Syllabus week is upon us and it’s time to get back into the routine of classes. Warm weather is on the way and you’re ready to soak up that sunshine, but before you get ahead of yourself, make sure you have a routine for the upcoming semester. Here are a few tips to help you get started:
Organize
Organization is key to staying on track each semester. At the beginning of each week, write tasks (HW assignments, chores, job applications) that you need to complete on sticky notes and stick them onto a wall that you look at every day. Once you complete the task, you get to rip it off. Aim to have a clean wall by the weekend.
Don’t fall behind
Make a promise to plan ahead for big projects and papers so that you aren’t waiting till the last minute. Whatever you do, don’t procrastinate! Read the syllabus in advance and write due dates in your planner or set reminders in your phone so that you keep up with your work. This will keep you from having to pull any all-nighters this semester, which can affect your circadian rhythm, your metabolism and your long-term memory among other things.
Make a list
College years are some of the best years of our lives and we deserve to experience as much as we can during these short four years. Maybe you go to school in a different state from home and want to explore your surroundings since you may never be back (except for homecomings of course). Make a list of places you want to see, restaurants you want to taste, or even study abroad opportunities. Make plans to explore sooner rather than later before graduation sneak up and it’s too late.
Join a new club
Just because the organization fair was in the fall doesn’t mean you can’t join a new club halfway through the year. It doesn’t hurt to try something new, so put yourself out there and find new connections with people. Open doors to new networking opportunities and resume builders while you’re at it.
Plan ahead
Every night before you go to sleep, plan out the day ahead. If you want to make a commitment to getting healthier, find a time in your schedule to go to the gym (maybe right after class) and stick to that. If you have a big test coming up, set time ahead to study at the library. The same goes for eating, if you’re going to be out all day in classes and meetings and the library, plan to bring healthy snacks so you don’t starve yourself and end up devouring an order of nuggets and fries from Chick-fil-A.
