College is your first opportunity to completely build your own schedule. Although, you might’ve had nominal control in high school, the schedule was basically planned for you. Creating your own schedule can be a blessing and a curse. There are questions you must ask yourself when building your schedule. Are you a morning person? What time of the day are you most productive? Do you work enjoy having days off? How will you balance class and extracurricular activities? Use this opportunity, to find out what works best for you.
Scheduling includes everything from your class schedule to studying and homework. You are totally responsible of your time and decisions. What works for someone else, may not work for you. Be honest with yourself and schedule accordingly. Mornings produce the best productivity for some students. The question you need to ask is what time do you have the most energy. If you are known for staying up late, morning classes will leave you feeling tired and drained for the remainder of the day.
Another question you should consider is what type of energy do you want for various activities throughout the day. It takes a different type of energy to study versus sitting in class. Being in a lab requires a different energy than a lecture. Be mindful of not over scheduling yourself each day. It’s recommended to take no more than three classes a day. This helps maintain focus in each class and prevent burnout. This also applies to how many credit hours you take. Don’t feel pressured to take a large amount of credit hours, it’s important to move at a pace that will aid in your school success.
Make sure to create breaks for yourself throughout the week. Give yourself time each day for a mental break and to study. It’s best not to schedule all of your classes on two days because you’ll become exhausted with deadlines, exams, etc. Although finals week is at the very end of the semester, the schedule you create will have an impact on how many finals you’ll have each day. It can be a heavy load to have four exams on the same day.
Online courses are a great option, but these require self-control and motivation. No one is there to remind you of upcoming dates or study regimen. Online classes aren’t the way to learn for everyone, for some hands-on learning is more beneficial. Like stated earlier, it’s vital that you schedule based off of what works best for you.
Choosing the right class and professor deserves an amount of research when building your schedule. Make sure the professor works well with your learning style and that the class is interesting to you. You can do your own research or line or gain insight from fellow students. This’ll save a lot of hassle and stress throughout the semester.
Building your schedule can be a daunting task, but following these steps will set you up for success. The most important thing is creating based off of your personality and needs.