Staying on Track at the End of a Semester
March 24, 2023
As we’re nearing the end of the winter semester, I can see a few things on my horizon; nicer weather, Spring cleaning, and absolutely drowning in deadlines and exams. Seeing as this is my last year of university, I decided that it’s only right for me to pass on my tried and true tips for how to stay organized during the busiest months of the year.
I would recommend Canva to anyone looking to submit nice-looking assignments without knowing too much about graphic design. Canva is a fantastic website that has an abundance of free templates that can really elevate an assignment. All you have to do is create a free account, pick the template that you feel best suits your assignment, and plug in the text boxes with the appropriate information.
Sometimes professors need a break from plain white documents! (note- this may only work for media-related assignments or small papers like business proposals… PLEASE, do not try to hand in your dissertation with checkered paper and funky fonts…) I’ve managed to create some pretty professional-looking documents using Canva and almost always received positive feedback on how nice they are to look at!
In terms of time management, there’s always the standard Calendar route. Calendars are reliable only if you take the time to plot when projects are due and check very often. I always input due dates from the syllabus at the beginning of a semester, so if you haven’t done that yet, I highly recommend it. I added a widget to my phone’s home screen so that I can see my plans for the next week, including classes, assignments, work, and even personal plans like parties or family events! Seeing everything laid out definitely helps with planning ahead.
I have heard a lot of good things about apps like Trello, Evernote, and Pomodoro. I’ve never had the chance to try any of them out, but they all help with organizing tasks and giving ideas as to how you can make enough time to complete them all. Personally, I feel as though I would forget to open the app and get annoyed to see all of the notifications popping up and end up deleting it, but if you have more self-control than me, you might really benefit from them!
When students are taking upwards of 5 classes a semester, it can be really hard to keep track of the workload. Hopefully, these tips have given you a better idea of how to manage your time and keep up to date with your homework! Or maybe you read this in an attempt to procrastinate even more… Either way, best of luck!
