ADAPTING TO THE QUARTER SYSTEM AS A FIRST YEAR

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Sophia Masserat Student Contributor, University of California - Santa Barbara

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POV: It’s week zero, you’ve just finished your very first class, and you’re about to turn in your first assignment. Then you blink, and the next thing you know, it’s week five and you have three midterms and a paper to turn in within the next few days.

As a first-year student navigating college life and balancing every other aspect of freshman year, it can be easy to overlook the elusive challenges that the quarter system presents to us UC students. There seems to be a clear divide between students’ opinions on the quarter system: you either hate or love it. In high school, you could get away with last-minute cramming for an exam the night before with a moderately paced semester system, but that simply won’t slide here. Adjusting to the quarter system as a freshman can be tough, but I have some insight that has helped me so far that can hopefully help fellow first-year students acclimate.

DOES “FREE TIME” REALLY EXIST?

Trust me, I get how tempting it is to fall victim to doomscrolling in bed after a class or two when it feels like your day has already been busy enough. Some days, when I have all my classes and assignments done by early afternoon, I falsely think that I’m bored just because I technically don’t have anything else to do, giving myself a pass to do nothing productive with my time. But then, I realize that I’m just not thinking ahead and about the future. Ask yourself, “What could I be doing now that could make this time tomorrow easier for myself?”

This isn’t meant to stress you out by any means—in fact, I’m the biggest advocate for taking time for yourself every day to relax and decompress. However, if you find yourself “bored” and without anything to do, think again. Chances are, you’ve checked off everything on your to-do list today—whichever reading, classes, and tasks are due tonight—but you may be forgetting about that midterm you have next week that you’ve barely started studying for.

MAKE ORGANIZATION FUN

Even though I’m a Type A organization lover who uses four different types of planners during the school year, I totally understand that not everyone is keeping track in an assortment of itineraries. I’m a strong believer that everyone could benefit from planning in their life, such as keeping track of everything from academics to extracurriculars to social life. Especially with the fast pace of the quarter system, it’s important to stay on top of your responsibilities so that you don’t fall behind before you even realize it.

My advice is to find a way of staying organized that works for you and that you can realistically stay consistent with. For me, what I’ve found works best is using Google Calendar for efficient time management throughout the week, Notion for academics and tracking my progress on assignments and exams, and a physical planner book for daily to-do lists. A bit excessive? Maybe, but nothing beats the satisfaction of checking off my to-do lists knowing that you got everything done that day. My advice is to find at least one thing that works for you and helps you get everything done to maximize your time throughout the day.

Person writing in agenda on desk — Photo by STIL from Unsplash

BE PROACTIVE & THINK AHEAD

A notable feature of the quarter system is that it teaches you to take initiative for yourself and act sooner rather than later. There’s no time to sit around and wait for the concept that you didn’t understand in lecture to magically spawn into your brain. Your professor probably won’t go over it again in class because of limited time, so go to office hours, ask questions during or after class, look it up on your own time—do whatever you have to do to make sure you are looking out for yourself and not falling behind.

To go along with this, one thing that might help with planning ahead of time is writing “weekly check-ins” at the start of each week. Sit down and jot a list of goals to accomplish by the end of the week, such as starting to study for that looming midterm next week. Whether in a paper planner or your Notes or Reminders app, it is essential to write them out for future reference because your memory will fail you.

TREAT YOURSELF

Although seemingly contradictory to my previous tip, having a reward system is sometimes the only thing that will get me through a long run of studying. Whether it’s an iced coffee for energy in between study sessions or going out on the weekend, having something to look forward to will make your work time go by so much quicker. It can feel like everything is moving so quickly and getting ahead of you, but rewarding yourself with simple pleasures like listening to your favorite music or having a fun drink while working will keep you motivated and also create a positive association with the task at hand, encouraging a productive lifestyle overall.

MAKE THE BEST OF IT

Reflecting on my first five weeks, I can honestly say that I like the quarter system much more than I expected to. Not only has it improved my time management and organization skills, it has also made me more productive—as a student and in my personal life. Even though there’s less time for instruction, I appreciate how the low-maintenance class time allows me to do other things throughout the day, like go to the gym, attend club meetings, spend time with friends, and still have some alone time.

The quarter system definitely isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I believe that everyone can find a way to make it work for them, regardless of your learning style or the rigor of your courses. Find the methods that work for you, and stick to them: your future self will thank you.