If you think about it, high school is really tightly structured. For six years, you get to school at the same time, you have periods at the same time, and you finish school at the same time. There’s a lot of consistency that you probably don’t even notice at the time. You get reminders about assignments and upcoming exams. You follow bell times and term dates.
A lot of that is taken away at university, particularly for some courses. And that can actually be really difficult to deal with when you’ve become accustomed to the rigidity of high school (and primary school before that!).
If you’re currently studying at university, and you’re struggling to get used to your less-structured university life, this article features some tips you might like to consider. 🤝
Give yourself actual rest periods
One thing you might notice when you start studying at uni is that, aside from your actual class times, there are no obvious “study periods” or “rest periods”. At high school, you might have had a clearer timetable - study after school at certain times before dinner, for example - but that might not be the case at uni.
What that means is that you also won’t necessarily have clear “non-study periods”. The downside of a less-defined structure is that you always could be studying, or could be completing assignments, or could be doing readings - even on weekends.
If you try to schedule in some regular study times, you might find that your non-study periods are actually a bit more relaxing; you’re less inclined to experience that nagging “hmm, I should be studying” guilt.
What that might look like is you sitting down at the start of the semester, looking at your class timetable, blocking in your other commitments (work, social stuff, hobbies etc.), and then seeing what’s realistically left for study. If you highlight a few portions of the week you’d like to use for study purposes - and then actually stick to that - then it should become a little clearer when you’re studying, and when you’re resting.
Taking proper rest breaks (where you’re not thinking about how you could be studying) is really important, of course. Doing this will likely keep you fresher for longer, which is important throughout a long semester!
Try to use your time on campus efficiently
Unlike high school, where you probably had classes most of the day every day, it might be the case that you’re only on campus for a short period at a time, or that you have massive gaps between classes.
If that’s the case, it’s important to establish good habits early in the semester. Where and when you study is up to you, but I like studying on campus to fill time between classes. I figure it means that I can spend more time at home doing whatever rather than trying to plug in the study I didn’t do at uni. For that reason, I really try to take advantage of class gaps, particularly if they’re a few hours long.
Let’s assume the semester is 12 weeks long. If you have a two-hour class gap on a Monday, for example, and you study for 90 minutes of that each week, that’s an additional 18 hours of study across the semester - huge! And if you go to uni each week mentally thinking that that’s your ‘study time’, it can really help with university and study structure.
Build a clear assessment timetable
One of the first things each semester you might consider doing is building an assessment timetable. What that looks like for me is a simple Excel spreadsheet outlining each of the assessments in each of my units, what they’re worth (how much they’re weighted), when they’re due, and any other important notes.
Once you’re super clear about what you’re working toward, you might find that study structure builds itself. For example, if you keep reminding yourself that Assessment A is due only a little bit before Assessment B, you might find yourself pushing early in the semester to get the former done to give yourself the required time for the latter.
In some sense, planning ahead in this way gives you a clear structure of what you’ll work on, and when - even if it isn’t explicitly stated. It also means you’re much more likely to avoid the dreaded “oh no - that was due yesterday?!” feeling.
Try to avoid ‘limbo time’
We mentioned above that it’s super important to give yourself permission to rest sometimes, but there’s a difference between actual rest time and what we’re coining ‘limbo time’.
What we mean by ‘limbo time’ is those periods where you’re not really getting anything done, but you’re also not really relaxing because you’re thinking about everything that you’re not getting done. Perhaps you’re just mindlessly scrolling through your phone or flicking between tabs on your laptop, pretending to be about to start an assignment but knowing deep down that you’re just not going to.
These periods can be pretty taxing for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it can just be a draining experience, because you’re right on ‘the edge’ of tasks; you’re not doing anything, but you’re also not starting anything. The longer you stay in this phase, the harder it can be to get out of it, too.
But secondly, it can dent confidence. If you’re anything like me, being in this ‘limbo time’ phase is really frustrating, and makes me annoyed at myself for losing on both counts - no work done, and also no proper relaxation gained.
If you find yourself languishing in this type of situation, you might need a circuit-breaker. Go and get yourself a glass of water, or go for a brief walk, or just get outside for a few moments. Actively do something to demarcate the end of ‘limbo time’, and move on to something new.
Note: this can be a really difficult process, so be kind to yourself as much as you can!
