It’s that time of year again, the time where, twice a year, I will turn myself willingly into a hermit. If you haven’t guessed, I’m talking about exam week. As a senior, this will be the seventh time I have had final exams, if you don’t count high school. I’d like to think that this will be one of my last final exam times, but I still have another four or five years to go.

I myself have never really understood the need for a final exam, especially in classes that give more than one other exam per semester. If a student has already been doing well in a class, they generally do as well on the final. However, whatever my feelings are on the subject, they are a necessary evil. And unfortunately, they are one that cannot be avoided. Finals week can be hectic and frustrating, but a few little things have always made it a little bit easier for me.

For those of us that are easily distracted, your home or dorm might not be the best place to study. From personal experience, I get the sudden and desperate urge to clean my apartment from floor to ceiling when faced with a stack of textbooks.

While cleaning might suddenly seem a lot more interesting than studying chemistry, everyone knows it’s not the smartest option. Although I prefer the comfort of my apartment, I generally go to the library, or the fourth floor of the Union to study. It’s mostly quiet there, and if you only bring your textbooks and a snack, there’s nothing there to distract you, unless you enjoy contemplating the carpeting.

The whole purpose of finals week is to demonstrate what we’ve learned in class, but please, take a break or two to have some fun. I find that when I’ve studied for more than a few hours in a row, or the same subject all day, nothing in the world could make me absorb any more material.

It’s not a bad thing to put the books down and go do something fun. Even if you are just watching TV or having lunch with some friends, those books won’t look as daunting when you come back to them. This also might be a good time to volunteer with the local Humane Society, soup kitchens or at a nursing home. There’s nothing better for battling stress than the warm fuzzy feeling one gets from helping another in need, and it’s a great distraction.

Finally, make yourself a schedule. It might sound silly to schedule free time, study time and time to eat, but I’ve learned the hard way. I have lost track of time more than I can remember, and come to regret it later.

This is especially true when I realized that the exam was coming up in several hours, and I had forgotten an entire chapter of material that needed to be read. You might feel strange, penning down your upcoming week, but trust me, you won’t regret it.

So, finals week is upon us, and no matter how fast you run, or how good you are at hiding, it will find you. Even if you are only taking a few classes, this time of year can be nerve-wracking. If you have five or more classes, as I have had in the past, you might be utterly dreading this week. Breathe deep, there is hope! Write out a schedule, and don’t forget to make plenty of time for the things you love.

While finals are important, they aren’t important enough to have sleepless nights over. In fact, if you make the effort to study somewhere with minimal distractions, you just might end up with more time for yourself, and less time panicking over a little exam.