Reagan Foster, counselor, held her third annual “Taming Your Test Anxiety” workshop on March 7. 

About 31 students were packed closely together in Sundance third floor meeting room, a turn out Foster said was better than previous years. 

“The one earlier in the semester, nobody showed up,” said Foster. “So this was a great turn out.” 

Foster started the meeting by having everyone introduce themselves, then started a colorful presentation which contained symptoms of test anxiety, levels of anxiety, and steps to help manage it. 

Amy Prosper, a senior in nursing, attended the workshop for extra credit, but said she was glad she did. 

“It was really helpful,” said Prosper. “I got a lot of tips, like she said we should try to walk a distance before we go to class so we can get our endorphins going before we take the test.” 

Stella Centeno, a freshman in counseling, said she saw they were holding the work shop online and thought it would be helpful to her. 

“I saw it on the website and since I’m doing my masters in counseling I felt that it would help me,” said Centeno. 

 Centeno said the tip she found most helpful was the focusing and how to break up time between studying and relaxing.

Fosters tips included things like how to improve your study habits and how to relax before a test. She made the attendees practice deep breathing and relaxing their muscles, things she said will help with anxiety during a test. 

All the tips are important, but Foster said if she had to choose her top two, it would be to make sure they take care of themselves, and to prepare. 

“A lot of times students when they come to college, they don’t know how to study,” said Foster. “They don’t realize the amount of time, they’ve been told but they don’t really realize how much time they should put in studying.”

For further help with test anxiety, the Counseling Center offers one-on-one help with everything from time management to career counseling.