As a student, I know firsthand the stress and pressure of final exams and the end of the semester. It can be an overwhelming time and unfortunately, some professors make the situation worse by assigning higher workloads toward the end of the period.
(Photo by Lexi Greenwood)
I have experienced this issue every semester I have been in college, but one of my courses was particularly bad. I had a professor who, based on the syllabus, consistently fell behind. I found myself struggling to keep up with the assigned readings and homework, which only got worse the further we got into the semester. By the time finals came around, I had a giant pile of work to do. It didn’t help that I was already feeling burned out from my other courses and responsibilities. It felt unfair to me and my classmates, who were also struggling to keep up with the professor’s pace toward the end.
Professors need to prioritize sticking to their syllabus schedule and making sure they cover the necessary material in a reasonable amount of time. Students are already juggling several classes and obligations outside of school. When professors overwork their students toward the end of the semester, students become even more overloaded and overwhelmed.
To add to the mess, the burden of a heavier workload at the end of the semester negatively impacts students’ mental health. It leads to increased levels of stress, anxiety, and burnout, which is particularly concerning given the high levels of stress students already experience throughout the academic year. I can confidently say this occurs because of the personal experience I have had with this issue.
As students, we should not have to bear the brunt of our professors’ poor time management skills. I think we as students need to encourage professors to manage their time effectively. They should ensure that they cover all necessary material throughout the semester and not cram it all in the last few weeks. It is time for us to hold professors accountable and ask them how they plan on fixing this issue.
