Student Success Center offers tips for finals week

The end of the semester has finally come — winter break is in sight — but there is still one thing standing in the way of freedom for Missouri Southern students: finals week. For some students, finals are nothing more than a walk in the park. Other students, however, often find themselves plagued by the very idea of a final and spend many sleepless nights fretting and studying.

Stephanie Hopkins, director of Missouri Southern’s student success center and disability services, advises those students who struggle during finals week with barely a wink of sleep to actually plan to get more rest before a final.

“Sometimes students stay up all night studying for a final, and that doesn’t always work for some students,” said Hopkins.

Hopkins also advises students to be organized when studying and to start preparing for their finals long before finals week arrives.

“I actually think students should be preparing themselves [for finals] all semester long,” said Hopkins.

In addition to preparing for finals throughout the semester, Hopkins also encourages students to seek out the Student Success Center’s tutoring services if students feel they need the help. According to Hopkins, the Student Success Center can provide tutoring for over 200 courses and is free for all Missouri Southern students.

“We have several tutors available,” said Hopkins. “Students can stop by and see what they can do and what we can do to help them.”

The Student Success Center also provides an online note taking workshop, which can be found via the Student Success Center page on Southern’s official website. Online test taking workshops and time management workshops will also be available in the near future.

One of the biggest pieces of advice Hopkins has for students preparing for finals week is “arrive on time and be prepared to go in with confidence.”