There’s a famous saying for college students, “Pick two: social life, good grades, sleep.” It can be hard to juggle classes, fun, homework, jobs, and good night’s rest without something slipping through the cracks.
However, just because “busy” may be your middle name right now, it doesn’t mean that you can’t balance responsibilities.
Here are a few tips that can help you manage your time and make the most of your college experience:
1. Schedule time for yourself
Most college students know how important it is to create a schedule to manage their assignments, final exams, and other school work. However, what they fail to consider is that scheduling time for downtime and for fun is just as important.
When you create your schedule for the week, start by including any work shifts, school work, and important commitments. After this, block out time for you to relax and participate in restorative activities like reading, exercising, going for walks, playing video games, or any other activities that will allow you to feel refreshed.
You should also carve out time to spend with your friends and participate in fun activities like athletic events or shopping trips.
Oftentimes, when college students feel like they don’t have any time for themselves at the end of the week, it is because they haven’t made a conscious effort to block out time for the non-curricular activities that they value most.
2. Be intentional with your time
How many times have you told yourself that you don’t have enough time to watch a full 30-minute episode of television before bed, only for you to spend that same 30 minutes scrolling aimlessly through social media?
There are many activities we do each day that take up a lot more of our time than we might think, and these distractions can keep us from being able to have a productive day.
If you want to be able to spend time with your friends, get enough rest at night, and finish all of your homework, you need to be intentional with your time.
You won’t be able to balance everything if you spend half an hour scrolling through social media multiple times a day or stop by to chat with everyone whose dorm room door is open in your hallway.
If you want to spend time on social media or visit with the people on your floor, schedule set times to do so, and stick to those time limits.
3. Create a routine as a college student
If you aren’t a morning person, then you may not be as productive when you first wake up.
This means that if you save your homework for the morning, you will probably have a hard time completing it efficiently, wasting a lot of your time in the process.
Figure out when you work best and spend your time doing classwork during these periods of time. This way, instead of slogging through assignments and spending twice as much time on them, you can get your work done when you are able to focus and use your time wisely.
4. Take advantage of spare moments
You can maximize your time by taking advantage of the spare moments you have throughout the day.
During your 20-minute walk to class, you may be able to listen to a recorded lecture from one of your professors. While you are straightening up your room, you can call your parents and catch up. On your bus ride across campus, you can make a checklist or weekly schedule with activities you need to complete.
All of these little moments add up. When you use these spare moments well, you will be able to accomplish more as a college student than you might expect.
5. Have realistic expectations
Even if you are a time management guru, there are still only 24 hours in your day. If you are taking on too much, you won’t be able to maintain a healthy work-life balance, and you will eventually start to feel overwhelmed and burnt out.
Set realistic goals and expectations for yourself so that you have enough time to take care of your responsibilities, have fun, and rest.
If you are finding that no matter how hard you try, you aren’t able to complete everything, you might want to reevaluate your responsibilities. You might have to drop a class, take on fewer shifts at work, do fewer activities with your friends, or otherwise adjust your schedule.
With these five tips in mind, you should have an easier time managing your time, even as a busy college student.
