Finals Week…just saying it makes me want to run screaming for the hills. Or at least hide under my bed (with a box of Girl Scout cookies) until they are over. Long nights of studying a semester’s worth of material, writing last-minute essays (why do we always wait until the very last possible second to start those 10-page research papers?), and, of course, stressing over your grades to make sure you get the A that you want (or at least pass).

Cue the anxiety.

For the most part, every campus shows the same signs that students have entered into this week-long stretch of hell. From the clothing, to the frantic pacing back and forth, to the agitated sighs reverberating through the library, it’s pretty apparent when we’re in the midst of it. Now it’s just counting down the minutes until the student next to you in the ‘brary has a mental breakdown so they’ll leave and you can use their chair as a foot rest.

Not sure if Finals Week has started on your campus? You’ve got major problems, girlfriend. Seriously, don’t you have a syllabus?? Anyways, here are 10 signs it’s finals time on campus.

According to the Daily Beast, Columbia University, my school, offers the most stressful undergraduate experience in the country.

Admittedly, taking a tour of any campus library during midterms or finals is enough to set your nerves on edge. Under-eye bags are as common on campus as Longchamp bags. Many students (especially first-years) constantly complain about their work overload. However, during my three years here, I have never pulled an all-nighter, missed a deadline, asked for an extension, or taken Adderall, caffeine pills or any type of energy drink (though, admittedly, I was studying abroad during the era of Fourloko).

Is this some sort of miracle? Am I a genius? Do I have photographic memory? No, I wish, and that actually doesn’t exist. But that’s another story. What I am is organized and realistic. And successful.

Here are some of my tips for keeping it all together.

My first tip applies to registration. Try to choose at least one class that will lift your spirits. Whether it is a new language class, an art class or a P.E. class, getting credit for something you enjoy will make your whole course load feel lighter. You might even think about taking this class Pass/Fail.

Secondly, buy a planner or agenda and do everything you can to make sure you use it. For me, this means colored pens, stickers and the compulsion to always have it in my bag and write everything down as soon as I find out about it. Knowing where you need to be can make your day feel less cluttered and give you peace of mind.

On the subject of clutter, keeping your living spaces organized and clean can free can be therapeutic. There are a lot of nice things in the world that are expensive, but the one nice thing that is absolutely free is cleanliness. On a day where nothing seems to be going your way, organizing your dorm room, desk drawers and clothes can be a step in the right direction. (Don’t know where to start? Check out organization expert Peter Walsh’s tips for organizing your space.)

Try to take really good notes. Focusing on making them look nice can keep you from zoning out in class. Resist the urge to check your email or Facebook on your phone. Doodling on a notebook is better than connecting to the outside world. This is why I don’t bring my laptop to class; the act of physically writing down key lecture points keeps me engaged. Skyping your long-distance boyfriend during that history lecture is a bad use of your time and will only make it harder to study down the road. Trust me – I’ve done it.

Take care of your body. Eat well, keep a fairly regular sleep schedule, exercise and meditate. A half hour of cardio is a great way to work through stress. It clears your mind, boosts your self-esteem and gives you the energy to help you attack the rest of the day.

Laugh! You don’t need to have a crazy late night out to have fun. Get dinner with friends, share ridiculous YouTube videos, have impromptu karaoke competitions or dance parties in your hallway. These are the moments you will always remember…and the moments that will keep you sane.

Try to always look presentable. Sure, slumping to class in your sweatpants is comfortable, but taking five minutes to put on jeans and a cardigan will make you feel more put together and less stressed. A scarf and a headband can be the perfect final touch to your messy bun.

DON’T PROCRASTIANTE!
There was a great article in the New Yorker about procrastination last October. It differentiates between people who procrastinate out of laziness and those who do it out to self-sabotage. If you are in the second category, you need set your own attainable standards. Maybe you should strive to get A’s in the classes you excel in and A-‘s or B+‘s in the classes you really struggle with. Be accountable to someone, either a tutor or a study group and feel the satisfaction of checking off to-do lists on your planner.

