Living the College Life: How Can I Adjust to the Midterm/Final Grading Scheme?

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One look at a typical freshman class syllabus lays bare the reasons why many flounder during their first semester. It's a time when freshmen are possibly taking several large, lecture-style classes, where attendance is not counted, and where the only assignment for September may be the class reading list. It's possible that only one or two of their classes, such as freshman English, require ­writing assignments or problem-solving homework in the first few weeks.

Then October strikes, like a tidal wave, in the form of midterm exams.

Some students sink, while others swim.

Students may face four or five midterms"and possibly well more than 1,000 pages to not only read, but to understand. By the time the storm subsides, the damage has been done"and clean college slates are washed away in a sea of red ink.

Large introductory undergraduate courses are most likely to follow the midterm/final grading scheme, where a midterm and final exam account for one's entire course grade. Some lecture-based courses might include a paper as an additional requirement, thus decreasing the weight of the exams, while others will take a portion of the grade from work done in discussion or recitation groups. But midterms and finals will always elicit so much student intensity because they can make or break a class grade in a one- or two-hour period.

In October, it's easy to spot the students who did their reading on those warm sunny September days. They're the ones who aren't stressing out, whose routines haven't changed, and who'll more often then not get the better grades.

Students say it's much tougher to play catch-up at these times than it is to study consistently throughout the semester. And they caution against underestimating the difficulty level of any class. "The classes you think are easy and you end up not going to"those are the ones you end up doing the worst in," says Jake Liefer (University of Pittsburgh).

Jake cited a statistics course he took in spring 2004 in which he received a C. "I thought I'd get an A," he says. But a slow start doomed his chances for a top grade. He realized he was in trouble by March. "I was already too far behind. You know that if you studied two hours a week, it wouldn't have been difficult at all."

Simply going to class and keeping up with the readings is a huge step in the right direction with any class, says Stephanie ­Yeager (University of Delaware). "You could read 300 pages but you'll only be tested on 60."

Although even the best students struggle when faced with multiple exams in the same week, the best way to succeed in a class that heavily weights midterms and finals is to start preparing for those exams on the first day of class. "Create a schedule for yourself to work on that class in pieces," suggests Laurie Quaife. "You don't want to wait until the week of the midterm to do all of the reading. You will want the week of the midterm to be for review."

Alyssa Limberakis takes that approach at Syracuse. If she comes across something that she doesn't fully understand, that gives her the time to either ask the professor about it or confer with a ­classmate"a luxury procrastinators don't have.

Alan Tannenwald (Brandeis University) also spreads his reading assignments out over the course of the semester, and works to identify the broad themes and key ideas that tend to surface on exams. He suggests typing up your notes to make a study guide; the act of writing serves to reinforce your knowledge. "I find this has worked for me for many types of courses, from philosophy to history," Alan says.