For the college Dopers!

[Rasa]

I've noticed that a few of my favorite Dopers (hi Doob and Nen!) are in college, toiling away in the name of Higher Education, getting ready to face first sememser finals. I remember how nuts this time of year was--I'm pretty fresh out of school myself (BA in archaeology, May 1999) and I still get that feeling of dread around the holidays.

So, for all of you that are suffering through finals, I just wanted to say best of luck, and hang in there! It's worth it. Every paper you write, every exam question you field, every project you complete. The end's in sight, and you'll have a month or so off real soon. And, at the risk of sounding old before my time, for the love of Pete, enjoy whatever time you have left in college. I'd give anything to be a poor, starving student again.

Here's wishing you a never-empty coffeemaker, printer cartridges that are never empty, and quiet comfy places to study. Not to mention, when your exams are done, the energy to celebrate like mad that it's over, for one more semester. Oh, and let's throw in some cute boys for Doob and a bottle of Glenfiddich for Nen.

Good luck on finals everyone!

[waterj2]

Can I get anything? It's my last semester, ever. That Glenfiddich doesn't sound bad, but I think I'll pass on the cute boys.

[Rasa]

waterj2, (woo got it right, j2 not 2j!) if it's your last semester, you get mad props, how's that sound? Heh, I remember my last semester, if they had told me I had to take just one more class, I would have walked out that door and never gotten that degree.

Congratulations!

[Munch]

I have to second the OP. Especially the "enjoy it while you can" part. Always remember the following:

The hardest day of finals is so much better than the easiest day of the real world.

[whiterabbit]

Algebra finals are way worse than anything the real world has to offer as far as mental torture, IMHO.

I only have to survive until Wednesday...then I will be FREE, FREE, FREEEEEE!!!!!

[ladybug]

Originally posted by whiterabbit
I only have to survive until Wednesday...then I will be FREE, FREE, FREEEEEE!!!!!

Hey, me too! I just have my Criminal Procedure final left on Wednesday afternoon (only counts for 100 percent of my grade -- no pressure. ). I'm already feeling a little better because I got my two hardest finals out of the way last week.

Best of all, I finally finished my paper for Gender and the Law. I just came back from handing it in, and I couldn't be happier. ::does Snoopy dance::

Fifty-two and a half hours until I'm free! Whoo-HOO!

I should probably go study ...

[Le Sang]

Thanks for the luck Rasa

Algebra finals... <shudder> I couldn't pass an Algebra test if I tried... I'll keep my Differential Equations thanks

<looks forward to Saturday afternoon>
<curses the fact that he has had a Sat. test every single semester>
<goes back to studying>

[Rasa]

white rabbit, ladybug, FDWTFUN (LeSang): I vividly remember handing in the exam sheet for the final math class I would ever have to take for the rest of my life. What a sweet, sweet feeling. LOL, ok so we won't mention that I failed the class miserably and the prof passed me on the condition that I promise not to take any more math classes (*so* not a problem!) but...

[Nika]

I just keep telling myself the money I will be making later will make this worthwhile. Even the 7-10pm exams on a saturday night? Yes, even those.

[Maeglin]

I graduated six months ago. I worked my ass off at an Ivy League school, spending at least 50 hours per week on classwork and homework.

And I'd trade all this "real world" bullshit in a moment to go back. Enjoy it while it lasts.

MR

[Melpomene]

Finals? What are those?

Oh you mean the times where I have to stand in front of the class and perform a scene with my partner? Or the one where I have to go see a play and then discuss it with the class afterwards? Good luck on those finals? Aww thanks!

[Rasa]

::gives Maeglin's post a resounding "hell yea"::

In college, I fought for things I believed in. I never took "Because that's the way it is" for an answer. I learned what is good and what is bad about people. I met some of the most painfully brilliant and crazy people that shined brigher than any light on this earth. Half the time I was broke, homeless and scared as hell, but I had a family of friends I could call at any time if I needed. Experience where you are now, while you're there!

[/end nostalgic rant]

[BornDodgy]

What about the poor morons working on the Austrian equivalent of AS levels, huh huh huh???

We suffer too.. hehe

dodgy

[BornDodgy]

PS: I know.. you cant compare AS and college.. but I still do it.

[andygirl]

Rasa,

Thanks for the luck. I'm already done finals, though. I'll pass on my share of luck to brotherboy, who is a slave to his biology books at the moment.

Maeglin- where did you go, if you don't mind me asking?

[Prof. Dumbledore]

Hey i've got a discrete maths final tommorow and here i am

[Silo]

Well I've got a rough week of finals. I'll sure be glad when it's over.