If I am dreading working on something, a problem set or an essay, I divide it up into manageable portions spread out over several days. It is easier to work on something if you know that you will only devote an hour to it per day than to sacrifice a whole Sunday. I also find it easier to do my work in the mornings. I also like to pretend that my deadlines are a day or two before the actual day so that I can get someone (a professor, T.A or savvy friend) to look over my work to make sure I haven’t missed the mark. Additionally, moving your deadlines forward is an insurance policy against the unpredictable.

This technique also applies for studying for exams. I take the time about two weeks before the exam to figure out what I’m going to study on what day, leaving the last two days before the exam open for review sessions and study group meetings. Remember that studying in a group should help you polish what you already know and fill in gaps of things you didn’t completely understand. It is a compliment to, not a substitute for, time spent studying by yourself.

Talk it out. If you are really feeling overwhelmed, try to figure out where the pressure is coming from. Talk to a trusted friend, family member or a counselor. Furthermore, keep noxious self-deprecating thoughts out of your mind. Ask yourself if you would criticize a friend the way you criticize yourself.

Sometimes I joke to my friends that I feel like a school robot. In fact, I feel more like a high-performance athlete. Following all these steps and taking care of myself sets me up to perform my best and take the time to enjoy this time in my life. My strategies, though arguably elaborate, ensure that I don’t have to pull all-nighters and I am always free to go out Friday or Saturday night.

And that’s just the thing I need to stay sane amid this sea of stress.

As much as it pains me to say, finals season is coming. For some, you’ve still got a few weeks before all hell breaks loose. For others, there are only 7 days between you and those dreaded cram-everything-you’ve-learned-in-the-past-three-months-into-a-100-questions tests. Needless to say, it’s a stressful time of year that always sneaks up on us, no matter how many syllabi we have or how much we tell ourselves that we’re going to start studying three weeks in advance.

So, since we’re really getting down to the wire here, I’ve compiled a little survival guide to help all of us get through the most stressful time of a college student’s life. May these 7 things (and the force) be with us all:

Evernote: For those of us that are a little on the scatterbrain side of things, check out Evernote. It will organize all of those pesky notes and due dates that seem to pile up during this time of year, and keep track of important due dates..i.e. that 10-page paper due in a week. The site even offers different ways to upload your info, i.e. picture message, text message, tweet, email, manual, or by their browser add-on. Basically, you have no choice but to be organized and on top of your game.

5-Hour Energy: Put down the Four Loko, and pick up a 10-pack of 5 Hour Energy. No, I’m not condoning abusing energy drinks, but I am saying that this stuff works like a dream for those all-nighters or early mornings when you just need something to keep you going. I know that the commercials may seem pretty lame, but it really works. People who use it on the reg report no crash effect and little to no jittery feeling after.

Wake Up Dialer.com: Let’s be real, sometimes textbooks are boring. So boring that you fall asleep while reading the first chapter out of the nine you need to review. That’s when your favorite British butler comes into play. Just log on to WakeUpDialer.com and give your number and the time you want to be woken up. Like an hour or two from now if you know this reading assignment is going to be a challenge.

A Bar of Dark Chocolate: Not that you need any more reasons to chow down on chocolate, but studies have actually shown that eating a bar of dark chocolate a day reduces stress. And, girrrrl, you know you be stressin’ right now. I highly recommend Trader Joe’s 100 calorie dark chocolate bars or dark chocolate dipped pretzels, but any variety will do. And if you combine an hour workout with it, you’ll be flying stress free for the rest of the semester.

Yoga Pants: It’s important to be comfy for those long ass study days, but it’s also important not to look like a total slob/feel so comfortable you’ll pass out the moment you sit down in the ‘brary. Enter: yoga pants. Whether they are the budget friendly pairs from Old Navy or the muy-expensive-but-totally-worth-it-because-they-make-your-butt-look-HOT kinds from Lululemon, just get some.

