photo: Badlands
The new academic year is well underway! And this post is for all you career girls juggling work and studies – you’ve got this. To make sure you get the best out of 2016/2017, here are our favorite tips to get you study ready.
1. Splurge On Stationery
We always love a good excuse for buying stationery and becoming the perfect student is the perfect excuse! Some of the essentials: a good backpack (Carvela do a beautiful classic), a planner (check out this gorgeous Fringe Studio one), notebooks for each class, a go-to pen. Try out a fountain pen for an extra fancy touch!
2. Stick To A Routine
When you go away to college and no longer have parents and teachers telling you what to do all the time, it’s easy to enjoy wasting away the hours watching Netflix just because you can! But don’t get stuck in this downward spiral.
The best piece of advice I ever got was to treat college like a working week – regardless of when you have classes, put in a good 8 hours of work in every day (class time included). Work out what times work best for you and stick to them. That way you can have the whole weekend free too!
3. Stay Motivated
Demotivation is deadly. So do whatever it takes to stay inspired! Stick up motivational quotes around your bedroom. Focus on your final destination and keep those goals in mind, whether that’s becoming a surgeon or editing your own magazine.
Social media can be useful here too! Create a go-to inspirational board on Pinterest. Check out the studyblr community on Tumblr for some amazingly aesthetic photos of people studying that will immediately make you want to hit the library!
4. Use Office Hours
Seriously, there’s a reason teachers harp on about these. They’re extremely useful! This is the moment to talk about any problems you might be having, any ideas you have for assignments, or just to vent about something random.
Tutors, lecturers, supervisors – they’re the experts in their field! They are an invaluable resource and their office hours are dedicated to you.
5. Keep On Top Of Your Studies
The key to study success is being prepared and never getting behind! Get familiar with your class syllabuses. Know what’s coming up next week and be prepared with all the necessary materials. Do your reading the week before, not the day of! Start thinking about papers and midterms/finals a few weeks before the dates in question, and not two days beforehand.
A solid tip for staying on top of your classes is writing down all key dates in your planner! That way you know exactly when everything is due and won’t risk any tasks creeping up on you.
6. Don’t Despair If You’re Behind
That said, if you are behind schedule, don’t worry! Speak to your tutors and supervisors about ways you can catch up and what you should focus on.
Don’t think you need to catch up on absolutely everything either – if you’ve not read three books for your Literature 1900-Present class, you’ll just waste time trying to get through them and probably wind up more behind than before. Skim them and borrow your friend’s notes!
7. Take Care Of Yourself
It’s easy to burn out with a hefty college workload! So make sure you schedule in some “me” time to do non-college related stuff. Maybe it’s watching your favourite show, reading a book for pleasure not for class, having coffee with a friend, or unwinding with a bath and some pampering.
Don’t neglect your emotional and physical health or your work will suffer too! Don’t forget this step.
Good luck in 2016/2017! What are your top tips for staying on top of your studies this academic year?
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