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smiller@rollins.edu

Class of 2009

Hometown: Elyria, Ohio

Major: International Relations

Read more about Steve...

"Exam Time"

May 8, 2006

What is the meaning of life? How many gallons of water are in Lake Virginia? How many licks does it really take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll pop? Do you know the answers, R-Journal readers? Well, any successful Rollins student certainly needs to know these—and others—in order to pass his or her exams. Just kidding. In all seriousness, exam time can be stressful, but with a bit of planning and good luck, exam time can actually be quite manageable.

For starters, Rollins designs the exam periods so that students have ample time to study, write final papers, and yes, get some degree of sleep. And, to make matters even better, Rollins student groups put on a variety of excellent “de-stressing” events throughout the week—in the past few days, there have been three different opportunities for free massages on campus. That’s classy AND relaxing. I know that I certainly took advantage of one on Tuesday evening. Massages not your thing? Are you a high-energy de-stressor? Well, another campus group had a giant slip-n-slide outside the library yesterday. Come on, you know that’s cool. Club Olin (our loving name for the Olin Library) is even open late this time of year—you can get your study on until two in the morning!

By virtue of the exam schedule, I’m one of the students who has an exam each day. I don’t view this as being too terribly unfortunate, however. While during fall term exams I was in a much bigger rush to get home for the holidays, I’ll be hanging out around campus for another week this year, waiting to head back to New Orleans (I promise another journal entry is forthcoming about that), so exams almost give me something to occupy my time. Exam-taking isn’t exactly a fun hobby, though.

How can you make exam time easier (if there IS such a thing)? Well, it’s actually quite simple. First, pay attention in class. Second, do your reading. Third. Hmm. Wait, there isn’t a third step. Yeah, if you just pay attention in class and do your assigned reading for class, exam time shouldn’t be too excruciatingly difficult.

So, here’s another common Rollins question. How many hours do students spend studying outside of class in a given week? Well, to all of you who have asked me that question, the answer is quite simple: it depends. Now, I know you are all going to be incredibly surprised when I tell you that I’m not a big fan of studying. Can you believe it? However, I have learned to recognize the importance of preparing for class—in a lot of my classes, participation counts for a fifth of my grade! So, how many hours does that amount to a week? Well, if I would stay current on the reading and not fall behind, I would probably average somewhere in the 10-12 hour range per week. The “official” word from Rollins is that students spend an hour outside of class for every hour that they are in class, so considering that I’m in class maybe 14 hours a week, I’m pretty close to the average. I do want to point out, however, that one of the great things about college is the freedom---you may very well have weeks in which you have, gasp, no homework! So, does this mean that you should frolic along the grassy shores of Lake Virginia or spend your hard earned summer cash on a pair of sunglasses on Park Avenue? Yes, by all means—after you do a little reading for the next week. The only thing better than having homework done on time is having homework done ahead of time!

I hope that this all makes sense for you all. I’m out for now. A new journal entry is always forthcoming with me…the next one is all about the essential items you HAVE to bring to Rollins. Don’t miss it!

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More about Steve...

While searching for colleges as a high school senior, Steve found the R-Journals at Rollins, which aided in his final decision between the United States Military Academy at West Point and Rollins College. Steve is a senator in the Student Government Association, a freelance photographer for The Sandspur student newspaper, plays intramural basketball and founded Rollins Relief, an organization dedicated to helping disaster victims around the world through hands-on service.

Steve is a Cornell Scholar, a member of the Honors Degree Program and a 3-2/Accelerated Management Program student. He said, “Rollins offers an amazing community experience to incoming students—one filled with both academic and social experiences. The two can certainly mix—academics and socializing do not have to be mutually exclusive.”

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Steve's R-Journal archives:

Date	Link
Dec. 14, 2005	Reflections on the Fall Semester at Rollins
Jan. 17, 2006	Home for the Holidays
Feb. 7, 2006	The Beach in January (and other neat perks to attending Rollins)
Feb. 27, 2006	Greetings from Arizona!
March 27, 2006	New Orleans for Spring Break
April 4, 2006	Celebrity Tour and Choosing a Dorm
April 12, 2006	Fox Day and Fish Day
April 20, 2006	Great Aspects of Rollins
April 26, 2006	Food
May 8, 2006	Exam time
May 16, 2006	College Essentials
June 16, 2006	My Maniac May