Ice/Hot Green Tea from Starbucks: So apparently green tea isn’t just delicious, it also protects your brain from wear and tear. Plus, it keeps you in a positive mental state by boosting signals to produce dopamine, which is kind of important during right now when you’ve got multiple exams and papers that are both mentally exhausting and just plain sucky.

Grades 2: This awesome new app is every college student’s dream. Basically, you tell the app the overall grade you want in the class and it tells you exactly what you need on the final to get it. Use it now and not only will it calm your nerves, but it can give you a heads up on which classes you really need to focus on.

For even more help on getting that 4.0, click here.

The last month before finals. Woof.

For me, this time of year is all about flashcards and all-nighters celebrating with friends I know I won’t be seeing for months over summer vacation. It’s about taking it all in before it’s back to mom and dad’s chores and nagging. But, above all, it’s the time of year we need good music to dance and drink to, to try and help us forget about all the things (bluebook exams and papers) that lie ahead in the weeks to come.

These past couple months were big ones in the music world. Yet again, it was a popular time for huge artists to come out with new albums. Recently we’ve seen and heard new stuff from artists like Adele, Lupe Fiasco, Chris Brown, and Britney Spears. You can consider this playlist a sample of some of the hottest songs and remixes from their newly released albums you likely haven’t heard before. It’s a taste of a little of each with, as always, some older and some less mainstream type stuff thrown in there as well.

This playlist is an opportunity to catch up on what your favorite artists have been up to. To find out hit songs before they hit the radio… or before your friends know about them. And to let it all go and celebrate the (hopefully amazing) school year you’ve had.

Click here for your awesome April pre-party playlist.

Finals Week has officially crept into our lives like the Grinch who stole Thirsty Thursdays. I know I’ve spent the past three days straight camping out in the library, creating classical music radio stations on my Pandora and eating Wheat Thins and coffee for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve showered at this point, but a recent armpit sniff test proves it’s been too long. All I want is a long day at the spa, lots of dark chocolate, and a(n abnormally long) happy hour.

Although Finals Week may be a brutal task, at least it is reassuring to know everybody has to fight through it. And when I say everybody, I mean everybody. The library has become a home away from home for many college students, most of whom I could definitely do without.

[This post is a favorite of Katie, a faboosh CollegeCandy fan. We love it, too. Well, the story...not the reality behind it.]

Finals Week has officially crept into our lives like the Grinch who stole Thirsty Thursdays.  I know I’ve spent the past three days straight camping out in the library, creating classical music radio stations on my Pandora and eating Wheat Thins and coffee for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve showered at this point, but a recent armpit sniff test proves it’s been too long. All I want is a long day at the spa, lots of dark chocolate, and a(n abnormally long) happy hour.

Although Finals Week may be a brutal task, at least it is reassuring to know everybody has to fight through it. And when I say everybody, I mean everybody. The library has become a home away from home for many college students, most of whom I could definitely do without.

[Click on any image to see the slideshow of annoyingness.]

[This story was originally posted by Brittany - University of Saint Thomas]

Likey? Don’t worry, there are plenty more faves where this came from.

[Hey everybody! Sarabeth here with a new feature that, quite frankly, I'm stoked about. Each week I'll be bringing you an album that I feel is particularly awesome in the hopes of building iTunes libraries everywhere! It could be something new, old, hugely popular or fairly unknown, so keep checking back for our suggestions to awesome-ify your music collection.]

This semester is FINALLY starting to wrap up. Exciting? Yes, I can’t wait to finish this round of classes. Stressful? Hell yeah, mofo. The end of the semester means that every. single. thing. I’ve been working on is going to be due at the same time. And on top of that, I have to start studying for finals. Barf.

For those of you in the same situation, you need some music to get you through.

