By Study Inn
Students have been faced with unique challenges to university life during the coronavirus pandemic, experiencing feelings of disconnection, uncertainty and worry. Stress and tension levels will be increasing even more now as exam season looms.
Instead of screaming in despair because you feel behind, you can deploy some ingenious tactics to help you manage exam season stress.
April marks Stress Awareness Month 2021 so we have put together our top tips on coping with the pending threat of exams.
Keep Everything in Perspective
When you have exams bearing down on you, it can become all consuming, taking up much of your time and thought. This can lead to you seeing them as the most definitive event in your whole life, and this is just not true at all. Exams success does not define you as a person and they sometimes aren’t even an accurate reflection of your ability in the subject. Even if you fail completely, which chances are you won’t, it’s not the worst thing that could ever happen. Even for future job prospects, employers don’t just look at how well you’ve done in your grades, but rather take your experience, talents and attitude into account. Keeping this is in mind will allow you to relax and focus on the task ahead.
Develop Good Habits, Eliminate Bad Habits
If you are studying at university, then you know about the perils of procrastinating. Everything will seem more appealing than opening a textbook; cleaning the whole of your student accommodation, scrolling endlessly through Facebook and even sorting out your laundry. This is of course something that needs to be avoided to eliminate stress. The more time you waste, the less you will have to get the right amount of revision in, which can lead to panic. Set a schedule for yourself with a lot of short breaks every 40 minutes and centred around the times when you work best. Everyone’s brains are active at different times, with some people being morning people and some working best after the sun sets. Keep to this schedule every day and you will find yourself more motivated and productive in no time. However, don’t set yourself unachievable goals, such as doing ten hours of revision every day for a month as this will just drag you down if you can’t meet these targets. Make sure you take the time to enjoy yourself as well, because you will just end up going stir crazy!
Keep Your Mind and Body Healthy
A lot of us neglect our bodies during our time at university. From staying up late to not eating right, all of this can increase stress levels massively. Make sure you are getting enough sleep whilst revising and resist the temptation to stay up late to get those extra hours of cramming in. Try to get at least seven to eight hours in a night and you will find yourself much calmer and more relaxed. Avoid stimulants such as coffee, alcohol and drugs, as this won’t help your sleeping pattern at all. Eating healthy and exercising regularly will keep your mind and body healthy, and make revising easier so things won’t be as stressful.
You can take advantage of our monthly virtual events programme to help you de-stress and learn something new. This month you can take part in a variety of fitness classes, cooking session, calligraphy tutorial, and DJ live stream for example.
One of the most important ways to reduce your stress while studying is to stay in a student accommodation that you feel comfortable and relaxed in. Study Inn offer luxury accommodation in Nottingham, Bristol, Loughborough, Exeter, Leicester and Leeds that are perfect for creating a calm, relaxing atmosphere to study in.
