With the entire grade for some University of Otago papers hinging on final exams, it comes as no surprise that students across Dunedin are in full panic-mode.
Fourth-year law student Emily Mulvey is one of those under the pump.
''My intellectual property exam is tomorrow [Thursday] and it's worth 100% of my grade for the paper.
''You don't know what's going to happen in the exam room and it's really all or nothing.''
As the anxiety builds, so too does last-minute cramming.
A spokeswoman for a tutor company said she had seen her fair share of stress-related meltdowns.
''We've had our study sessions live for about six weeks, but once they sell out we have students literally begging and pleading to attend our services.
''Students we see are often extremely tense ... they write everything down in the hope that they don't miss anything.''
The spokeswoman said popular supports for students were caffeine and energy drinks.
Jamie Noori said he reached for an energy drink when he wanted a boost.
''It's definitely enough to give me diabetes. If I wasn't so active I'd probably have had it a long time ago,'' he said.
Science student Maddy Sinha had less conventional study methods.
''When I can't be bothered doing my readings I copy all the text and paste it into Google translate to read aloud for me.
''That way I can read along and my mind doesn't stray.''
Students will be counting down to November 12, the last day of examinations.
-By Luke Tamuru
