When it comes to college life, the constant stress of classes, work or any of the other countless responsibilities that a student encounters each day is enough to drive one crazy. It is about to get even crazier for New Mexico State University students.

That’s right, test season is here. However, there is a hero to save Aggies from these wretched times, hiding in plain sight. The Campus Tutoring Service, located on the second floor of the Corbett Center Student Union building, offers free tutoring for students who need the extra push to succeed in their classes.

It is Academic Success Center Coordinator Lisa Kirby’s job to hire undergraduate tutors who she trains to better their skills in tutoring so that they may help the students of New Mexico State understand the material covered in their classes so that they can pass. There are currently 16 tutors at the tutoring center that, in total, cover a wide range of subjects.

“Start by reviewing notes [and] going back over what you went over in lecture,” said tutor Evan Robertson. Robertson is an electrical engineering major currently in his senior year at NMSU. The third-year tutor also suggested going back through homework assignments for math based subjects, “If you made mistakes in calculations, or something in your approach to it, reworking those [problems] so you can avoid those mistakes on exams [helps].”

An obvious tip, but one usually ignored by most students is reading the book. Kirby explained that most students do not ever crack open the book. The textbook your professor assigned for the course wasn’t just to throw $100 to $300 down the drain. The book contains vital information that will be on the exam.

If you want to get do well on an exam, it is probably not a good idea to wait until the last minute and cram the night before or day of.

“We sometimes see students that come in the day of the exam, panicking a little bit and expecting miracles from the tutors,” Kirby said. “Make sure that you set aside appropriate study time for what you need.

Although some people may think that studying with peers may distract students from doing the task at hand, it may be a good idea. Ms. Kirby is very passionate about group studying. She says, “You gain another person’s perspective on how they might be thinking about something, or someone else can explain it in a way that no one else can that you would understand better.” Robertson agrees, “If you don’t understand something, then you have a group of like five people studying, it’s a really good chance that one of the others in the group will understand it and vice versa.” In conclusion, group studying is a good way to get help and help others.

Many students do not know that the Campus Tutoring Center is a service covered by their tuition and fees. Going there won’t cost anything extra. The tutoring center is open Monday through Thursday 1-8 p.m. and Sundays 4-8 p.m. and walk-ins are welcome. For more information on Campus Tutoring and to see what tutors are in at what times, go to their website at https://campustutoring.nmsu.edu/.