So where do I turn to in my moment (or 3 weeks) of need? My trusted pick-me-up album, Carnavas, of course.

About the Band
Silversun Pickups is an indie/alternative band from LA that has been around since 2002. It is made up of lead vocalist and guitarist Brian Aubert, vocalist and bassist Nikki Monninger, drummer Christopher Guanlao and keyboardist Joe Lester. If they sound familiar it’s probably because they’ve been featured in video games like Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground, Rock Band 1&2, and Guitar Hero World Tour.

Yeah, these guys are major.

Top 3 Tracks:

Lazy Eye

Well Thought Out Twinkles

Common Reactor

Why You Should Listen to It
This is a great album for pulling all-nighters. Or all-dayers.  And definitely all weekenders. The songs have an upbeat feel to them to provide just the motivation you need to keep pushing through that seemingly insurmountable pile of homework and projects, but they are also pretty low key so they don’t distract you.  The album is also pretty darn great for dancing in the kitchen while you cook dinner, spoon-microphone in hand, but I’m pretty sure I’m the only person who does that…

The following is a guest post by our (nerdy yet totally helpful) friends at Hack College. Check ‘em out for all your techy needs. They’re like the nerdy boyfriend you never had but always needed.

The week after Thanksgiving break can always be pretty overwhelming. If you haven’t started preparing for your final projects, papers, or exams yet, you might be feeling if you’re drowning. And sometimes, even if you have gotten a good head start on your assignments, the fast approaching deadlines can be terrifying.

However, fear not. Even if you feel like the horrificness of your hell week(s) will swallow you alive, don’t panic. There are several steps you can take in order to ensure you get all of your work done on time. Stay calm and read through these tips that will help you survive college hell.

Schedule
I’m sure I’ve said this several times on HackCollege, but I can’t stress enough the importance of scheduling out blocks of times to work on certain assignments. There are several huge benefits to doing this. First of all, it allows you to take one assignment at a time. Even though you may have three papers and four exams, there is no way you can finish any one of them if you are stressed about all of those things at once. Take some time with your scheduler and block out large chunks of time to work on certain assignments. I usually block out a two to four afternoons and evenings to work on papers, though you may need more depending on the size of the paper. Do the same things for your tests and projects.

Scheduling this blocks of times will also help you relax a little bit. If you can see exactly when you are going to have time to do certain assignments, you can stop worrying about whether or not it’s going to get done and start focusing on what you scheduled yourself to do that day.

Get Comfortable
As obvious as this may seem, you really do your best work when you’re comfortable. If you’re not, then you’ll be distracted or annoyed by whatever isn’t making you comfortable. You should know by know what makes you comfortable, so do what you can to make your study area reflect that.

While this is usually pretty easy to do in your room since you have your nice desk that you’ve organized oh-so-particularly and all of your books for quick reference, it’s usually a little harder to do if you go study outside of your room, like at the library or a study room. Even for people who like to study in their rooms (like me), often roommate issues will drive you to work out of your room every once in a while. So while you may not have all of the amenities that your room may have, still try to make your study environment as comfortable as possible.

For instance, I spent all last week in the library working on a paper. Our library is cold. And I hate being cold. I cannot concentrate if I am cold. I also get really cranky. So, to solve the problem, I packed a throw blanket and a big sweatshirt. Yes. I packed a blanket. Was it silly? Yes. But guess what? I wrote that damn 23-page paper and I was warm. So if you get hot in the library, bring a little portable fan. If you like studying in a chair or couch instead of a table, seek out the best spot in the library. Make your study spot comfy because you’re gonna be there for awhile.

Take Away Distractions
Even though you want your study place to be comfortable, you’re also there to get work done, not surf the webs for fun videos. If you don’t need the internet for whatever you’re doing, turn off your wireless capability. If you don’t even need your computer, don’t even bother opening it. Pick a study spot away from people who are going to distract you from your work. The more time you spend distracted, the less time you’re going to have to finish your assignments. Once you’re in your work zone, you will be amazed at how much you can get done.

