Hi! I’m Steph Buchan, a third-year International Business Management student at Aberdeen Business School, RGU. It’s now coming up to exam season so I thought I should share some of my tips for managing stress. Here are my top nine:
Don’t skip meals 🍝
During exam season I often forget or feel too busy to eat. What helps me not skip meals is making a basic meal plan each week. I don’t always stick to it though; cheeky cheat meals are always allowed!
Get plenty of sleep 🛏️
Sleep is also essential. Life at university can be hectic just because of the lifestyle. What I found to be key are naps. I nap a lot. But you should also make sure to get around 8 hours of sleep each night.
Make time for leisure 🎆
It’s all about the balance. Your body and mind need to relax in order for them to be most effective. Make time for doing the things you enjoy like hanging out with friends, going out for food, watching TV or taking the time to have a bath. Your life isn’t supposed to be revolving around university, you need to enjoy yourself!
Get moving 🏃♀️
I have found that exercise helps a great deal with stress. It gets your body to tire itself out and you get a nice boost of serotonin, your “happy hormone”. RGU Sport even offers a free membership for RGU students!
Communicate 💬
Before you start stressing that you’re behind, talk to your coursemates. Knowing how others are doing can offer great reassurance because, 9 times out of 10, you are going to be in the same boat and experience the same challenges. And if you feel too overwhelmed, you could always reach out to RGU’s Counselling and Wellbeing team or book a session with one of the student volunteers from RGU Peer Support Group. Talking and brainstorming can do wonders!
Stay organised 📅
Make sure that you know your deadlines and understand what you need to do for your assessments in advance. If you plan out how you’re going to get your work done ahead of time it takes a lot of the pressure off.
Keep track by writing things down 📝
I like to visualise what I need to get done on post-it notes because it makes it easier for me to understand exactly what I have to do. It’s also very satisfying when you get to remove a post-it note! I also have a diary and a study schedule so that I can keep track of my university work and social life. Keeping track of your deadlines, social events and work schedule can get so challenging with university, but keeping a diary helps to prioritise your responsibilities.
Utilise the university 🎓
There’s so much that the university offers that I didn’t take advantage of in my early years at RGU. The library is a great place to focus, you’re close to study resources, and now you can even snack and have a coffee while you work! You can ask the lovely library staff for help not only with finding resources in the library but also with using online databases (Mintel, Web of Science, Business Source Complete).
Browse the Success Programme page 💻
The Success Programme page offers a series of online classes run by the Study Skills Team. I personally have gone to these in the past and they have helped me so much with gaining study skills, writing assignments and with my wellbeing.
Stephanie Buchan
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