This is the toughest stretch of the semester

Columnist Skhai Bennett. Photo courtesy: Bennett

The most stressful time of the year is here. With professors assigning homework, midterms, projects, quizzes, papers and exams all at the same time, the workload for the fall semester thickens.

It is no coincidence that as the fall semester nears its end, students become overwhelmed. At FAMU, fall semesters tend to be warm up until the end of October and the start of November. Once it starts to get cold outside — in addition to the clock changing for Daylight Savings Time — waking up for classes and the motivation to do schoolwork can become discouraging for students. Not to mention the influx of colds and illnesses that add to the already stressful term.

It doesn’t help that I am taking six courses, either; just imagine the load of roughly three assignments per class weekly. That amounts to anywhere between 12-18 tasks a week. Between schoolwork, the weather and viruses, I can attest that the end of the fall semester is one of the most depressing times of the season.

Genisy Cohen, a fourth-year interdisciplinary studies major, believes that the time change contributes to stress levels.

“With COVID still going on, it’s really hard for students to stay checked in mentally in school, especially with the seasonal depression that students experience around this time of year,” Cohen said. “It gets darker earlier, and a lot of students tend to get worn out. The holiday season can also bring financial strains.”

Cohen is right. Some students face seasonal depression as time and weather both change.

“Seasonal depression is a real thing, and this whole getting dark by 5 p.m. messes with a lot of people,” a FAMU student tweeted late Monday. “Please check up on your friends.”

This year FAMU’s homecoming was held during Halloween weekend; this means students got to enjoy a few days of non-stop events and parties before returning to campus to regain focus.

“The workload does get bigger at the end of the semester,” Reginald Gadson, a second-year physical therapy major said. “I feel like teachers should even it out because after homecoming people get tired. I entered homecoming taking an exam and came back taking one.”

I think most Rattlers can agree that at this point, we are overwhelmed. All we want is a warm, home-cooked meal and a long nap. Did someone say Thanksgiving break?