Back to studying....

[Nen]

Thanks for the bottle of Glenfiddich, Rasa. I certainly hope it is neverending. There just seems to be something appropriate about taking an ethics examination while verschnookered.

[Rasa]

There just seems to be something appropriate about taking an ethics examination while verschnookered.

From giving my ceiling head, or from the Glen? Funny things, those ethics...

[Medea's Child]

Rasa, don't pity Le Sang and his math stuff, he brings it upon himself for some unknown reason and takes crazy classes for fun. (Like P. Chem, which he is going to take as an elective with me! When I get there.)

Sigh...Latin, 8 AM. (What in God's name could cause someone to put the final for an 11 AM class at *8*? We are not morning people. Sigh.)

[ladybug]

Thanks for the good wishes, Rasa. I've been studying for hours now -- the only thing getting me through this is that I know it's my last final for the semester.

Luckily all of my finals this semester were open book so I can just flip through my notes if I forget something. Still not as good as last fall when I had almost all take-home exams, though.

Good luck to everyone who's taking exams!

[stargazer]

I echo the OP and wish you all luck... I just graduated in June, so this is the first time I haven't had tests this time o' year!

As for all of that "I'd give anything to go back" stuff... at this point? I wouldn't. Not a snowball's chance in hell. I LOVED college, and I miss the people some, but I see a lot of them on a regular basis. But work is SO much less stressful than school ever was. I have my weekends and evenings free, I'm getting enough sleep. My eyes don't have that dry, stressed-out, unfocused feeling for once, and I have some spending money! Post-college life is a wonderful thing.

OTOH, I have to work the week between Christmas and New Year's, which is a bit of a shock to my system.

I'm sure I'll miss college once I'm done being burned out. (20+ credits/quarter for the last year of college will burn you out for a LOOOOONG time)

So, good luck, y'all!

[oldscratch]

aww you're so sweet rasa.

Personally I'm glad you're not a student anymore. If you were, you couldn't give two weeks notice.

[Max Torque]

Just got through with Evidence this morning, and I have but one exam left, Wills & Trusts, on Friday. That's gonna be rough; too much tax stuff to remember.

I'm with you, my fellow suffering exam-brothers....

[whiterabbit]

Originally posted by Rasa
white rabbit, ladybug, FDWTFUN (LeSang): I vividly remember handing in the exam sheet for the final math class I would ever have to take for the rest of my life. What a sweet, sweet feeling. LOL, ok so we won't mention that I failed the class miserably and the prof passed me on the condition that I promise not to take any more math classes (*so* not a problem!) but...

Hmm...I wonder if I could cut a deal with my math prof? He's a nice guy. He knows I have math issues. I wonder how much a "C" would cost.

[Doobieous]

Actually, i have two finals, but theyre pretty easy it seems. My biggest problem is this FUCKING portfolio! Ahhhhh!! I didnt do some of the readings, so I have to get those and skim through it, and BS my way through the summaries. *Sigh* yeah, yeah, yeah, i know, should have done them when they were due. Anyway, i also have a 10-15 page paper to write, not to mention a presentation to put together (that actually wont be very hard actually, i already know a lot about the topic). Oh and also some other crap I dont even want to think about. I think what's keeping me sane is that i can argue i be given no credit and try again. Ugh....i'm kicking myself for taking more than I could handle. As for right now, I have to write a short essay dealing with argumentation for Spanish (and then i'm going to attempt my 10-15 page paper). Fortunately the due date for most of this crap is the 18th, but it all seems to be looming over me like a black cloud.

I'd seriously rather be in chat right now, but i wont get my work done if I venture back in there, so it's best i sit here stewing in procrastination until I get the inspiration up to start on my work.

Thanks for the warm wishes Rasa, and I'll take those cute boys hot and virile, please!

[avacado]

Originally posted by Nika
I just keep telling myself the money I will be making later will make this worthwhile. Even the 7-10pm exams on a saturday night? Yes, even those.

[sigh] If only I had such a thing to look forward to at the end of school [/sigh]. All I can hope for is a not-horribly-paying job in a not-horrible city. Or grad school.

Thanks, Rasa and everyone else. Of course, if we were serious about studying, we wouldn't be here

[Philbuck]

Originally posted by Medea's Child
Rasa, don't pity Le Sang and his math stuff, he brings it upon himself for some unknown reason and takes crazy classes for fun. (Like P. Chem, which he is going to take as an elective with me! When I get there.)

hey now...I took pchem for fun...

