Starting off Strong for a Stress Free Semester

by Alexis M Peters ‘20

Here we are, already getting into the swing of things on campus!

We’ve moved in, had reunions with our friends, knocked out the cobwebs from the summer and… now it’s time to actually get some work done. What? I know, I sort of miss summer too, but it’s time to buckle down. How can you start this semester off right so you don’t end up sobbing into your textbooks in the back of Leavey Library come midterms? (Unfortunately, I think we’ve all been there.)

Here are some great tips that worked last semester to keep me sane.

Make a schedule

If you’re the type of person who just goes with the flow and doesn’t really know the dates of your next tests until the week before, it’s time to start scheduling out your classes. It doesn’t have to be in a formal planner– it could be a Google calendar if that works for you– but you should write down all of your big assignments, tests, and papers in one place so you can see the months coming up as a whole. This way you’ll know if the week of October 22 is going to be super busy, and you can plan accordingly.

Find a study spot

Whether it’s sitting at your dining room table, or curling into one of the couches in TCC, when you have a spot where you always do your studying, your brain immediately gets into productivity mode. Come up with a homework routine and stick to it. That consistency will make you procrastinate less and get more work done.

Get ahead

I know, I know, you think that it’s impossible to get ahead, and getting ahead is way too much work anyway, so why bother? Sure, it might be a lot of work right now, but if you do that extra work now when the semester is just starting and your professors aren’t giving crazy amounts of homework yet, you will be much better off later on. I like to work a full week ahead of schedule so that I don’t have to do homework on the weekends. Many professors will give a list of assignments and due dates on the syllabus. If this is the case for you, get your assignments done early! You will be glad you did later in the semester.

Of course, these tips don’t mean you’ll never have stress and you’ll always have free time on weekends. If you’ve got bigger projects or papers, you’ll need to spend a little extra time on those, but using these techniques, you may actually find the time to write a second or third draft of that final paper! ;)

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