Looking ahead at a new school year can be really scary. It’s even more so when it’s your very last year of school. Often, all you see is studying, SACs, essays, presentations and then even more studying. We understand the pressure of working to deadlines and wanting to produce the best work you possibly can. We know that it takes a lot of hard work, big sacrifices and an incredible amount of focus to do your absolute best – but we also know how vital it is to separate your personal life from your schoolwork, and to ensure your brain and body are receiving the rest they need.

Here are our three finest tips on how to achieve an ideal study–life balance during your final year of school.

1. Care for yourself: plan it and stick to it

Your teachers might have mentioned at the beginning of your Year 12 journey that investing in a good self-care routine is essential. We support this! Self-care is a blanket term for anything that enables you to slow down, relax and reset your day or week. You may already have a concrete routine including things like daily walks, a weekly bath, reading ten pages of your book, listening to an entire album, going to the gym or baking a cake.

It’s important to remember that studying is not your entire life and that you must always make room for things you enjoy. Your mental and physical health calls for it!

Ensuring that you incorporate at least one act of self-care into your daily routine will allow you to plan your day, help you to relax when you’re stressed and give you something to look forward to.

2. Maintain your extracurriculars!

Many teachers, parents, friends and random aunties and uncles who love asking about your Year 12 studies will often tell you to focus your entire life on study. They seem to forget that life still goes on around you.

You might have a job, play a sport, belong to a club or practise an instrument – and it’s important to maintain these throughout your final year at school. We believe that extracurricular time should become study time when it’s called for; however, scraping your schedule clean and filling it with study can lead to unnecessary stress and confusion.

Like having designated self-care time, maintaining your extracurriculars helps make your exam prep more productive, and forces you to take breaks during long sessions of practice essays and revision classes. We encourage you to keep up your after-school sport, music lessons or book club meetings, and to continue your part-time work where time and space permit. After your continual hard work, you deserve a break!

3. Plan your holiday study days, leaving room for schedule changes

Across the school holidays, you might want to make time for some revision. We suggest making a study plan for each day. Be sure to include breaks, mealtimes, extracurriculars and relaxation periods.

Each day may be different. You might have to squeeze in an hour or two of revision before your work shift or basketball training, so it’s best to be flexible – if time is short on one day, try to rearrange the next day to fit in some extra study.

Make your study plans so that you are doing the most work at the time of day you feel you are most productive. Think about when you usually get a burst of energy! When you have the inclination to study, follow that instinct and you’ll find your sessions becoming more and more effective. That might be once you sit down at your desk after breakfast, or it could be in the evening when you are preparing yourself for the next day.

Remember that study plans vary widely, and how you organise them may be completely different from how your classmates do them. They may want to start with their most difficult subject or begin their day with an essay to get their hand moving. You, on the other hand, might prefer to read over your notes first, then start applying your knowledge to practice questions, taking on the more troublesome subjects once you’ve warmed up (and woken up!). Whatever your style is – stick to it.

BONUS TIP! Always, always, always ask for help

Finishing school can be overwhelming. And exam season can be even more so. You’re thrown into the deep end of education, and while your parents and teachers prepare you as best they can, you often learn a lot of it yourself along the way.

Recognising that you’re not the only one experiencing these pressures, and that thousands of students have been in your exact position in previous years, may help you feel a little more relaxed. It’s also the perfect reminder that there are many people you can ask for help!

Asking a parent, teacher, tutor or former student how they made it through their final exams may give you ideas on how you can look after yourself and make the best use of your time. They’ll be able to provide their own self-care tips and study hacks, and you can choose the best of these to make your own journey even more rewarding and successful.