Returning to school after summer break can be many things: stressful, exciting, promising, and nerve-wracking. It’s even harder to get back into the flow of university life without a set of good habits in place to make sure you’re focused, organized, and as non-stressed out as possible.
As a fourth year student, I’ve experienced it all. I want to share four of my most useful habits for having a successful, mentally-healthy semester, whether you’re an incoming freshman or a senior.
Map Out Assignments
Keeping up with assignment due dates across multiple classes can be intimidating. That’s why I’ve started writing out all of my upcoming assignments for the next two weeks (something I set time aside to do at the end of every week). Whether you use a planner, a whiteboard, or sticky notes (I’ve done all three), having a visual reminder of what assignments you have due and when is a great way to stay organized.
I even go one step further when I list my assignments by using the notes app in my phone to plan out what days I’ll work on each upcoming assignment. Not only does it help avoid procrastination, but it helps me ensure I’ve given myself enough time to complete each assignment within my busy schedule as well. If you’re balancing school life with a job, extracurriculars, or even just friends and family, I highly recommend this practice.
Use Chores Efficiently
Grocery shopping, laundry, cooking, washing dishes, taking out the trash—it can be overwhelming to take care of the basics while being a full-time college student, whether you live on campus or not. Much like with my assignments, I make sure to set a routine in my notes app of when I’ll complete each task during the week so I can plan around them.
I even like to use my chores to work on and break up assignments. During a laundry cycle, for example, I have a set amount of time to work on one or two assignments before it’s time to move the clothes to the dryer. Then I have another set amount of time to work. Similarly, planning to go grocery shopping or cook at specific times during the week gives me until a certain time of day to be productive. Not only does using your chores like this give you naturally built-in breaks to shift your brain to a different task, but it also allows you to complete multiple tasks at once without feeling overwhelmed.
Join A Community
Sometimes during the semester, it can seem impossible to stay active and social outside the hurricane of deadlines, grades, and studying. But joining a community—on or off campus—is one of the best things you can do for yourself.
One of the benefits of joining an on-campus community specifically is that you’ll be surrounded by fellow students, often from a wide variety of studies, who just get it. In this way, communities provide an opportunity to make friendships in your adult student life. Additionally, clubs, sports, and other such communities allow you to pursue your interests outside of the classroom, stay physically active, and feel like you’re actually a part of something bigger (a sensation I sometimes think is lacking in the classroom).
Not to state the obvious, but being a part of Her Campus is one such community activity for me. I get more direct experience in writing and editing than is often the case in my classes, all while being surrounded by other lovely human beings equally as passionate about this community as I am. Plus, the club study nights are nice.
Set Time Aside For You
This may be the number one most important habit I’ve picked up as a college student for maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Sure, staying organized, being efficient, and joining communities are all incredibly important to your success and well-being, but so is taking time for yourself.
Take it from me, no one has unlimited focus, motivation, or social battery. Even if you set up and follow good habits like the ones I’ve listed above, if you forget about you, then you’ll just wear yourself down. One of the very first rules I set for myself when starting college was that I was not allowed to work on homework after dinner; I’ve stuck as best I can to this rule ever since my freshman year. Is it always possible? Of course not, but ideally, all my planning ahead for each week allows me at least an hour or two each night to wind down.
Setting healthy habits may look very different for you, and that’s okay. Not every method will stick. But keeping in mind the bigger picture—creating a routine that will make you a more productive, happy student—is crucial to your success as a college student.