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Emily: Making the Most of Your Time
Emily shares how she makes the most of her time while studying.
The workload at University can sometimes feel like a big step up and daunting, with assignment deadlines, exams to revise for and other tasks piling up. However, managing your time effectively when working can help to reduce stress and help you to get the most out of your studying. In this blog post, I will talk about the factors I act on to get the most out of my time with academic work.
Personally, when I feel like I have too much to do, I like to take a moment to note down everything I need to do, and work out what tasks I need to prioritise. What work needs prioritising may depend on how soon it is due, or how much effort and energy you may need to put into the task.
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From here, I find it’s a good idea to create a timetable, to block out time with your activities for the week, along with blocks of time for when you will study. There are so many great calendar and timetabling apps which can help you do this, if this is something you prefer to have on your phone or laptop. Equally, this is something you can jot down in your own planner if you prefer. By making a timetable, you can create a realistic study schedule to keep to, whilst also scheduling in breaks and times to do the things you enjoy, such as a sport or catching up with a friend. You can have a go using this study timetable.
Making sure you work effectively in the time you set aside for your University work is also really important. Ensure that you are working in a suitable and comfortable environment, such as the library, or at your desk, where you are less likely to get distracted. Additionally, there are some really useful time management techniques to use when studying, such as the Pomodoro technique, to help you focus when working. This technique means you study in 25-minute blocks of time, followed by a 5-minute interval. I have found taking small, regular breaks to significantly improve the quality of my studying, and improve my focus.
Keeping your notes and files organised is also key in using your time effectively. I keep my lecture and seminar notes organised into folders on my laptop and often colour code different topics within this, so that I can quickly find them when studying, instead of wasting time searching for them. This also applies to paper notes and documents you may have, as keeping them filed together makes it much easier to locate the information you need. I know I have had some loose papers floating about in the past, and it definitely makes it much harder to return to them this way!
Ultimately, managing your time with both academic and social aspects of your life is a really important skill to develop, however being organised and keeping track of what you have on will make this so much easier! Remember, it is just as important to take a break as it is to study and revise, it’s all about balancing these things together.
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Illustrations by Eilidh Muldoon.