The Dreaded Midterms
Article by: 26670 NCdt IV Katherine Silins
Katherine Silins is one busy young lady. The Ottawa native has helped us out from time-to-time with interesting articles. In between she was the Editor for the outstanding production of the 2014 Yearbook and has volunteered for the same position again for 2015. The fourth year engineering student also finds time to – carry out Master of Ceremonies for high profile RMCC events and is a member of college First Response Team. Her extracurricular activities do not stop there. She is an 8 Squadron CFL. Finally, as a Student Therapist for the hockey team she attends a minimum of two practises a week and works both home and away games.
Enjoy her timely article on midterms.
One of the most dreaded words in the vocabulary of a university student is: midterms. No matter how much a student plans and prepares, they somehow seem to sneak up with the stealth of a mountain lion and, unlike exams, are in the middle of the term, meaning that study time is split between preparation for these massive tests and regular assignments, labs and quizzes.
Being at a military college only exacerbates the stress of studying as in addition to academic pressures, cadets must still keep their rooms to walk-through standard, prepare for inspections and carry out any addition duties they may have.
Below are some testimonials as to how students prepare for the busiest two (or three or four) weeks of the term:
“Studying for midterms was chaotic and a little exhausting for first year Art’s students. While attempting to study, many assignments were due along with the days of different midterms. However, through some long nights and rough mornings, most seemed to prevail with their midterm results.”
– Kassandra Byrne (I – Arts)
“With the newfound freedom that comes with being a second year, midterms tend to sneak up on you. However, as we’ve been through the grind once before, it’s easier to get through the second time around. This time, we figured out how to study better, and, more importantly, what is important. This is why grades are usually higher in second year.”
– Mary Iver (II – Psychology)
“Despite what many engineers may believe, studying for Economics and Business Courses does not involve as much X-Box and Playstation as one might think. If it’s not another Case Study that needs to be done, then there are sure to be at least 3 other group assignments that are due for the next class, in an environment where it seems almost impossible to find a suitable time when the whole group can meet! On top of that, there are always presentations, midterms and papers that seem to creep up on you just when you think you have a moment to reach for that controller.”
– Davy Ackerman (III – Economics and Business Administration)
“Juggling studying for midterms and completing class projects with handling my duties in the squadron at RMC keeps us engineers quite busy. I like to keep pushing through by arranging study sessions with colleagues and keeping my work week organized with the official RMC day planner.”
– Nevin Williams (IV – Computer Software Engineering)
Suffice it to say that the struggle of completing midterms at the College will prepare us well for the duties that await us upon graduation. Next up, Physical Performance Test.