<p>I am currently taking six classes (17 credits) and I already find the workload somewhat overwhelming. :[
I think it is because I am taking calculus and Latin at the same time. It would not be so bad except that I am a complete failure when it comes to math. So yeah, next semester I am definitely not taking another math class.
I have 8am classes everyday. (Not by choice!) I usually sleep around 1:00-3:00am and wake up at 6:30am to get to class by 7:45am.</p>
<p>How do YOU manage your time in college?</p>
<p>Sleep schedule?
Homework / study time?
Clubs / other activities?
Social life?</p>
<p>Try creating a vertical schedule and blocking out your time. You’d be surprised how much free time you actually have. I use an appointment book as a planner because it lets me lay out my schedule vertically and assign specific times to specific activities. My weekly schedule generally looks a lot like this:
M/W/F:
6:50am: Get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, walk to class
8:00-10:00: Class A, Class B
10:00-11:00: Go to Library, check email, check tumblr, pretend to do work, procrastinate
11:00-12:00 Lunch with friends
12:00-1:00: Class C
1:00-2:00: HW
2:00-4:00: Whatever (socializing, hw, watching tv, whatever)
4:00-6:00: Various ECs + Dinner
6:00-8:00 HW
8:00-10:00: Whatever
10:00: Sleep</p>
<p>You get the idea.</p>
<p>Go to sleep earlier. I’m in calculus and latin as well and I get my ass up at five in the morning for crew practice. Going to sleep earlier, as much as a hassle it is, is what helps.</p>
<p>Hi, xperfectionistx.</p>
<p>About taking 6 classes (17 credits) and finding the workload tough, or just too much, is something I am currrently experiencing as well. And yes, for me too it is because of Calculus. However, I do enjoy all my classes and love them to heart, even if they do have a tendency to stab me in the back every now and then. ;)</p>
<p>Onto the topic that was meant to be discuss: Time Management. </p>
<p>I too have a planner, similar to ArtemisDea, and it helps me quite a bit yet. The monthly section of it, with a page devoted to each month with 30/31 small boxes for each day, I use to just write down, in a few words, which exams I have and which papers I have to write for their respective subject into the box corresponding to the appropriate date. This gives me a macro-sense of every “big” thing coming up. I can tell just by a glance whether or not my next week will be packed or if the week after that I can really plan to go to a sports game or whatnot. </p>
<p>Sleep schedule is very generic, there are many variations in mine and little to no consistency, no matter how much I try for their to be. To keep on top of your health, you should be eating properly, exercising enough and regularly, and sleeping well. Although this may seem very clich</p>
<p>I use Google Calendar. It’s where I put all my classes, events and appointments. It’s on my laptop homepage and iPhone so I can check it from anywhere and anytime. </p>
<p>For time management I use the following system, which has worked great for me:
- Every week (usually Sundays) I make a list of things I want to finish during the week, split into manageable time chunks. For example: Read Chapter XX (1h), Read Chapter YY (1h), Do Problem ZZ (2h), … I just list everything that comes to my mind. If there are already things on the list I simply add to them. I can’t concentrate on the same thing for more than 1-2h so I’m careful to split things up nicely.
- I sort these tasks by priority. I.e. if a certain problem set is due early, tasks related to the problems set will come first.
- Every evening I look at my schedule for the next day and choose tasks from my list that I can finish. I put them on my “daily task list” for the next day. Since I can’t concentrate on the same thing for a long time I never schedule similar tasks back to back, only if there are things like lunch or lecture in between.
- The next day day I’ll check off the stuff I finish. If I don’t finish something that was scheduled for the day I put it back on the “big” task list and probably schedule it for the next day.</p>
<p>For my daily task list I use Google Tasks (also on my home page and iPhone) and for my big task lists (which has everything I want/need to do) I use a simple text file. I use the same system not only for academic things but also personal or work projects (having a different big tasks fils for each). It’s pretty simple and gives me a lot of flexibility.</p>
<p>Sleep Schedule really depends on the person. Personally I can study great in the morning but I can’t get anything done at night. So if I don’t go out with friends or drink something I go to bed early and wake up early. (12am - 6am sleep). A lot of people are the total opposite and can study great in the evening, in that case I would go to bed much later.</p>
<p>I typically go to school at 7am, and stay there until 5pm. I go to lecture (not very often), study, sometimes have lunch with friends. After 5pm I’m basically free and can do whatever I want. If there is no event I try to go to the gym or go drinking/eating with friends.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. College is so different from highschool, where I used to stay from 7:00am-7:00pm. Crazy.
I am going to start keeping a better calendar and sticking to it.
But if that does not work, does anyone have ideas on how to stay awake longer? I know the obvious (coffee, energy drinks, etc.), but what about the “biological” ways?</p>
<p>Staying awake longer won’t help. It’ll be fine the first few days and then you’ll crash and feel like crap and have to make up the sleep and the work time you’re missing out on while you’re catching up on sleep.</p>
<p>So please, get adequate sleep. I hope you learned from your time management issues this semester and won’t be taking six courses in the spring. In the meantime, you need to get smart about your work. Some of it–I guarantee you this–does not need to be completed. If you’re in reading-intensive classes, sit down and figure out what you need to know. Sometimes the intro and conclusion of a chapter or an essay is sufficient to understanding the overall idea–good enough for heading to class and answering a question or two, anyway.</p>
<p>I’m not saying you should stop doing work. But you need to make sleep a priority. If you don’t, you and your grades are going to suffer.</p>
<p>Some people above had great suggestions. I like Thomas’s idea about using Google Calendar, lists on Sunday, breaking your time into blocks, etc.</p>