An Introduction to Surviving Midterms

If this is your first year at Simon’s Rock, you may be wondering what to expect when it comes to midterms. Maybe you’ve heard horror stories from older siblings or friends, or maybe you’re not worried at all. Either way, here are some things I wish I’d been told before my first round of midterms. 

Preparation: Simon’s Rock is known for its challenging workload and rigorous academics. Procrastination may have been your best friend in high school, but if you want to do well here, you should begin preparing far before the day of your midterm. 

• Project-based midterms: If you are in the arts or humanities, your midterms will likely be compiled of projects and essays. At first glance, these projects oftentime seem like any other from the course and fool you into thinking they can be done in the same amount of time. Of course, they can be (take it from someone who had to finish a midterm paper in one night), but it doesn’t usually end well grade-wise. The best way to ensure you receive a good grade is to start brainstorming as soon as possible. Whether you’re an outliner or go-with-the-flow person, having something on paper will make everything ten times easier in the long run. The idea is that even if it’s terrible, you have something done before the deadline. That way if you find yourself attempting to finish it the night of, you can flush out and revise rather than try to come up with the whole thing at once. 
  
  • Special Tip: When it comes to things like ceramics and painting, make sure you know exactly how long it will take the materials to dry/be finished, and then plan for twice that. 
    
• Exam-based midterms: For those of you in STEM, flashcards are your new best friend. Don’t settle for a basic understanding of the material—study until you can explain it clearly to someone who knows nothing about the topic. Teaching the content material to a friend will solidify it in your mind and help you recognize the places where you are unsure. When it comes to studying, different things work for different people. Studying in a way that does not work for you is the same as not studying at all. Once you’ve found a method, repeat it until you are completely confident in yourself. I personally like to write it all out, sometimes multiple times, then say it to myself; the combination of writing it down, seeing it written out, and then saying it aloud helps me remember the information. It can also be helpful to make up keywords or phrases that make each term or idea stick out. If you find that your studying is not helping you or you’re stuck, use the resources available to you. This means going to your professor’s office hours or setting up a meeting with a class tutor to get help finding something that will work.
  
  • Special Tip: If your (self-made) study guide is more than 3-5 pages, you’re likely going too far in depth. The end goal is to be able to explain in detail, but if you try to learn it all at once you may end up missing something important while focusing on small things. 
    

General Tips: Midterms are hard. If you’re lucky, your professors either won’t assign a midterm or will count the usual unit exam/paper, but this is not always the case. It’s easy to get overwhelmed this time of year, but there are ways to balance your schedule and avoid the stress of the season. 

• Change locations! Sitting in one chair for hours on end is a surefire way to end up feeling overwhelmed. Something as simple as sitting in the library instead of the SU  or even taking a short walk around campus (I personally like the Lieb Loop) can boost your productivity. 
  
• Pay attention to your physical health! Things like drinking water, exercising, and sleeping will help you retain information and do better when it comes to academic performance. 
  
• Do fun things! You don’t want to procrastinate, but you also don’t want to burn yourself out. Try working for an hour and then doing something fun for thirty minutes before going back to your work. When you come back you’ll have a fresh mindset and it’ll be easier to get things done. 
  

After Midterms: I like to do something special after midterms as a way to let go of the residual stress and anxiety that comes with the testing season. Usually, I will host a movie night with my friends. Once we are done with all of our work—and I mean all of it—we enjoy one night where we do nothing but have fun. It’s a good way to motivate myself to finish quickly instead of letting it drag for days or even weeks on end. This can be an intimidating time of year, but remember, even if your midterms don’t go well you still have half of a semester to figure out what works for you. Best of luck! 

Author

El Selberg. Elizabeth Selberg is a sophomore at Simon's Rock and the Vice President of The Weekly Cad. ​