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With Fran Northcutt, Honors Adviser, Hunter College of the City University of New York
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Test Anxiety, Anyone?
HEAD Start
Being prone to test anxiety is like having an allergy. People who aren't allergic can't really see what all the fuss is about, but those of you who are allergic understand: once you get anywhere near a test, your symptoms kick in.

HEAD Lines
ASK YOURSELF:
  • What physical symptoms do I experience when test anxiety hits: Shortness of breath? Nausea? Mind going blank?

  • Which classes bring on the worst test anxiety?

  • Which kinds of tests make me the most anxious?

  • When do my symptoms start - as I walk into the test room? The day before? The week before?

  • When do the symptoms stop?
Once you've isolated the virus, you're halfway there. Next, administer trial vaccines and find out which ones are efficacious; see the Web sites below for some excellent treatments. Imagine you are Dr. Robert Neville in I Am Legend - but you don't have to save the human race, just your GPA. Make good use of the scientific method, and you'll survive for a "sequel" semester!

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From Other HEADS
IT WAS MY VERY FIRST FINAL as a freshman, and I woke up just five minutes before class. I had slept through my alarm and my roommates had left me. I knew I just had to get there so I threw on some shoes and ran to my final in my pajamas. I got there right before my prof locked the door ... and still got an A!

-- BRIDGET SCRABECK
UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS


IF YOU GET A "B" OR A "C," don't worry. When you're going into the job world after graduating, there's no company that's going to say, "Well, you didn't do well in Western Civilization."

-- RHIANNON GULICK
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY





Web Resources
The best sites for advice on dealing with test anxiety:



HoH Tip
The best way to ultimately combat it? STUDY! If you actually learn the stuff all semester, you'll be confident that you'll score well on the test.




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