The Center for Academic Success is here to ease the minds of overwhelmed students with its bi-annual Prep for Finals event.
Prep For Finals is a 30 minute workshop where students can get tips and study aids to help them prepare for finals. This semester, the event was held Nov. 15 and 28 in the basement of Coates Hall.
Students received calendars to plan out their finals week schedule and handouts with helpful study tips.
During the session, Pam Ball, Center for Academic Success learning strategies program manage, presented a powerpoint reviewing how to plan for finals.
Ball explained why the Center for Academic Success hosts Prep for Finals.
“We know that a lot of students, especially first year — but believe me second, third and forth year students — start experiencing a lot of stress and uncertainty heading into final week.” Ball said.
A technique Ball recommends using is the study cycle, a five-part cycle that breaks down what you should do before, during and after learning a new topic in class. She also went over focused study sessions, offering a step-by-step list on how to properly study during study sessions.
Ball also gave her opinion on what she feels are good steps for preparing for finals.
“Get organized, plan out your time so you know what is coming, and make use of the focused study session,” Ball said.
Thirty-two students attended the Nov. 28 workshop, most of them freshman.
Marketing freshman Marley Evans said she is nervous for her economics final and wanted to get additional help from the University.
“This is our first round of finals as freshmen, and I thought I knew what to expect from my teachers,” Evans said. “I wanted to see if there was help from the school.”
Stress students may feel during finals may cause them to engage in unhealthy study habits like cramming before an exam or staying up all night to study.
The students that attended the Prep for Finals workshop learned helpful study tips for their upcoming finals and also experienced some of the services that the Center for Academic Success provides.
Theater performance sophomore Keiera Williams came to seek advice on her biology final and learned a helpful new tip that she can use in the future.
“The thing that stuck with me is you can make an appointment [with Center for Academic Success] so they can help you study,” she said.
The Center for Academic Success aims to help freshman in the transition from high school to college by providing personalized study strategies, tutoring, Supplemental Instruction, workshops and online resources. Their services are also available to all students.

Gallery • 1 Photos

Ryan McCarble

LSU Center for Academic Success Learning Strategies Program Manager Pam Ball uses an interactive sheet to help students prepare for final exams on Monday, Nov. 28, 2016 in Coates Hall.