
MATH TUTORING ROOM & MATLAB TUTORING
TAs available on a daily basis for most of the introductory math courses in Math Building Room 0203. To see all courses offered and a full schedule, please see the Undergraduate Tutoring Hours
MATH TEST BANK
Google Drive of past exams from the Math Department for tons of classes. Great practice material for studying for final exams.
OFFICE OF MULTI-ETHNIC STUDENT EDUCATION (OMSE)
OMSE offers free, walk-in tutorial program that covers most key courses in Writing, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, and Economics, among other courses. Individual and small group tutoring is available each semester in most undergraduate courses. Check out the OMSE tutoring site to learn more. You can also check out these short videos created by OMSE tutors on some traditionally difficult concepts.
HELPFUL CAMPUS RESOURCES
OFFICE OF STUDENT CONDUCT
The Office of Student Conduct serves the UMD community by investigating referrals, enforcing the Codes (Code of Academic Integrity and Code of Student Conduct ), and committing to a fair, honest, and transparent conduct process. The Office of Student Conduct handles issues of academic integrity. If you are unsure of rules about academic integrity, the Office of Student Conduct has resources to assist you.
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS CENTER (OCC)
The OCC can provide peer consulting for presentations, speeches, and other modes of oral communication; Speech planning and practice assistance; Interactive workshops on a variety of relevant communication skills; Special events and workshop series. You can schedule an appointment here .
QUIET STUDY SPACES
These spaces offer some great opportunities to safely explore campus and find new places to get your work done. Please visit the Quiet Study Spaces list to view the spaces that are available and guidelines around using the spaces.
TUTORING & ACADEMIC SUCCESS RESOURCES
The University is committed to academic excellence, and provides a variety of tutoring and other academic resources to support student success—available on campus, from our peer institutions, and other non-university websites. To learn more about the available resources, visit tutoring. umd.edu . Also checkout these helpful resources to tackle some common academic concerns.
THE WRITING CENTER
The Writing Center provides opportunities for undergraduate students to improve their writing, research, and critical thinking skills in preparation for successful academic, professional, and civic lives. In a supportive atmosphere, trained consultants from a variety of backgrounds and majors assist writers in-person and online throughout the writing process. Visit the Writing Center’s website to schedule an appointment.
You’ve got this, break is right around the corner!
And remember: study hard, go to class, get enough sleep and ask for help when needed.
