Charlotte Guy (SFS ’09) gets her work done ahead of time. She is lucky, because she has two major projects due during study days, one of which is a research paper of more than 20 pages. It’s not uncommon for students to have papers due during study days, and students who lack Guy’s time management skills often find these assignments monopolizing the time that should be spent studying for final exams. Georgetown administrators should recognize the pressures on students’ time during study days and prohibit professors from assigning papers to be due during study days.
Georgetown’s academic policies, while they stop short of banning assignments during study days, recognize the importance of giving students time to prepare for their final examinations. The administration should further demonstrate their commitment to study days by ensuring that students aren’t constrained by additional papers. The end of classes should mean the end of normal assignments.
Due to the long finals period, some students may not have a final exam until several days after study days conclude. These students might not be unfairly burdened by assignments due during study days, but those with exams on the first day of finals don’t have the luxury of studying during the exam period.
Even without assignments during study days, Georgetown students are at a disadvantage in comparison to many of their peers are other universities. At Northwestern University, classes are not held after Thanksgiving break, giving students a full week to prepare for exams. Similarly, at Harvard University, students can relax and prepare for finals during a 10-day reading period. Students at Georgetown have long called for a longer reading period, but their pleas have fallen on deaf ears. This semester, Georgetown students will be given only three study days before the start of exams. As long as the Registrar refuses to extend Georgetown’s study period, the administration should ensure that students are able to use study days for their principle purpose: studying.
