Five things to do after your exams

With a four month summer stretch ahead of Trinity students, some ideas may be helpful to fill those long summer days

At last, the dreaded exam season has arrived. For some students, this time of year is the culmination of weeks of hard work, intense study, and long evenings spent in Kinsella Hall. For others, it is a period full of thrilling new experiences, such as setting foot in the library for the first time or discovering that books are not just quirky decorations but contain information that is actually quite useful. Once all the scripts are finally collected, one is left to gaze in excitement at the potential of the long summer months ahead. Here is a list of suggestions on what to do with the enormous amount of time at your disposal.

Start planning for supplementals

You can be the epitome of optimism and convince yourself that the exams went fine, and perhaps you are right, but it is a good idea to entertain the possibility that you may be sitting supplementals in August. So, instead of waiting for the results, getting a headstart on studying would be time well spent. You’ll probably befriend the postgraduate students who call the library home during the quiet months. In time, they may regale you with stories of what life was like during their undergraduate years; imagine hearing about a time before Snapchat.

Watch as the evenings get longer

A favourite early summer activity of Irish people is to constantly comment on the arrival of long evenings. Finally, with exams out of the way, you too can take part in the age-old ritual of remarking on how great it is that summer nights have returned. That is not to say that you will actually do anything with the bright evenings – that’s ridiculous. Instead, try to limit your actions to expressions of wonder at this rare phenomenon – even if it happens every year without fail.

Take up a new hobby (half-heartedly)

With more time and energy to explore other pursuits, now is the perfect opportunity to learn and master some valuable skills. It’s time to dust off that guitar, buy some cookbooks, and download workout plans from the Internet. In May, you will naturally take on these new challenges with high enthusiasm and focus; setting short-term goals to keep yourself on track. Of course, by late June, your interest will have waned and frustration will set in, and it will all come to a head by mid-July when you declare “f*ck this”, and throw in the towel. The important thing to remember is at least you tried!

Run walking tours

At this stage, you’ve spent at least eight months getting to know how ignorant and irritating tourists can be, and you may want to take some sweet revenge. Moreover, you are probably looking for a quick way to earn some money after a fairly expensive few months. To satisfy both concerns, start organising walking tours of Dublin’s fair city, or even become a tour guide at Trinity. Once you have the numbers, you can cut loose, spouting inaccurate facts and useless trivia while walking the legs off your unassuming clients. Just make sure you take payment before the tour, as they may not be willing to pay you after you’ve dragged them to the deepest, darkest corners of Dublin.

Sleep

Go ahead, you’ve earned it.

Cameron Hill

Cameron Hill was the Sports Editor of Trinity News for Michaelmas 2018. He is a Senior Fresh English Literature and French student.