Student Resources

Succeeding in Composition

Strategies for Managing Your Time

Taking a full-load of courses demands of students a great deal of time and energy, especially since most students can expect to spend 2-3 hours working on course material for each hour they spend in class meetings. Add to this schedule the hours most student spend working at their part- or full-time job, participating in organizations and extra-curricular activities, and caring for family members, and the importance of time management becomes increasingly evident.

Learning to make efficient use of your time can help you improve the quality of your work and class participation while increasing the amount of time you can spend on the other things you enjoy. But managing your time requires organizing, or planning, and discipline.

The following guidelines provide simple strategies for maximizing your time and ensuring the prompt completion of your assignments:

1. Use a monthly calendar to record the dates when essays and other projects are to be turned into your instructor. Most writing instructors provide the due dates for essays and larger projects in the course syllabus handed out at the beginning of the semester. Noting these dates on a monthly calendar will enable you to quickly judge the amount of time you can spend on a particular assignment. If when glancing at your calendar you notice that, in two weeks, you have a biology test on Monday and an essay due on Tuesday, you can begin to divide up your study time to accommodate each. If you continue recording these important dates on your calendar, you can avoid last-minute, late-night cramming sessions and writing frenzies that leave you haggard and result in weak essays and poor test results.

2. Begin making lists of tasks to be completed each day. On a sheet of paper or on a daily calendar, list all of the tasks you would like to accomplish in a particular day. You might begin compiling this list in the morning and add to it as the day goes on, or you might find it more efficient to make your list the night before. Such a list might be simply a log of key tasks, or each item on the list could be assigned to a specific time of day.

   List of key tasks:

   • Writing class
   • Work
   • Get financial aid
   • Psychology class
   • Biology lab
   • Call mom
   • Library research paper
   • Read ch.6 for biology & take notes
   • Study for sociology quiz
   • Basketball practice
   
   
   
   

   List according to time of day:

   • 8:30-9:30
     Writing class
   • 10:00-12:00
     Work at registrar's office
   • 12:00-1:00
     Lunch/get financial aid form
   • 1:00-2:00
     Psychology class
   • 2:00-3:30
     Biology lab
   • 4:00-5:00
     Basketball practice
   • 5:00-6:00
     Dinner
   • 6:00-8:00
     Read ch. 6 for biology & take notes
   • 8:00-9:00
     Research at library--paper 1
   • 9:00
     Call Mom

   At first, your list may be unreasonable--often what seems to be a quick and simple task may take longer than expected, or something may come up that requires your immediate attention. Since you will probably be able to accomplish only 80% of the tasks you have listed, begin projects early. Do the most important tasks on your list first, then tackle each of the others according to their immediacy. As you complete a task, mark it off of your list. By doing so, you will see how much you have accomplished that day and can then begin to judge how much time particular tasks require and whether you are using your time effectively. Any remaining items can be added to the next day's list, but keep in mind when these tasks must be completed so that you don't miss an important deadline.

   
   
   
   

3. Establish a consistent time and place for studying and writing. Consider setting aside a particular time each day for reading, studying, and writing. Working these activities into a set routine will help you avoid procrastination and the resulting anxiety. When you do your reading, studying, and writing, choose an environment that is conducive to concentration. The best environment is not the same for everyone: some people prefer to write at a desk in a quiet place, such as the library; others work best sitting on their bed with music playing; still others prefer to work outside where they can hear the birds sing and watch passerbys between tasks. Experiment with different times and settings to determine when and where you can do your best work.

4. Take study breaks. If your schedule doesn't allow you to set aside an extended amount of time for studying, take advantage of shorter spans of time in between work and class. In the thirty minutes between class and work, read a few paragraphs of an assigned chapter or write a paragraph for an essay. Limit the amount of work you plan to accomplish during this study break so that you don't feel rushed.

5. Start projects early. Writing an essay is one of many projects that requires an extensive amount of time to do well. Few writers would suggest rushing through a writing project during the few hours before it is due; rather, to write a good essay, the writer needs time to think about the subject, plan the organization, draft, and revise the essay. Sometimes, this process can take days or weeks to complete. (The same is true for studying for major tests and completing large projects.) If you have two weeks before an essay is due, take an hour or so each day to begin exploring your subject and organizing your thoughts.

   
   
   
   
6. Divide large projects into a series of smaller tasks. Large projects, such as writing an essay, studying for a test, designing a brochure or webpage, or reading a 400-page book, can often seem overwhelming, especially if they must be completed in one fell swoop. These projects are much more manageable if you set shorter goals, breaking up the project into workable steps.
   
   For instance, an essay assignment can be broken up into the following steps: choose and explore the subject, research the subject, write a draft, revise the draft, proofread and edit the essay.
   
   Each of these steps can be broken down even further. The goal of drafting the essay could consist of smaller goals. If you are writing a 5-paragraph essay, write one body paragraph on Monday, the second body paragraph on Wednesday, the third body paragraph and transitions for the three body paragraphs on Thursday, the introduction and conclusion on Saturday.
   
   Completing an essay in such smaller segments will not only make the project more manageable but will allow you to rethink, further research, and revise what you have written as the essay develops.

7. Equip yourself with necessary resources. Stopping to find a pen, dictionary, or ruler can eat away the time you have allotted for studying or writing. Consider working where resources are in reach, or take the items you will need to the place where you will be working. Although Internet connections and library reference collections can resolve the problem of forgotten dictionaries and thesauruses, many times, students working in the computer lab or library discover too late that they have forgotten their textbook or pen. If you study away from your studying and writing tools, make a list of items you will need to take with you and check them off as you collect them.

8. Reserve computers ahead of time. Because libraries and computer labs serve a large population of students, many require that you reserve computers for an allotted time. If you wait until the last minute, all of the computers may be taken or, if one is available, it may only be available for short time.