November 7, 2023
As we zero in on the closing weeks of the semester, we all know that life — particularly college life — can get a little crazy. Juggling classes, involvements, friends and (we hope) downtime can feel impossible, especially as we approach final exams, projects and papers.
With workloads piling up, finding strategies that work for you is more important than ever. Check out these 5 tips for staying up to speed with your schoolwork.
1. Use a Calendar
Store-bought, handwritten or digital, keeping an active, up-to-date calendar pays off in ways you’d never expect. It takes the stress out of holding multiple deadlines in your head, helps you organize your days and plan ahead for assignments, study time and social life. Get as detailed or general as you’d like — anything helps, as long as you find (and maintain) a system that works for you.
If you take one piece of advice from this blog (here’s hoping you take five pieces of advice from this blog), this could be the one with the biggest impact.
2. Meet with Your Professors
We can only give you general advice on how to be a good student. Your professors, on the other hand, can dive into the details on how to navigate your classes and nail your assignments. Visit their office hours or set a time to meet one-on-one! Trust us, your professors want to hear from you.
3. Know How You Study Best
Are you a solo studier, or do you thrive in groups? Do you think you thrive in groups but could maybe use a little more focused study time to yourself? Where do you study best? Maybe studying in your pajamas on top of your bed isn’t the most productive way for you to prep for finals? Do you like to try new coffee shops or stick around campus?
Lots of questions to ask, and there’s no right answer! Trial and error is a great way to figure out what you like and don’t like — don’t be afraid to get started!
4. Set Reminders
Think of reminders as an extra layer of clothing on a cold Nebraska day — it’s good to have one just in case, even if you end up not needing it. Setting reminders about due dates, meetings or other timely things in your phone, on a sticky note or on the back of your hand is always worth it!
5. Take Care of Yourself!
One way to not stay on top of your workload is to only focus on your workload. Make sure you take some time to relax and do things you enjoy, whether that means spending time with friends, curling up with a book or exploring Lincoln for new, fun things to do. Whatever it is, make time for it — maybe even write it in your planner and set a reminder, just in case.