Finals are one of those things that are both exciting and nerve-racking. Exciting, because the semester is almost over and we get to see how much we really learned. Nerve wracking, because they have such a massive impact on our final grades.

This year, I finally realized that finals are not meant to torture students. Some people may disagree, but I think they’re an important step into becoming better students and better people.

Almost every student at UND has a final exam or final project due in the next couple weeks. Many of us have three or more, and one of the hardest parts of preparation is prioritizing the order in which we study. For me, my math final will be by far the most difficult, and I intend to spend almost all of my free time over the next few weeks studying and going over all kinds of equations and problems that could appear on the exam.

Some of the best and worst times of my college career have revolved around finals week.

My first finals experience was very discouraging. I got decent grades, but they were a lot more difficult than I had expected.

When I was still at school in Tennessee, I was taking a chemistry class. When it came to the day of the final exam, I was super pumped because I thought I knew everything that was going to be on the test. Sadly, I was mistaken. It was difficult question after difficult question, and I found out how unprepared I really was. The questions were based on advanced techniques we never went over in class, and I ended up with a D on the test.

That final was a lot harder than the rest of the class was, but it made me a better student. I feel like everyone ends up with at least one final exam like that — where the professor just pulls out the unexpected or under-explained topics just to see if you really studied.

So this time through, I am going to study all-out and probably pull a couple all-nighters to keep the material fresh in my head. I will definitely utilize the Math Learning Center because I know that it’s going to be a difficult exam.

The learning center definitely has helped me with my previous math tests, but its not the only tutoring that UND offers.

The writing center in Merrifield has qualified specialists to look over papers and help with edits and ideas. Along with this, there is the Student Success Center in the Memorial Union which has drop-in tutoring available to all UND students for help with many 100 and 200 level courses, such as accounting, economics, foreign languages, mathematics, biology, chemistry and physics.

When subjects or even individual topics are difficult, it’s often very useful to go see a tutor on campus, especially because we’re already paying for the services with student fees.

So although finals week is one of the most dreaded times of the year, remember to prioritize your studying; seek assistance from a tutor if needed, and stay focused on test day, because when its over, we have several weeks to relax and unwind from the rigors of university studies.

Micah Dewey is a staff writer for The Dakota Student. He can be reached at [email protected].