After even just one semester in college, the average student learns lots of life hacks to surviving the hectic schedules, crazy weekends, impossible exams and just staying sane that college requires.  But when the weather starts getting warm and finals still loom ahead, students will need extra advice to finish the semester without completely giving up.  Inspired by Julia Reinstein’s buzzfeed article, “7 Brilliant Tips All College Students Should Try This Week”, here are some tips on how to finish the semester strong:  

1. Returning Textbooks

Luckily for UW-La Crosse students, we rarely have to buy textbooks, and get to check them out for free from textbook rental.  Unluckily for UW-L students, when all is said and done at the end of the semester and the last thing you want to do is stand in another line and wait. You get to textbook rental to return your books and see a mile long ride, stopping you from reuniting with your family at home (and let’s be honest, what you’re most concerned about-your dog) for an extra hour.  

2.  Brain Boost

To keep going during those late nights at the end of the semester, your brain is going to need a bit of a boost.  Try making one of many simple and healthy snacks, to keep you motivated and completing assignments!  One suggestion is to cut up apples and put them in an apple dip.  There are many different apple dips to try.  Many people use caramel, cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla. Try any combination of these ingredients and end up with a fun new treat! Another healthy snack is to take your favorite nuts, dry fruit, small candy and raisins and create your own special trail mix.  A great suggestion for this snack is to make a ton at once and put it into individual baggies, so you can instantly grab it for a snack on the go!

3. Packing Boxes For Home

The last thing to get out of the way on the stressful “to-do” list at the end of the semester is to pack for home, or wherever you are headed.  One tip on how to make packing easier is to get three different colors of duct tape-red, yellow and blue.  Since you most likely won’t remember what is in the boxes at the end of the drive home, use red to signal that the items in the box are extremely important to unpack first.  Yellow can be somewhat important, and blue can stand for “unpack whenever,” or even that these boxes do not need to be unpacked at all until school next fall.

4. Packing Clothes for Home

One usual strategy of packing clothes for home by many students is to take them all off of their hangers and throw them in garbage bags, then deal with the mess when they arrive home.  An easier way is to leave the hangers on the rod, then put a garbage bag over the clothes themselves.  You can carry the bag by the hangers, and simply re-hang them back up when you get home and take the bags off, saving yourself at least an hour or more, depending on how expansive your closet is.