Short Turnaround to Finals May Leave Some Students Stressed

When students return from Thanksgiving break next week, it’ll be a quick two weeks before the end of the fall semester, leaving some feeling overwhelmed and lost during finals week.

Kristina Moquin, senior counselor with SUNY Plattsburgh’s Student Health and Counseling Center, had some words of advice for students who find themselves stressed and facing a slippery slope to finals..

“Stick to the basics and maintain basic self care — sleep, eat, move, socialize, take breaks,” she said. “Surprisingly the students who tend to really suffer are not taking care of the basic needs and then everything else slips.

“How can you focus when you haven’t slept all night and haven’t eaten proper meals in days?” she said.

If students find themselves needing extra help, Moquin said they can utilize the Student Assistant Program through the end of the semester by calling 800-327-2251 or accessing the plan online at portal.BHSonline.com and entering the username SUNYPlattsburgh.

“This program offers counseling and referral services as well as legal and financial advice,” she said.

Students who have papers, projects or other assignments to finish up can join others in the same boat in the Feinberg Library and Learning Center’s “Long Night Against Procrastination: Finals Edition” beginning 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 4 on the second floor of the library. Library and Learning Center staff will help students get things done while supplying snacks and pizza. Librarians will be on hand for research help while tutors in writing, math and chemistry will be there as well.

To register or more information, email [email protected] or call 518-564-2287.

Other options for those students needing extra help are available through the following:

• Ward Hall Counseling Clinic, operated through the Department of Counselor Education, 101 Ward Hall, 518-564-4180
• The HUB in the Angell College Center offers a gathering space for students
• Accessibility Resource Office at 518-564-2888 or email [email protected]

To reach the Student Health and Counseling Center, call 518-564-2187 or email [email protected].

— Story, Photo By Associate Director of Communications Gerianne Downs