Developing Good Study Habits

Developing good study habits will help you to work more effectively. It will also teach you principles of creative time management that will help you as you move into your career after graduation.

Time Management for Students

• Take your assignments and break them down into bite-sized pieces. Assign these pieces due dates. Record these tasks and dates in your day planner. This will help you move through your assignments at a steady pace without leaving everything to the last minute.
• Give yourself some extra time when you can. For example, if you have a paper that is due on a Friday, plan to have it done on Wednesday. Work on that paper as if Wednesday is the true due date. That way, you will still have time to complete the paper if you run into complications. Scheduling everything down to the minute is never a good idea, because life will often get in the way of meeting that precise schedule.
• Bring your day planner with you everywhere. Use it to record other important commitments, such as doctor's appointments. You will then be able to combine your school and personal requirements in one place so that you allow adequate time to accommodate both parts of your life. If you use an online time management tool, print a copy and take it with you every day.
• Remember that even the best laid out plans sometimes need to be adjusted. Life events can drastically change your priorities. Time management plans actually give you more flexibility because you know exactly where you are with each assignment that you have. You can then reassess and reprioritize your tasks when something unexpected devours your time.
• Finish the bad stuff first. If you have a given number of tasks to accomplish during the day, do the ones that you like least first. Getting these out of the way can reduce the amount of stress that you experience.
• Cross off each task as you complete it. It is extremely satisfying to look back at your week and see how much that you have accomplished.
• Take advantage of dead time. If, for example, you need to memorize terms, vocabulary or equations, write them out on index cards. Put the cards in your backpack or purse and carry them around with you at all times. Whip out those cards and run through them during commercials played during your favorite TV show or if you sit down a few minutes early in class. You will be surprised at how a few minutes here and there adds up to less time spent rigorously studying.