Too much pressure for finals

Hailey Steidle, Staff writer

When moving onto campus in September, whether you are a first-time student or you have done this before, you are thrown directly into classes full force. Lists of due dates, tests, assignments, papers and programs are given to you right away. Most like to think that they will be able to manage their time wisely and finish their projects ahead of schedule, however, most never actually follow that schedule they had made. Many ask themselves if it is their fault for the sleepless nights at the end of the semester because they did not keep up with those original schedules. The question we should be asking is rather are professors setting unrealistic expectations for the end of a semester? As the semester begins to pass by, many students are able to keep up with the workload that is being given to them. However, towards the end of November many classes begin to pick up on the workload as large semester-long projects are due and the thought of finals is beginning to loom. As students get sent home for Thanksgiving Break, what is supposed to be a relaxing time at home with family, gets turned into a time period where most college students are cramming so they can have the ability to study rather than working on any projects or presentations they may have due. With the addition of sporting events, internships coming to a close, work and clubs ceasing to meet, most students begin to struggle. The three-week gap between Thanksgiving and the end of the semester is the most stressful part of the year for most. With the final day of classes often being just one Saturday and Sunday away from when finals begin, a lot of students worry about the amount of time they will have to study for the finals they may have. A majority of classes will have students learning new content up until the last possible day, while other classes will have major projects and presentations due on the very last day as well. Students are retaining new information whilst still focusing on the projects they may have due. This leaves just two days for students to cram in as much information as possible before they begin the testing period. The answer to the question of whether or not professors are expecting too much at the end of the semester will vary depending on who you ask. Students who may have more on their plate regarding the things they do in their free time like running clubs, being on a sports team, working on or off campus, taking part in internships and a multitude of other activities may see their workload as crushing or impossible. However, if you were to ask faculty if they think they are assigning too much they would probably answer no because they can only see how much they are assigning, they do not have any way to tell what their students are dealing with. This semester there seems to be a lot of last minute projects and papers that professors are assigning and I do not remember this being the case in prior years. A lot of my friends have just been assigned a final project this week that would be due this weekend in addition to their final exams.