Reading Day 2008

Well, the semester is officially over. Classes are finished and all that's left is final exams. Today is Reading Day. It's been in debate for years as to what the purpose of this day really is. Do they expect us to read all day? I think it is meant to be a day off, after class and before exams. To those of you who have exams on Friday, today would probably be a great day to study. For those of you who have nothing to study for, or are just too lazy, here are some ideas to fill your day:

Top Ten Things to do on Reading Day:
10. Study for Finals
9. Go outside and enjoy the weather
8. Go home and skip finals
7. Come back to campus when your parents find out you're skipping finals
6. Return your stolen cafeteria items to the "amnesty box"
5. Recycle all your notes (or toss them into a [safe and contained] fire)
4. Browse Facebook (all day)
3. Go to your normal Thursday classes and wonder where everyone is
2. Sleep
1. Read!?! (It is reading day.)

Good luck on your exams!

Monday Exams

I'm an advocate for holding midterm exams on Mondays. Why would I want to be tested on the first day of the week? I study all weekend for exams no matter if they happen on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday (Thursday is pushing it) anyway. I'd rather get the exam over in the beginning of the week, so the rest of the week can be productively filled with homework and other obligations.

Photo used with permission under Creative Commons.

Final Exam Week

This is the week that we dreads and look forward to each semester. Final exams, which often make up 25-50% of our final grades, are here. This means, however, that after a week of hellish exams, we get to go home and take a 29 day break. Good luck with your exams!

University of Texas: How To Survive Exam Week

PS - Has anyone else noticed that loading Facebook photos is much faster now? They must be doing some sort of prefetching . . .

UIUC School Schedule

Yes, it's quite early to be thinking about the fall semester, but for those of you who have begun populating your calendars, here is the official academic calendar for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Fall Semester 2007

Instruction Begins - Wednesday Aug. 22 (it's a Monday)
Labor Day - Monday, Sept. 3 (no classes)
Thanksgiving Vacation - Begins Saturday, Nov. 17, 1 p.m.
Instruction Resumes - Monday, Nov. 26, 7 a.m.
Instruction Ends - Friday, Dec. 7
Reading Day - Saturday, Dec. 8
Final Exams - Begin Monday, Dec. 10
Final Exams - End Saturday, Dec. 15

Spring Semester 2008

Instruction Begins - Monday, Jan. 14
M.L. King Day - Monday, Jan. 21 (no classes)
Spring Vacation Begins - Saturday, Mar. 15, 1 p.m.
Instruction Resumes - Monday, Mar. 24, 7 a.m.
Instruction Ends - Wednesday, April 30
Reading Day - Thursday, May 1
Final Exams - Begin Friday, May 2
Final Exams - End Friday, May 9
Commencement - Sunday, May 11

Full Schedule