As the seasons begin to change from winter to spring (and then apparently change again- make up your mind mother nature!), college course requirements are also changing. For many, spring is a time for new beginnings, fresh air, and the promise of summer. But for college students, spring holds a different meaning. WIth the coming of spring means the coming of finals week for college students, and all the stress that comes with it. During this time, the college students in your life will undoubtedly be pushed to their mental and emotional limits. They’ll be cramming for exams, writing papers, giving presentations, and much more! The entire semester has led to this one critical week. As a college student, they’re on their own to make sure they get good grades, often meaning that other priorities are pushed to the wayside.

As a parent, you can help to relieve some of the stress your favorite college student might be feeling. Sending little gifts, cards, some words of advice, or even a care package can reduce some of the tension your college student is feeling during finals week. Generally, when parents think of ways to send some extra support to their college student they think of care packages. While care packages are a great way to keep spirits high during finals week (no college student will ever be sad to find a care package with their name on it in the mailroom), there are plenty of other ways you can show your support. If you’re a parent (or even just a concerned friend, relative, or let’s be honest- you’re the college student in question and you’re looking for a finals pick-me-up), here’s a list of 4 finals gifts that are perfect for the special student in your life.

1. Words of Encouragement

Sending your favorite college student some encouragement during finals week doesn’t have to be some big and grand gesture. Sometimes just some advice, words of encouragement, or just an ear to listen to them rant about their struggles is enough. If you live close to the college that special someone in your life attends, then taking them out to eat or just meeting up to talk is more than enough. Or, consider writing and giving them some notes of encouragement for them to open when they feel stressed. However, if you happen to live a little further away then mailing these types of cards, or calling over the phone is just as effective! Anything you can do to give your favorite student some advice or to let them know you’re there for them is helpful! College can be extremely stressful and hectic, so the reminder that they have people in their corner will be well received.

While finals week can be a rough and stressful time for college students, it does have great reward at the end. After all the papers are handed in, all the exams are completed, and all the presentations are given, your student gets to come back home to you and relax during their break. Remind your student of this to help them stay motivated. Besides, who doesn’t get excited about receiving mail from home, or receiving a call from someone special in your life, regardless of how far away home really is. If you’re a student in college and you don’t have someone to send you little notes of encouragement (or your family just isn’t the writing type), be your own advocate for success! Write yourself notes to help you keep going and stay motivated, and post them to your mirror so you see them every day. You’ll be surprised what a difference in your mood it can make!

2. Practical Gifts to Stay Motivated

Nobody ever said the gift you give your hard working college student can’t be useful. In fact, a practical gift that your student will use daily might just be the perfect thing to give them during finals week, when they’ll arguably need it the most. But what is a practical gift that a college student would want during finals? “Practical” can mean anything really, especially when it comes to finals week (one might argue chocolate is an essential tool when studying). But for the purposes of this article we're going to be focusing on practical gifts that your student can use to stay organized and motivated to keep working hard preparing for their final projects, or studying for that big exam they have coming up. The tools that will benefit the special student in your life depends entirely on the student, and who knows your student better than you do? Think about your student’s study habits and go from there when picking out small gifts to give them before they embark on their finals week journey.

While the gifts that are most practical for your student to use for success vary based on each student’s individual style, there are a couple ideas for gifts that are pretty much foolproof when trying to pick something special. A new planner for your student is a great gift to give to help them stay organized during finals week so they can keep all their deadlines and project dates handy. Even if your student already owns a planner, sometimes a new one can offer a fresh start and make the remaining due dates seem less daunting than when they’re listed with a million other classes. Keeping finals dates separate can help them seem not as scary. Some new pens or a new notebook are also great ideas if you want to give your student something small. Think back to middle school and how exciting it was to pick out some cool pens to use for class. Find your student some study supplies that fits their style; you’ll be surprised how excited they’ll be to use it. A few other gift ideas are a pair of headphones to help them focus in the library, or a photo of your family to keep in their room. You know your student best, so just find something you know will help them and they’ll be sure to love it!

3. “Punny” Candy Presents

Dad joke enthusiasts, this is your time to shine! Put a smile on your students face with a creative, or “punny” gift. Sending them candy with motivational sayings on them can help give them a laugh while they study for their final test or project in the library. Besides, who doesn’t love candy? Candy plays an important role in college (ask any college student ever), and it’s the easiest way to get a little pick-me-up after a few long hours spent hunched over a book. Not only is candy delicious and offers a sugar high even coffee can’t compete with, but candy can be a great way to incorporate a reward system when studying. If you’re a college student yourself, you know how good that bit of Snickers can taste after you’ve finished reading a particularly lengthy chapter in your calculus textbook. So if you’re looking for an easy and fun gift idea for the college student in your life, then candy is one of the easiest and most delicious options. Creating your own care package filled with your student's favorite candy is easy. Not the crafty type? Buy a care package pre-made and add your own jokes or words of encouragement to a note when ordering online.

If you want to add a little bit of “spice” to your candy gift, consider creating your own candy care package with some candy puns that doubles as a sweet treat and a good laugh. Or, if you’re ordering online, include a note with the puniest (and maybe cringiest) words of advice ever. This is a great gift to both receive and give, because “punny” gifts are as much fun to create and make as they are to receive (especially if you’re receiving it when you most need a laugh). This type of gift is one you can really have fun with, and they offer a chance for you to break out that bad joke book (everyone has one somewhere) and finally put it to use. You can send them Kit Kat Bars when they need a “break;” minty Tic Tacs when they need to take a “chill pill,” or some peanut M&Ms for when they feel like they might go “nuts” from all the studying they’re doing. If you’re not into puns or you just want to send them a sweet gift, just sending some candy can help satisfy your hardworking student’s sugar cravings and might just be the motivation they need to keep going!

4. Something to Remember Home

Finals week is a stressful and busy time in a college student’s life. Sometimes this stress can cause a student to suffer from homesickness. If you’re lucky enough to live close to your student’s college, then this is easily remedied with a quick visit home or a meetup out for a bite to eat. If you live further away from your student, then unfortunately homesickness isn’t so easily taken care of. However, a trick that might help your student get past their blues of missing home and a less stressful environment is to send them a care package that will help them remember home and feel more connected to their family, even when they’re far away. These types of care packages can be big or small, the important part is that they come from the heart. You can gather things either around your house that your student is attached to, buy them something they can only get from the store at home, send them your homemade cookies they love so much, or even sending a blanket to help them feel cozy might be helpful.

Care packages to help your student remember home are different from the ones you might order, because they come from the heart and are personalized to your student. These types of care packages don’t have to be big and extravagant to make your student feel touched and appreciated. These types of gifts don’t even have to be care packages at all. If you don’t want to make a whole gift basket (or shipping prices are too high for big boxes depending how far away you live), then just shipping a few things or one special item will do the trick too. The idea behind this kind of gift is that it’s something the student cherishes and will make them feel connected to their family, even when they’re far away. Finals week stress can really get your student down, so sometimes just having something from home that reminds them why they’re working so hard can really make all the difference.

If you have a college student in your life that you cherish and want to help deal with the stress and craziness of finals week, then sending them gifts (big or small) can really make a difference. Sometimes when studying for finals or preparing for a final project, knowing you have support back home can make all the difference to a college student who is no doubt feeling the stress of college life and academics during the final week of school before summer break. Supporting your special student doesn’t mean you have to send a gift; sometimes just hearing from you can make their day and really lift their moods. But if you want to send your student who is working hard on their degree a gift to help them keep going, then this list of 4 gift ideas your college student will really want is a great way to get started when trying to think what to give that special someone who works hard at school!