5 Tips For Surviving Midterms From "The Breakfast Club"

By Alexandra Brown on March 16, 2015

It might seem like you just returned from your winter break to the start of a new semester, but it’s already that time of year: midterms. And you’re freaking out.

Midterms, much like finals, are the most stressful time of a college semester. For most college students, it’s the same story. You start by telling yourself when the semester starts that it’s going to be different this time!

You’re going to take notes during every lecture, stay organized, and review your notes after each class. You’re going to start papers before two days before they’re due, and start studying for your exams well in advance, so as to not have to pull all-nighters.

Unfortunately, none of what you tell yourself you’re going to do to be a better student really sticks as the semester quickly goes by, and now you have to take your midterm exams.

Getting through midterms week can be extremely stressful, so here are five tips to get through the week, as told by the classic ’80s movie “The Breakfast Club.”

1. Study at the library with your friends.

Get a group of friends together, small enough that it won’t become distracting, and go study at the library. You all have midterms to study for, so you may as well do it together.

Studying alone is just sad, and with your friends around, at least you can take breaks, laugh (maybe a bit too loud) and not completely lose your mind.

2. Don’t completely end your social life.

During midterms week, studying 24/7 nonstop will make you crazy; it’s not advisable. Give yourself a break. Take one night out for yourself after a day of studying, and convince your friends they need it too.

If you can’t justify actually going out, have a movie night with friends, and then go to bed at a decent hour in preparation for another full day of studying.

3. Try not to become completely depressed.

Midterms week is hard, especially if you know that you’re not very prepared for your exams. Do the best you can with what you have; read through all of your notes and handouts from class, reread readings you either skimmed or never did at all, and work with other classmates if possible.

Midterm exams may seem like a huge deal, but there are other aspects of your classes that will factor into determining your final grade, so there’s no reason to act like it’ll be the end of the world if you don’t do as well as you would have hoped.

There are always final exams, papers, assignments, and other tests that you have the opportunity to score well on.

4. Know when to quit.

When studying for midterms, it’s important to know when enough is enough. It’s obviously different for every student, but studying too much can result in cramming.

This isn’t ideal because the more information you cram into your head, the more likely it is that you’ll forget most of it. Only so much information can fit in your brain before there’s too much.

When you think you’ve reached that point, whether it’s because you’ve been reading for hours, or you’ve reached your study goal for the day, know when to quit. Get a good amount of sleep, and you’ll be as ready as possible for your exams.

5. Leave your exams with confidence.

Once you’re done with your exams, walk out like a champ, no matter how you think you did. At least it’s over!

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