(an the looks on the chemistry majors' faces when I said that were just precious)

[evilbeth]

I have one more paper to write that I should have written two weeks ago, then I am done for the semester. It won't be very hard and the professor loves me, I just can't get my ass in gear!

I had a major ass-kicking final Monday afternoon. I didn't think I would ever be able to straighten out my fingers again.

I just got finished writing a paper for my censorship class about why two children's books should be banned. I feel dirty.

[iampunha]

Originally posted by Doobieous
As for right now, I have to write a short essay dealing with argumentation for Spanish (and then i'm going to attempt my 10-15 page paper).

Forgive me for not using my brain, but what's the topic of your paper?

I personally just got done a few days ago with a 5-page paper I wrote the day it was due. Now I get to find out about what I missed in my religion and geology classes and BS a bunch of English shit for about an hour. Fun fun fun.

[Maeglin]

Maeglin- where did you go, if you don't mind me asking?

Nah, I don't mind. Columbia University, Class of '00. I was a glutton for punishment. In addition to a 48 credit core, I double majored in history and classics. My senior year I wrote my senior history thesis and endured the infamous Latin Survey, in which we read a book a week, ranging from the inscriptions of the Scipios and Ennius all the way up to Apuleius. 600 years of literary culture. 30 weeks. All in Latin. It was awesome.

And just when I thought I was taking enough Latin...all of my sources for my thesis, on the Norman warrior-aristocracy from the 10-12th centuries, were in Latin.

And then there were my Greek classes...

My life is so boring now.

[tiggeril]

I finished with finals last Thursday. Calculus, Art History, and the Hum paper from hell. Bleah. Back to bed I crawl...

[ladybug]

Originally posted by Max Torque
Just got through with Evidence this morning, and I have but one exam left, Wills & Trusts, on Friday. That's gonna be rough; too much tax stuff to remember.

I remember my Estates and Trusts exam from last year. I was sick when I had to take it so I was miserable. The one thing I remember was writing so much that my hand felt like it was about to fall off when it was over.

I don't think Evidence was too bad because it was open book and a take-home. We had 24 hours to finish it.

Max, do you use the Emanuels study guides? I've gotten them for a lot of my courses and I can't tell you how much they've helped me. They're great if your professor doesn't explain things well.

Good luck on that Wills and Trusts exam, and good luck to the rest of you taking finals, too.

I really have to go back to studying for Crim Pro now.

[jovius]

<Zzzzz> "Whaa-t?"

<drool>

<Zzzzz>

[lno]

And just when I thought I was taking enough Latin...all of my sources for my thesis, on the Norman warrior-aristocracy from the 10-12th centuries, were in Latin.

Maeglin, I love you.

Five years ago, I wouldn't have believed someone if they told me that I'd study medieval European history, Latin, and end up learning Arabic because I'd get so pissed at the one-sided Latin sources regarding the Crusading era. (Two hundred glorious Christian knights surrounded by three hundred sixty thousand mounted Turks, and fighting them all off? Suuuure. Pull the other one, it's got bells on.) Of course, when I was in college, I wouldn't have believed someone if they told me that I'd get a job coding with absolutely no relevance to my degree.

If you're in college, do what it takes to stay there. Club a baby seal. Fake your own death. Hold the administrators hostage. Don't ever leave.

I'm expected to be at my desk every morning, rain or shine. If I want to accomplish anything at work, I need at least six hours of sleep the night before. Add in time to shower and commute, and I have to live by a well-defined schedule. In college, there was no such schedule. Yup, I had classes at regular times on specific days, but it wasn't important. If I only had two hours of sleep, no big deal, I just had to make it through an hour or so of class (which coffee could easily do) and then it's off for another catnap before the next class. It didn't matter where I slept- bed, couch, floor- since I'd just wake up whenever.

..forcing myself to get an hour of sleep while writing a paper, having bizarre dreams about Edessa, Antioch, and Tyre, and then being unsure in my near-hallucinatory state whether a certain event actually took place or is just a figment of my imagination..

..creating scale-model mockups of trebuchets and onagers as props to go along with a presentation on concepts of motion, and giving them to a professor who then catapulted marbles at one of his colleagues..

..selling books at the end of the academic year to raise beer money so I could finish a contest at the local pub..

..taking Penguin mints to keep myself awake, then dosing myself with Nyquil to get a few hours of sleep, then taking more Penguin mints to counteract the Nyquil.. (kids, don't do this part)

..translating Winnie-ille-Pu back to English because Cicero was an arrogant boor..