Set Goals
It’s really important to set goals each day so that you can make sure that you’re getting done everything that needs to be done. Also, you won’t feel so overwhelmed with the amount of work if you know you’ve made it to your daily checkpoint. For instance, if you have a paper with three major sections, write a part each day. Setting goals will also help you feel good at the end of your busy day and make you feel like you are getting closer to the end of your hell week.

Take Breaks
As important as it is to stay focused, it is as equally important to take breaks. If you don’t take breaks, you will absolutely overwork yourself. Our brains need little rests in between large stretches of intense work in order to work at their greatest potential. Your breaks should be about 20-30 minutes long. If you take a break any shorter than that, you really haven’t given your brain the proper rest that it deserves. If your breaks are any longer, you tend to lose steam in your work and when you go back to work, you’ll feel unmotivated to continue.

Your study breaks could anything that gets your mind off studying. I like to take a nice hot chocolate break and watch 20 minutes of one of my favorite TV shows. I usually pick a fairly mindless show so I can let my brain totally veg for a good break. You could also take a walk, have a chat with a friend, or clean your room. Cleaning sounds kinda boring, I know, but it is actually a fantastic, mindless action that lets your brain go on autopilot. Plus, you get a beautiful, clean room.

I’d always recommend eating a snack with your break. You’ll need a little sugar in your bloodstream to keep you working at your fullest potential. I like to treat myself to some chocolate whenever I take a break, but you should eat something yummy and that will make you feel rewarded. With all the work you’ve just done, you’ll deserve it.

The following is a guest post by our (nerdy yet totally helpful) friends at Hack College. Check ‘em out for all your techy needs. They’re like the nerdy boyfriend you never had but always needed.

When the hell did November get here? That is what I want to know. Seriously, just yesterday I was telling y’all how to prepare your brains for August and get back into the school mode. And now it’s November. How did that happen and how can I make it stop?

Well, okay, so I can’t stop the furious, oncoming train that is November. I also can’t stop December, with all of its final papers and exams and projects, from hurtling right after it. You might be thinking, “Don’t be silly. December is an entire month away! I have a whole other month before I have to start worrying about things like that. I’m not gonna worry about that ’til after Thanksgiving.”

That is where you are wrong. Let me break this down for you. Including this week, there are two more weeks until Thanksgiving. Exams start a week and a half after Thanksgiving break. Can you study for all of your exams, write multiple 15-page papers, and put together various end-of-the-semester projects in a week in a half?

Answer: no.

The solution to this post-Thanksgiving crunch is to use these two weeks that we are given to start planning ahead for finals season. I know, it may seem excessive. But if you put off preparation for your end -of-the-year work until right before or even after Thanksgiving break, you will have wished you used that two week grace period to do some of that work. Trying to organize the next month of your academic life is daunting to say the least. But with a few tips, you should at least create yourself a nice cushion of accomplished work to allow you to not completely lose your mind in the post-Thanksgiving crunch.

Make Lists of Exams/Projects/Papers

I like lists. Okay, okay, I love lists. They are the best organization tool in the entire world. If you don’t already carry around a notepad or a digital version to keep track of to-do lists and the like, you really should start. It makes it less likely that you will forget to do a small (or big) assignment or task if you keep track of everything you must do throughout the day.

For November though, you should start by making a list of all of your major assignments that will be due in the time between now and the end of the semester. Make note of which tasks are going to take more time and which are simply minor assignments. Making a list like this will not only help you prioritize all of the things that you need to do but it will also help you get a realistic idea of how much you really have to do by the end of the semester.

Look through all of your classes’ syllabuses to make sure you have listed every assignment and to ensure that some unexpected assignment doesn’t sneak up on you. There is nothing worse than feeling you have a good handle on all of your work and then realizing that you forgot about a graded portion of the course that was only mentioned on the first day of class. Don’t panic if your list is massively bigger than you expected it to be. If you use efficient time management skills and schedule your next few weeks to accommodate your list (see the next item), you should be able to finish everything on your list.

