By this time, college students are feeling completely burned-out because they’ve done nothing but read endless amounts of text, write numerous papers, and prepare for big projects.

It’s hard to see the end in sight when you have a wall of back-to-back tests staring you down.

As sluggish as you may feel at this point, it’s EXTREMELY crucial that you get over whatever end-of-semester slump you’re experiencing because your finals are going to count for points – most likely a lot of them.

MAKE SURE TO SCHEDULE RELAXATION TIME

I know that some students will pull all-nighters and study for hours on end, but the truth is that your brain needs time to process the information you’re feeding it. This would be a great time to grab a healthy snack or to do a little exercise before you jump into the next thing. You should also give yourself some true relaxation time at some point throughout the day.!

Remember, being a successful college student requires learning how to balance not only your studies, but your well-being as well. Don’t neglect yourself or you’ll end up in an even worse slump than before (and that will kill your motivation for next semester)!

CREATE A “NEEDS” VS. “WANTS” LIST

The process is simple – All you need to do is create a list in your planner or calendar and divide it into two sections:

• Needs
• Wants

From there, list everything that HAS to get accomplished on that day under the “Needs” section and list those things that can wait under the “Wants” section. Use this as a starting block for creating your schedule and outlining your day.

The beauty of this trick is that you don’t see a giant list of things to do and think that it all has to be completed in a given day. This helps your brain to say, “Hey, this is manageable. I can do this!”

ALLOT EXTRA TIME FOR SUBJECTS YOU STRUGGLE WITH

As a college student who wants to be successful, you need to know what your academic strengths and weaknesses are.

For me, it was math. I was awful with math for some reason and even though I went in for extra help, I still couldn’t seem to grasp all of the subjects. When my finals came around, I knew that I would need to allot more time in my study schedule for math than for English, my strongest subject.

So I want you to be honest with yourself – Which subject(s) do you struggle with the most? Make sure your study schedule reflects your answers. 

STUDY YOUR HARDEST SUBJECT BEFORE BED

Yes, you do need to sleep (a good amount) during these last few weeks of school. Pulling an all-nighter really does nothing more than affect your brain and cause you to forget the information you were working so hard to learn in the first place. Instead of tiring yourself out, try studying your hardest subject before bed.

When you wind down at night and fall asleep, your brain has a chance to process everything it has taken in that day. When you focus on your hardest subject right before bed, you are putting this information at the forefront for processing.

I know that this routine helped me much more than staying up late to cram information. In fact, I felt like I could do a quick review in the morning of that material and actually remember it quite well. Give it a try!

SLUMPS HAPPEN – COLLEGE STUDENT OR NOT

You’re going to have ups and downs as you go through life – it’s normal!

But you have to make a choice… Are you going to let the pressure get to you and let it prevent you from doing something great? Or are you going to work through the knots, push through, and come out stronger and victorious in the end?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this matter! Are you experiencing a college student slump right now (or just a slump in general)? Tell me about it in the comments below!