[quote]By Alicia Diaz
News Editor
Graphic by Qiyuan Zhou[/quote]

Freshmen students asked questions on first semester finals in a Google Doc, and The Stampede provided tips and tricks to prepare for your first ever final exams.

How do you prepare for final exams?

There are lots of options when it comes to preparing for final exams, so you can figure out what works best for you. Finding people in your classes to meet up with and forming study groups has helped me in the past. Organize your old notes and worksheets, make notecards, or reread portions of the textbook that you’ve covered over the course of the semester. Some teachers also put old PowerPoints or other study tools online for you to utilize.

When’s the best time to start studying?

Ideally, you could be consistently reviewing the material you’ve learned so far in the semester. That way, you’re already ahead of the game once it gets closer to finals. Even though you might be able to get away with cramming the night before for other tests, don’t try this for a final. There’s way too much information (several months worth of notes, tests, and more) to fit into one night of studying. Start reviewing a little bit each day a few weeks before your final.

Are the study guides actually useful?

If you’re lucky enough to get a study guide (which as a junior and senior doesn’t always happen), you should definitely be filling it out. As crazy as it sounds, teachers don’t want their students to fail. They taught the material and helped craft the final, so they will have the best idea of what to give you in preparation for it. However, the study guide shouldn’t be the only studying tool you use. You can form study groups, review your notes or make note cards as well.

After final exams is that it? Are our grades final?

Despite what the name says, “final” exams sometimes aren’t the last grades entered in. Depending on the class/teacher, you might have a few small assignments added in January when we get back from break. I wouldn’t rely on those to bump your grade up significantly if you do poorly on the final, though.

How hard are they?

Final exams cover all the material over the course of the semester, so it’s a lot different than the other exam you take throughout the year. Since there’s so much material, they can be challenging if you don’t take the time to prepare and review. Most finals will be in the form of a multiple choice exam, however, they can also include a presentation, project, or writing portion. By finding out what you need to prepare for and reviewing as early as you can, you can conquer finals week!

Are final exams really that serious?

Almost all classes have final exams making up 20 percent of your overall grade. Although it may not seem like much compared to the other 80 percent of the course material, it can bring your grade up or down several percentage points. For example, getting an F on a final, even when if you have a 95 percent in the class, can bring you down a whole letter grade. On the bright side, if you’re well prepared, finals can also bump your borderline grade up a letter grade. However, I wouldn’t completely rely on them to do so. RogerHub’s final exam calculator can tell you what you need to score on your finals to achieve the overall grade that you want.