With summer session coming to a close, the condensed nature of summer classes coupled with a lack of study days can be an added pressure for some students.

In the summer, finals are the same week as class. Many professors teach up to the day of the test, which many students say can cause problems.

"I would have liked to have more time to study for my finals," Jenna Meli (freshman-music education) said. "Since there aren't extra days in between classes and the day of the final, it will make studying and taking the final more difficult."

Jamie Hotchkiss (junior-electrical engineering) is taking one class this session. But his class is four hours everyday except for Wednesday.

"My final is going to be tough," Hotchkiss said. "I have so much stuff to go over, and I have a short amount of time to do it."

Some students said it is difficult to find time to study without the designated study days that exist during the fall and spring semesters.

"My final is on Friday, and I am learning new material all week up until then," Hotchkiss said. "Learning new material in the same week as the final gives very little time to study."

But Robert Richards, associate dean for undergraduate education in the College of Communications, said if a student is dedicated, the summer can provide him or her with a good learning environment because it forces he or she to keep up with the work.

Although students do not have study days between the end of classes and the final exam, Richards, who has been teaching summer classes for 11 years, said the grades have always been very much in line with those from the fall and spring semester.

Unlike other teachers, Jim Strauss, assistant professor of biology, does not give a final exam in the summer because of the short session.

The content does not change, Strauss said, but he evaluates his students differently. Instead of having a final cumulative exam, Strauss quizzes his students weekly.

The pace moves fairly fast in the summer, Clay Calvert, associate professor of communications and law, said. Five days of summer classes compares to about three weeks of courses in the fall and spring semester.

He said the fast-paced nature of the summer session could benefit students because it leaves less time for students to forget about the material learned in the beginning of the class.

Kelli Combs (senior-management science and information systems) said having summer classes is harder than taking classes in the fall or spring semesters.

"Having classes in the summer is definitely harder, because everything feels like it is crammed in," she said.

Combs has three classes this session, and a final exam and final paper are both due Friday.

However, she added that unlike many students, the current finals format works well for her.

"I like that I have everything on Friday, because it gives me the freedom to work on everything all week instead of having to cram throughout the week," Combs said.