Exam Etiquette

It’s getting to that time of year again… late nights in the library, hunched over a pile of books with a venti Starbucks coffee. Exams are stressful enough, and to add to the torture, there are some people in the room who just make it so much worse. To make it as painless experience as possible for you and everybody around you, listen to Valley and don’t be that guy or gal who…

…Comes in late. Even if you don’t go to the first week of classes and get the syllabus, you should know when the exam is. If your class isn’t in the morning, then you have no excuse to be late. Just don’t insist on sitting in the very middle of the middle row.

…Can’t stop coughing. If you’re sick, you’re sick, I get it – just take medicine beforehand or have a couple of cough drops so everybody doesn’t want to kill you. Sometimes you’re too sick to go to the exam, and if that happens just schedule a make-up. It won’t be the end of the world and you’ll probably do better.

…Asks everybody for a pencil. This is just common sense – even if you haven’t had an exam in college, you’ve obviously taken the SAT or ACT and knew to bring a Number 2 pencil. If you ask me for one, I’m going to lie because you are an adult and I’m a paranoid one who needs to have two pencils on me in case one breaks.

…Doesn’t stop talking. Nobody around you cares about what happened when you were at that frat last weekend. If exams come easy to you, respect the fact that you are probably the only person in that room who isn’t internally freaking out and just please, be quiet.

Photo by Jose Miguel Ponte