With this being my last blog post of the semester, it only seems fitting to once again talk about finals. It feels like this trimester has flown by faster than any previous one has. The completion of tri 5 also signifies my halfway point here at NUHS! This has been an incredible transition into the clinical phase and has exponentially advanced my preparedness for movement into practice. We not only started practicing more thorough head-to-toe examinations with regional orthopedic exams, but we also got our first taste of diagnosing patients’ conditions and considering possible chiropractic treatment options. While preparing for finals is stressful, it is also exciting. Each trimester we complete brings us one step closer to graduation — our end goal of making profound differences in people’s lives.

Now, obviously looking at the grand and overarching picture of what we here at NUHS are working to achieve does not immediately take away the stress and pressure that finals week brings. However, it is important to ensure we approach finals week with a plan for success. In a previous blog post I discussed that starting your studying early was a big key to success, and it is, but it is not the only one. Scheduling time for all of your classes is important, as often we focus on more difficult classes, or even simply the ones that are worth more credit hours. Yet, I believe the most overlooked and undervalued skill of success as a student preparing for multiple exams at once is actually the part where you don’t study.

I hope you can all attest that studying is strenuous on your brain, your eyes and your body. This is why it is crucial to not cram. You should have an appropriate amount of time to be able to take breaks to exercise, eat, sleep and just overall destress. From personal experience I can whole heartedly say that when I am exhausted and cramming, I do not function optimally. The time it takes me to absorb material can be double or even triple what a fresh set of eyes can learn. In fact, there have been times where I catch my eyes moving across a page or slide without remembering anything and having to reread everything. Part of studying is not just devoting sheer time but finding ways to be efficient and effective.

I know everyone is going to do great and finish strong and trust that their professors have more than adequately prepared them for the exams. As always, it has been an honor to share my trimester with you all and I look forward to the next trimester and continuing this opportunity. Good luck everyone!

Read more about NUHS’ Florida DC Program here.