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April 21, 2026
Daylight: 15:55:10
Last week of classes – This is your moment
Woohoo – look at you. You made it. Fourteen weeks of showing up, pushing through, learning,
adapting and growing. Now you’re standing at the edge of the finish line, with just
a handful of days left. This is where it all comes together.
Dig deep. This is your final push. Get up in the stirrups and let the (mental) horse
ride hard toward the finish – you’ve trained for this, and you’re ready.
Walking across campus, it’s impossible not to notice the energy – students focused, determined, putting in the work. It says everything about who you
are. Many of you are juggling jobs, family and everything in between, and still showing
up. That takes resilience. That takes grit. Keep going – you’re closer than you think.
Let’s get real about finals for a moment.
Yes – final exams and capstone projects are designed to measure what you’ve learned. But
don’t let that intimidate you. Instead, understand what’s actually happening here.
Throughout the semester, you’ve been building your knowledge piece by piece. Those
quizzes, drafts, discussions and assignments? That was formative learning – opportunities to practice, get feedback and grow. You weren’t expected to be perfect.
You were expected to improve.
Now, finals are different. They’re summative. This is where you bring everything together and show what you know. It’s the culmination
of your work – the moment where your effort, consistency and growth all come into focus. That’s why
they feel big. That’s why they matter.
But here’s the part that should give you confidence: this isn’t new territory.
Nothing on your finals is coming out of the blue. You’ve already seen the material.
You’ve worked through it, wrestled with it, and built understanding over time. The
challenge now isn’t learning everything from scratch – it’s organizing, reviewing and sharpening what’s already in your head.
Think about it this way: if you had a copy of your final exam today, your stress would
drop immediately. Why? Because uncertainty is often the hardest part. So your job
now is to reduce that uncertainty.
How? Be strategic. Look for patterns. What concepts kept coming up? What did your
instructors emphasize? What shows up in your notes, study guides, and past assignments?
Talk it through with classmates. Compare ideas. Test your understanding. You’re not
guessing – you’re preparing with purpose.
Yes, finals can feel high-stakes. But they don’t have to overwhelm you. Pressure doesn’t
have to turn into panic. You can channel it into focus, clarity, and momentum. You’ve
been training for this all semester.
Just as important – take care of yourself. You are performing at a high level right now, and your body
and mind need support. Skip the all-nighters when you can. Eat real food. Sleep. Stay
steady instead of spiking your energy with quick fixes that don’t last. Treat yourself
like the high-performance learner you are.Ìý
Energize. Strategize. Prioritize.
You are capable of more than you think – and you’ve already proven it.
A quick reminder:
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Get registered! I have said it before, I will say it again. Meet with your advisor.
Register for your fall classes. Get it done. Nanook Advising is hosting an Enrollment Event on Thursday, April 23, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the Student Success Center. Coffee
and snacks will be provided. If you haven’t been able to schedule an appointment with
your advisor, this is a great opportunity to connect. It is also an easy way to touch
base about fall registration. All UAF advisors will be present, so you can get support
and ask questions in one place.Ìý
Take a breath. Step outside. Feel the shift in the season – the light returning, the energy building. Let that remind you: this is a transition,
not an end.
Finish strong. Stay grounded. And give these last days your best effort. You’ve got
this.
As ever, if you have suggestions to send my way, please do so. I’m at: obguthrie@alaska.edu.
— Owen Guthrie, vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management
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