Staying organized in college seems to be an easy task for some, but for others it can be challenging. Although some people thrive with using a planner to keep track of their assignments and classes, for others, it may not be useful and can be too time consuming. Luckily, there are other tools to help stay organized:
1. Whiteboard
Using a whiteboard to keep track of due dates and assignments can be very helpful to those who are more visual. You can decorate the whiteboard with fun drawings and colors to help you stay motivated. Whiteboards come in all shapes, sizes, and layouts. Finding what works for you can be the difference between utilizing the whiteboard and letting it sit there untouched.
2. Note-Taking Apps
Apps such as Microsoft OneNote can help with class notes, organization of assignments, and reading annotations. There are notebook organization tools in which you can separate each class and each week of the classes. You can also insert audio and video recordings if it pertains to a lesson you are learning or an assignment.
3. Sticky Notes (online or physical)
Sticky notes are a great way to jot down quick tasks, reminders, and to-do items. You can leave them anywhere that would grasp your attention such as your computer, folders, desk, or even car. You can also color-code based upon importance or different classes. Just like the whiteboard, you can decorate them to better motivate yourself or to make them just look nicer! There are sticky-note apps that are made for the computer as well. Those are a great way to have those notes on your desktop and better accessible if you use your computer often. I use the application called “Stickies” on my laptop and you have the option to change the colors, font, text size, and can even cross through the tasks that are completed.
4. Reminder Apps
Reminder apps are a great way to see assignments or tasks. Setting up reminders can help keep track of upcoming assignments, classes, and exams to help remind you of important dates. Setting up multiple reminders can help with time management. If you were to have an exam in two weeks, every two days you can set reminders to help you study. With reminder apps, a person can feel the satisfaction of completing each task.
5. Calendar Apps
Using tools such as a calendar can help with time management, reminders, keeping track of deadlines, and much more. Depending on what you would like to put on the calendar, you can sort through other things other than just school assignments like birthdays, campus events, and holidays. If you use an online calendar, you can insert times and locations of classes, exams, work, events and more to remind you. It can also send you notifications before the scheduled activity to help remind you of it.
6. Pulse App
Lastly, Pulse is an app that is connected to your D2L account. Pulse gives you three viewing options like; upcoming, courses, and notifications. I find that using the upcoming screen to be the best. It shows you the days of the week and if you have an assignment due, it will show a hump. The more assignments due that day, the higher the hump gets. I find that this helps with my time management because rather than clicking through each of my classes and tracking down each due date and exam date, I get to scroll through a calendar and visually view it. This tool also helps with getting ahead on tasks.
In Conclusion…
Although using a planner can be helpful, using these other tools can help with other things. You can separate things based on importance, class sections, and much more. I like to track my classes and meetings on my calendar, assignments on my planner and sticky notes, and class notes in my notes apps! Finding your balance takes some time, but once you explore all these options, you can find what works best for you.