How Students at UMD are Preparing for Finals
By Kira Ivarsdottir
May 15, 2025
Photo Credit: Kira Ivarsdottir
As the last couple of weeks of the spring semester are approaching, final exams and final project prep are in full swing–and with that comes many different forms of studying. Whether it’s looking back at previous lectures or doing practice tests, students at the University of Maryland believe that any kind of studying is better than none at all.
Coming to UMD for the first time in the spring semester can be a little jarring, but for freshmen like Freedom Ali, an aerospace engineering major, good note-taking can make all the difference when it comes to preparing for tests.
“I take really good notes throughout then before every midterm exam, I like summarize everything that I need to know for the exam, and I'll go through all the practice exams and write down questions, and if I get stuff wrong, I'll, like flag it,” Ali said. “ I go through the questions that I flagged and try to make sure that I'm not going to make the same mistakes I made before.”
For many students, having multiple finals can be daunting, but little things like looking through past assignments and re-reading textbook material can be the first step for students such as Selene Davenport, a freshman studying finance and management.
“I tend to look over the homework, like, go to the previous questions for whatever content is going to be on it, and then if necessary, like, if I really don't know the content, I'll go back to the textbook and read it,” Davenport said.
As Davenport has five finals for different classes to prepare for, it is not surprising that the technique she uses to study is referred to as the “military method.”
“I use like, kind of like this military method where [you] read it a couple times, and then you say it a couple times, then you write it a couple times. So [I] feel like that's worked for me so far,” Davenport said.
Jacob Varghese, a senior majoring in kinesiology, is trying to stay focused during his final stretch at UMD. That means preparing for finals goes beyond exams and instead means retaining information learned in lectures and demonstrations.
“And, you know, I feel like, especially as, like a future healthcare provider, I need to make sure I'm being competent and applying myself in all my classes so that I have a well-rounded perspective of what I can learn and be able to take into the future and apply in certain situations.” Varghese said.
Though going into an exam without preparation may seem ideal because it eliminates studying, refreshing your mind on even a small portion of content before a test can mean the difference between passing and failing a class.
“I feel like, if you care about your grade, you should probably study…this is weeks worth of content that you should probably just refresh your brain and remember some stuff,” Davenport said.
Though studying may seem tedious and overwhelming, preparing for finals is something that all students participate in, regardless of major. And if you are struggling with studying for finals, know you are not alone and if you need a place to go that eliminates distractions you can visit UMD’s page for study spaces around campus.
After three years at UMD, Junior Hayden Ntungwe, majoring in mechanical engineering, suggests McKeldin, the Stamp Student Union and the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center as great study spots for groups as well as individual studying.
“McKeldin for, like, the big study groups, and then if I just want to study by myself, I just go to, like, the second floor at Clarice,” Ntungwe said.
Coming to UMD for the first time in the spring semester can be a little jarring, but for freshmen like Freedom Ali, an aerospace engineering major, good note-taking can make all the difference when it comes to preparing for tests.
“I take really good notes throughout then before every midterm exam, I like summarize everything that I need to know for the exam, and I'll go through all the practice exams and write down questions, and if I get stuff wrong, I'll, like flag it,” Ali said. “ I go through the questions that I flagged and try to make sure that I'm not going to make the same mistakes I made before.”
For many students, having multiple finals can be daunting, but little things like looking through past assignments and re-reading textbook material can be the first step for students such as Selene Davenport, a freshman studying finance and management.
“I tend to look over the homework, like, go to the previous questions for whatever content is going to be on it, and then if necessary, like, if I really don't know the content, I'll go back to the textbook and read it,” Davenport said.
As Davenport has five finals for different classes to prepare for, it is not surprising that the technique she uses to study is referred to as the “military method.”
“I use like, kind of like this military method where [you] read it a couple times, and then you say it a couple times, then you write it a couple times. So [I] feel like that's worked for me so far,” Davenport said.
Jacob Varghese, a senior majoring in kinesiology, is trying to stay focused during his final stretch at UMD. That means preparing for finals goes beyond exams and instead means retaining information learned in lectures and demonstrations.
“And, you know, I feel like, especially as, like a future healthcare provider, I need to make sure I'm being competent and applying myself in all my classes so that I have a well-rounded perspective of what I can learn and be able to take into the future and apply in certain situations.” Varghese said.
Though going into an exam without preparation may seem ideal because it eliminates studying, refreshing your mind on even a small portion of content before a test can mean the difference between passing and failing a class.
“I feel like, if you care about your grade, you should probably study…this is weeks worth of content that you should probably just refresh your brain and remember some stuff,” Davenport said.
Though studying may seem tedious and overwhelming, preparing for finals is something that all students participate in, regardless of major. And if you are struggling with studying for finals, know you are not alone and if you need a place to go that eliminates distractions you can visit UMD’s page for study spaces around campus.
After three years at UMD, Junior Hayden Ntungwe, majoring in mechanical engineering, suggests McKeldin, the Stamp Student Union and the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center as great study spots for groups as well as individual studying.
“McKeldin for, like, the big study groups, and then if I just want to study by myself, I just go to, like, the second floor at Clarice,” Ntungwe said.