With the semester coming to an end, campus organizations are available to provide resources to help students handle the stress of the end-of the-semester crunch.
Kim Kavalsky, coordinator of Health Outreach and University Health Services said Student Counseling Services has staff available to help students during this stressful time of the year.
“The counseling centers have counselors available to help students deal with stress during finals,” Kavalsky said. “We have a counselor on duty Monday through Friday from 8 to 5 p.m. The counselor on duty doesn’t have any appointments for the day and is there to handle walk-ins and students who can’t wait a few days or week.”
Kavalsky said she often sees students come into the counseling center on reading days in crisis concerned about their academic standing 
“A popular thing during exams or right before exams on readings days is that we have students in crisis who are concerned about their academics,” Kavalsky said.  “They may be in danger of failing, and they really benefit from talking with a therapist about what they can do and what resources we have.”
Kavalsky said counselors teach students various skills on how to handle stress and positive coping skills. She said meditation and exercise are good activities to help students manage their stress levels 
“I think of stress as a physical thing,” Kavalsky said. “What I mean by that is some people who are under a lot stress have upset stomachs, sweat a lot, have a lot of tension in neck and back or headaches. A good way to treat that is with some physical exercise and breathing techniques with mindfulness and mediation.” 
Active Minds, a mental health awareness organization, will hosts its Stress Free Zone event Dec. 8, from 7–10 p.m. 
Atlanta McCoy, president of Active Minds, said a table will be set up on the second floor of Mitchell Memorial Library and baked goods, coffee, hot cocoa and parfaits will be served.
“The Stress Free Zone table is a place where you can just cancel everything else out and relax,” McCoy said. “It’s just a moment, a few minutes or however long you want to stay just to take your mind off of finals and you know, just give students some relaxation time. And it’s all free.” 
McCoy said she finds stress balls to be a highly successful way for students to relieve stress.
“We use balloons (to make the stress balls) and we have filters where you can fill them with sand, tie them up and squeeze them to let out some frustration,” McCoy said. 
Candace Weed, an instructor who teaches College Success 1, freshman seminar and college reading and study skills and coordinator of Promise Student Support Group, said The eLearning Center also provides resources to assist students during finals. “The first thing to do is not stress out over finals,” Weed said. “There is no way that you will be able to focus or maintain concentration if you lose yourself to stress.”
Weed said she typically advises her students to create a five-day study plan to help them study efficiently for exams.
“You shouldn’t wait until the reading days to prepare for your finals. We break the plan down into a series of preparation by looking back over and re-reading your notes and books, working with flash cards, concept map, study tools and quizzing yourself. Each of those days covers no more than two hours of study per content area,” Weed said. “That way you’re not pushing yourself too much, and it’s easier to remember the information.”
Kavalsky said students also should not neglect sleep and healthy eating during finals.
“I see students trying to cram eight hours straight, wired on caffeine and other drugs such as Adderall, and that’s the worst thing they could do,” Kavalsky said. “By the time they take the exam, they will have forgotten about half of what they studied when they crash.” 
Kavalsky said the key to surviving exams is for students not to slip into destructive patterns during exam times.
“It’s very tempting for student to fall into bad habits during exam,” Kavalsky said. “Don’t do it because it’s not worth your health and grades.”