“Procrastination is the key to success,” Sarah Sunderman, senior from Mascoutah, Ill., said with a laugh, as she knows how far her statement is from the truth.

It is with that in mind that many students find themselves caught up in the stress, tests and overall madness that accompany midterms. Students need to be careful, however, as stress can take a toll not just on the mind, but on the body and even grades, reports show.

When studying for tests, students should study in small increments, Hannah Robbins, senior from Lockhart, Texas, said.

“It’s better to study for an hour, then take a break, then study for another hour than it is to just study nonstop,” she said.

Studying in increments helps students retain more of what they study, while also keeping stress levels down. It gives the brain time to process what has been learned and file it away, whereas nonstop studying can cause the brain to fatigue and stop processing what the student is studying, she said.

“Study in groups,” Kenny Fister, science engineering and technology senior lecturer, said. “It’s better to have four or five people working together to figure something out than just one. That way, if one person doesn’t know it, someone else might.”

When students study in groups, they should still take breaks and even

make something fun out of the study break time.

“Go get something to eat, play a game or take a nap,” Sunderman said. “It lets you relax for a minute.”

Story by Shannon MacAllister, Staff writer.