How to Harvard: Making an Academic Comeback

Ahh midterm season: otherwise known as midlife crisis season, or the season that marks the beginning of your GPA’s downfall. Maybe your latest chem midterm did a number on your grade, or perhaps it was those absences from your attendance-required lecture adding up. Whatever the case, before you seriously contemplate adding some W’s (we’re talking withdrawals, not wins) to your transcript, consider this: an academic comeback is possible (or, if you ask the delulu optimist in me, probable)! Here are our tips for healing your relationship with Canvas.

Cry it out.

Avoiding time spent crying in the shower or into your pillow to spend a few more hours studying might seem logical, but failing to process your emotions about worse-than-you’d-hope grades can only be counterproductive. Negative emotions fester, and — even if the PS11 course heads are determined to make their class as grueling as possible — learning is meant to be fun. (It’s a cliche, so it must be true.) If you don’t allow yourself a moment to feel down in the dumps, you risk developing an overly antagonistic relationship with your coursework, and you’ll miss out on the chance to have a fulfilling classroom experience.

Actually look at your grades.

Open Canvas. Click on the “Grades” tab. Feel frustrated because your professor decided to enter only two of your assignments on Canvas. Open Gradescope. Flinch. Calculate your grade. Calculate what you’ll need on the final to salvage your grade. Wince. (But, seriously, it’s probably much, much better than you think. And, if not, it’s only up from here!)

Form (new) study habits.

As unfair as it is, studying should not be left to the night or even week before your midterm; truly productive studying happens as you learn and consequently should happen all the time (or, since you have a life, as often as possible). Make flashcards after each lecture rather than in a torturous cram session the night before your midterm. Complete each week’s optional practice questions. Write (or at least outline) your essays far in advance of the due date, not least so you won’t be juggling a five-page paper with studying for a test worth 30 percent of your grade. Above all, study to learn rather than to ace a test (though that would be a happy accident).

Use class resources to your advantage.

Most likely, there are at least a few class or campus resources — ranging from office hours to practice problems to peer tutoring — that you have yet to use. One of these might be the last tool you need to attain academic success! If you feel like you’ve exhausted every possible resource, consider scheduling a meeting with your professor or a TF to discuss your experience in the class. Learning is often frustrating, but you never have to navigate that frustration alone.

Hopefully, these tips will help you achieve the grades of your dreams, but remember that even if your semester feels unsalvageable, odds are that everything will be alright. At the end of the day, you are a human being first, and you deserve a break every once in a blue moon while. Mute your Canvas notifications, and practice some self care. Do your laundry, vacuum your floor, or clean your water bottle. Watch a movie with your friends or FaceTime (or even visit) your family. Let yourself breathe. Let yourself be more than a student. You are so, so much more than a number on your transcript. Good luck!