For some, the fall semester can be a trying time. Some will want to look back upon it with pride while others may wish to move on. For all, though, the start of the spring semester cleans the proverbial slate. New friends have taken the place of the old ones that have left indelible marks on our community. With this new period comes a time not to dwell on the negatives of the previous semester but rather a time to look to the future with a renewed sense of optimism and hope. The new semester brings about the opportunity for students to move away from overly stressful academic habits and to explore more of what university life has to offer.
Students left campus last semester in a time of much stress and many sleepless nights. To call finals taxing would be an understatement. Perhaps the only thing that exceeded stress levels were caffeine levels. No matter how well or how poorly we did on our finals and papers, though, we need to remember that we are not defined by our grades. We emerged from the fall semester extremely exhausted, but we emerged nonetheless. The dysfunctional habits characteristic of finals is over, just as 2015 is. The year 2016, less than a month old, brings to us new beginnings and a time to improve upon our relationships and ourselves.
Of course, with another new semester comes new faces. Midyears find themselves in the exact situation we all have been in at one point. For many, first semesters can be as challenging as finals are for others, muddled with uncertainty and an uncomfortable sense of urgency. It is important that the significance of self-care not be underemphasized in such times. Although academics are important, it is imperative that students do not forget that academic performance cannot be maximized in a troubled state of being. As midyears commence their Brandeis experience, we must for the sake of us all make sure that the university maintains an atmosphere friendly more than just to academics.
Brandeis University has been about more than academics since its inception. Campus organizations, clubs and teams have long served to help students unwind from the stresses of academic life. Such social organizations and groups can help ease exhaustion and make the overall college experience more enjoyable.
Some will label these extracurriculars as “distractions” from the overall college aims, when in reality they are distractions from the bad habits we form trying to accomplish those aims. The sleepless nights and overstressing that we see during every finals week are not simply endemic to that period; they represent exacerbated habits developed over an entire semester. Making sure that we have other activities to break up those habits that basically turn us into robots can go a long way towards bettering ourselves over the long haul.
We all know that college expectations are not easy to bear. The struggle that is balancing Brandeis’ rigorous academics with social extracurricular activities is very much hard to deal with, but if balanced, the results can bear satisfactory fruit. So, to all students—midyears included—why not make an attempt to take some time out of your day for other activities? The benefits you could reap may surprise you.
