It doesn’t matter whether you are freshmen, sophomore, junior, senior or even a super senior — a semester of work can be difficult. Some students take 18 credit hours; some have to juggle a part-time job and/or an internship, while others might only be taking a 15 credit hour semester. Regardless, the way you start off the semester will predict how the rest of your semester will play out. Here are some tips, based on experience, on how to start the semester off strong:
1. Schedule everything. And I mean everything: doctor appointments, work schedules, group meetings, test dates, project dates, etc. By writing everything down, it will cancel out the chance of you forgetting you had some place to be and it will help you become more organized. Many people have different ways of documenting their schedule, whether it is on their phone calendar, agenda, or on their computer. As long as it’s a tool that is easily accessible, it will do.
2. Write down your homework. Unless you have some kind of photographic memory, you will need to write down your assignments or else you will most likely forget them once you leave class. It’s also refreshing to know you won’t have to be that person who sends out a mass email once a week asking what the homework is.
3. Don’t be late to class. Showing up late to class on a normal basis just looks bad to not only your professor, but also your classmates. Is that really how you want to start off the semester? Didn’t think so.
4. Don’t fall behind. Once the semester gets into full swing, things get moving pretty fast. It then becomes too easy to fall behind; however, if you stay on top of things and plan ahead, the semester should run smoothly for you.
5. Manage your time. A full-time credit hour schedule already takes up a good chunk of time when thinking about class time and work outside of class. Throw in an internship and/or part-time job, you might feel like every hour of your time is booked. A good way to manage your time is to create an interactive schedule or paper schedule (for you old-school folks) and write down your class times and work schedules with time blocked out for studying and recess. This way, you can refer to it constantly and know exactly what is planned for the day.
6. Don’t wait ‘til the last minute. Almost every college student will admit to have procrastinated at least once in his or her academic career and if not, they’re lying. But making procrastination a habit, especially early on in the semester, can backfire very quickly as the semester progresses. Getting homework assignments done early will not only get it out of the way but it will make it so you’re not stressing out last-minute to get 50 assignments done in one day.
7. Remember to give yourself downtime. As many college students may know, it’s easy to feel stressed out even in the beginning weeks of the semester. This is why it’s important to give yourself a break every now and then. After a long day of classes and work, take the night off to relax and recharge so your mind and body is ready to take on the next day.