Schedule Your Calendar

It’s reasonable to panic while looking at the massive list you’ve just created. You have to do all of this end-of-the-semester work plus the day to day work that is still piling on? Oh, yes. After you’ve made your list of assignments and exams, take out your calendar. I still prefer my Outlook Calendar but many people prefer Google Calendars or even physical, handwritten calendars. Like a notebook to keep track of to-do lists, if you don’t already have a calendar you use consistently, you should get into the habit immediately. Scheduling due dates and other tasks on a calendar helps you visually gauge and organize your life.

Take the items on your list and place them all on your calendar, if they aren’t already. That, unfortunately, is the easy part. Now that you can see when all of your assignments are due and exams are scheduled, you should start to set aside blocks of times to do prepare for these assignments. Because you still have to do your day-to-day work, you will have to play around with designating certain parts of days to certain projects while still leaving space for your daily work. It’s a tricky balancing act. I like to designate certain weekends or weeks to different projects and color code them accordingly. That way I know that next week I will have to work on my Greek religions paper while next weekend I will have to start on my project for my Communication class.

By sitting down with your calendar and list of assignments and specifically scheduling blocks of time to do major assignments, you have locked it into place in your life. You can know for certain when you will have time to do all of the things on your list instead of just trying to randomly find spare time to work on various projects. If you don’t schedule it in, it’s much easier for you to procrastinate and never get around to it. Scheduling things also gives you a deadline for when you should be done with your assignment. Deadlines will motivate you to get your work done in the period you have set aside for it. Additionally, self-set deadlines is an important skill to acquire before you venture out in to the real world.

Be the Early Bird

All of these steps may seem like taking very early steps in preparing for finals season, but I want to suggest that you take this idea a step further, especially with papers and projects. If you know that you have a paper due at the end of the semester, begin brainstorming for topics, ideas, and sources now, early in the month, so that when you actually sit down to write the paper, you have already saved yourself time.

Schedule meetings with your professors about paper and project topics early so that you already have the go-ahead. Additionally, if you ask for help from professors early in the month, you will have more time to track down the hints and helpful information that they may give you during your meeting with them. Your professors want you to make a good grade. Asking for help or a point in the right direction early will not only let them know that you’re on the ball but it will give you more time to use these suggestions in your final assignment.

Ultimately, starting projects and papers early will both help you stay organized and on top of your other things to do and will give you more time to produce a better final project or paper. And eat lots and lots of stuffing/sweet potatoes/everything else your mom makes.

Do you find any of these tips useful? What do you do during November to help you prepare for the end-of-the-year rush of finals? Let us know in the comments!

Until then, I’m going to try and get through it all. Maybe Google image search Liam Hemsworth, watch a few YouTube videos of people falling…

So after you catch up on the absolutely insane Hill’s episode from this week, and the Gossip Girl episode that made us wonder where Rufus is keeping his waffle maker, check out a week that was:

- Since it’s almost summah time (thank you!) it’s time to bling up your closet with this easy-to-make tank.

- Call me guilty, in the midst of finals week H-E double hockey sticks, I forgot about Mother’s Day. But we have five Mother’s Day gifts that are totally worth the weight in gold your mom’s home cooking.

- House parties versus campus bar. We discovered they are not one in the same. Who knew?

- Tiger Woods speaks at a marriage seminar – Just kidding! But Chris Brown sings the anthem at a boxing match. Who is his PR person?

- One CC writer is going ‘dude free’ all month long.  I haven’t done that since third grade, and it sounds refreshing! Read up on her progress.

- The Kentucky Derby was this weekend, and we don’t know about you, but those hats. Drooling.

- Skinny jeans can protect you from what?

- We’ve all had one: a friend dealing with an unhealthy relationship.