Maybe someday I'll win the lottery, and become phenomenally wealthy, and can go back to college full-time without worrying about finances. Until then, I'll just remain nostalgic about college, and spend more money on books than I rationally should.

[Geobabe]

Oh yes, having been out in that "real world" for many years and then going back to college, I can definitely attest that college is WAY better than work! Even with the stress of finals and all, because exams are finite. You take them, and they're done. At work, you do one thing and there's another task waiting for you, and another one after that, or maybe multiple ones simultaneously...it never ends. At least here, you can look forward to the end of the semester for a break.

Besides, it's 2 o'clock on a Tuesday afternoon, and I'm still in my jammies. I could never do that at work.

[Max Torque]

Originally posted by ladybug
I don't think Evidence was too bad because it was open book and a take-home. We had 24 hours to finish it.

That Evidence class was great. The prof was very experienced, he just lectured (didn't call on anyone), he didn't take attendance, and never failed to mention is class when "this would be a good exam question". I was done with the final in about an hour.

Max, do you use the Emanuels study guides? I've gotten them for a lot of my courses and I can't tell you how much they've helped me. They're great if your professor doesn't explain things well.

I usually don't care for the package outlines, although I love the "Law in a Flash" flashcards. My favorite "actually understand the course" tools are the Examples & Explanations series from Aspen Publishers.

[Le Sang]

Originally posted by Philbuck
hey now...I took pchem for fun...

(an the looks on the chemistry majors' faces when I said that were just precious) [/b]

Alright!!! I'm not alone!! Phil - what was your major? I'm in electrical engineering.

Oh - and please tell me that wasn't sarcasm solely intended to get a rise out of chem majors...

[Rasa]

Hmm, FDWTFUN, I didn't realize it was possible to get a rise out of chem majors...

::d&r::

[Doobieous]

Originally posted by iampunha
Forgive me for not using my brain, but what's the topic of your paper?

The oneon argumentation was my view that indigenous languagesshould besaved.

The biggie 10-15 page paperis a research paper focusing on the Hispanization of the Philippines (actually it will talk about how far hispanization went, but also talk about the failures).

Now I have that 10-15 page paper to tackle, as well as 8 summaries of readings. Woo woo. So much fun. *sigh*.

[iampunha]

If anyone needs an editor or proofreader or something, let me know. I need something to keep me busy when I'm not looking up shit for various exams.

[lno]

If anyone needs an editor or proofreader or something, let me know.

Ditto; I'll offer my anal-retentive attitude to help someone out.

[Homer]

I"m fucked. I failed everything this semester. Yay for me.

--Tim

[oldscratch]

But Homer, you entertain us while you fail, so it's all good.

[lolagranola]

Thanks. I finished finals last week, and get my grades today. I'm really nervous, since I know I bombed my finals.

:biting nails:

[Rasa]

Jeez, Doob, did finals sap all of your typing knowledge? I don't remember the last time I saw that many typos in such a short post! Oh wait, there's one from scratchie right below...

Homer, sorry to hear. Hang in there.

lolagranola, go you!

[mnemosyne]

...glucose is converted to glucose-6-phosphate using hexokinase and ATP, which is then converted to fructose-6-phosphate by glucose-6-phosphate isomerase ...

I have my biochemistry exam in just over an hour...it's the last one of the semester. I can't wait to get it over with! I like biochemistry (which is why it's my major) but SO MUCH MEMORIZATION!!!

...which is converted to fructose-1-6-phosphate by ATP and phosphofructo kinase...

Thanks Rasa! And good luck to everyone else, too!

[Silo]

Well I just finished my Chem exam (2 and 1/2 hours of non stop work!) and my teacher graded it when I turned it in. I got a 98! So my final grade is an A! wooo!

Last night I went to my English Comp 2 class (the last english class I have to take). I think I did good on the essay for the exam and so-so on the other stuff. Pretty sure I got a B for the semester (at least I'm hoping!!).

Well tomorrow morning is Spanish 3, and then tomorrow night is Psychology 2.

Can't wait till it's all done, then I can relax...

[FairyChatMom]

It was 21 years ago this month that I took my final final - As I recall, it was Aerodynamics of VSTOL and I needed a "D" to get outta there. I wouldn't go back to college for anything. Give me the real world any day. When I go home after my 8 hours, my time is mine. My weekends are mine.

However, for those still there, good luck to ya! And better thee than me!

[AETBOND417]

I guess Mnemosyne is testing as we speak.
I have my Pre-Cal and Euro History exams on the same day. That sucks. English and Physics the next, which isn't that bad. Ceramics and Spanish are the third day. This weekend is going to be nothing by studying.