The Best Places to Study for Midterms at USC

Ever feel like being cooped up in your room during midterm week may drive you insane?  Well lucky for those of you who can’t stand to study where you sleep, I’ve put together two lists — one for daytime studying and one for when it gets dark — of the top five places to go on or near campus to get nerdy!

Daytime Study Spots

1. School of Cinematic Arts Coffee Bean.  This is a great spot to look over your Chemistry formulas if you’re in the mood to sip on some coffee while doing so!  The only thing about studying here is to time it right, so that you aren’t stuck having to drown out the noise of the chit chatting going on around you.  So if you can make do without the coffee, go on the weekends when it’s closed!
2. Exposition Park.  As a lover of all things green, parks are definitely on my top ten list of favorite places to visit.  This park in particular is extremely beautiful thanks to the colorful rose garden, which makes your study experience extra relaxing.
3. The Scuplture garden.  On the far side of campus, behind Roski, is the Fisher Museum.  Right next to the museum is the scuplture garden, where you can plop down in the grass and get your studying on surrounded by abstract and really cool sculptures.  The garden is located right next to a rather busy road though, so you might want to bring some headphones and an iPod full of music appropriate for studying (I like listening to the Black Swan soundtrack of The Social Network one!)
4. The small field behind School of Cinematic Arts building. (When construction isn’t goin on!)  This decent sized patch of grass is the perfect place to get work done during non-construction hours.  You could work in getting a tan at the exact moment you finally understand a qudratic equation.
5. Literatea Cafe. Located in the back of Doheny Library, Literatea has both an indoor and outdoor seating area where ample studying could be done.  Most of the people who make up the crowd at this cafe don’t make too much noise to begin with and are studying themselves, so any time of the day should work just fine.  Being able to pop on into the cafe for a quick cup of tea or a biscotti during study breaks definitely helps with staying motivated.

Nighttime Study Spots

1. Leavey Library. By far the most popular study area when students want to get out of their rooms and away from it all.  The library offers students with the option of reserving spaces — little study corners or cubicles — for an extra quiet study sesh.
2. VKC. For those of you who enjoy studying in larger groups, VKC is the place for you.  By studying in empty classrooms or taking advantage of the more unknown library located in the building, you’ll be able to get you work done fast and efficiently.
3. Doheny Library.  This library is known for looking like it was pulled straight out of Hogwarts.  Located near McCarthy Quad, the book selection and furniture make one’s studying feel classy and rustic.
4. The lounge in your building. Having been fortunate enough to live in a dorm with a lounge on every floor last year,  I have seriously come to appreciate taking advantage of the nearest place to study outside of my room.  Lounges have an unspoken silence rule that allow many people to study in the same place without having to awkwardly tell each other to keep the noise level down.  Not to mention, you could be dressed like a scrub without having to walk across campus!
5. Ground Zero.  Craving something sweet while you study?  Head over to Ground Zero for a delicious milkshake!  On certain days they may be having open-mic nights or artsy performances, but for the most part the cafe located behind Pardee Tower and Marks Hall is a great coffee shop environment to get some of your reading or writing done.