Time Management for College Students Time you spent in h

Time Management for College Students
    Good morning, everyone. Today I’m going to talk about time management in college for you. In college, as with life in general, there never seems to be enough time to go around. One of the most difficult challenges you will face as you make the transition from high school to college is to recognize and deal constructively with the fact that you, and you alone, are now in charge of determining how your valuable time is spent.
    One of the reasons that high school seems so easy in comparison to college is that others manage time for you. In high school, both your teachers and your parents actively involved themselves in making sure your day was full, that you got where you needed to go, and that all your work was done on schedule. Moreover, your high school workloads were generally lighter than those you will encounter in college, and also because more of the work in high school involved simple memorization as opposed to true understanding of a subject, it was probably easy for you to "cram" the night before a test and still get a good grade.
    In college, the responsibility for scheduling your time and making room for all you have to do rests squarely on your shoulders. It is one of the most important study skills that you need to master, but it’s also one of the most difficult. When you’re in college, conflicting responsibilities pile up quickly—multiple classes, work, campus activities, social obligations, and so forth. Learning how to best use your time and to avoid a semester filled with all night study sessions is a challenge. One of the most serious mistakes you may make is to commit the error of thinking that you have "plenty of time" to get things done.
    College is not like high school in this regard. You simply cannot get by in college with only last-minute efforts on assignments, and thus you must learn to manage your time wisely.
    Here are some time management tips for you.
    First, use a time chart. It’s almost impossible to remember everything you need to do in your head. You need a system to keep track of all your deadlines and obligations. A time chart is a tool that you can use to find the best time for different types of activities. College students have a unique time management challenge in that portions of their schedule are fixed classes with lots of "free" time in between, while the rest is pretty much wide open.
    As a student time charts help you add some additional structures to your schedule based on the best times for different types of activities. For example, you may find your peak times for mental concentration and studying, and schedule study blocks for your most difficult classes during these periods. Time charts can also help you add more balance to your schedule. Some college students focus too much on studying, and not enough on other types of activities like sports, recreation, and social events.
    Second, plan out your time. It’s not a good idea to pick up your books and start working until you’re finished—because you may not have enough time to accomplish all your tasks. Figure out how much time you have for each assignment, and plot this out in your calendar. Try to give yourself some extra time for each assignment in case one takes longer than you expected.
    When you plot out your time, be sure to schedule in study breaks. Working straight through without a break can make you less efficient and somewhat insane.
    Third, prioritize. If you have a long list of tasks to complete, you may need to prioritize and spend more time with some tasks than others. If that chemistry lab is simply more important than that history paper, allot more time to the lab—although be sure to leave yourself a reasonable amount of time for the paper as well. You’ll also need to prioritize activities, work, and any other obligations.
    An important part of prioritization is to avoid over-committing your time. In order to get the most important tasks completed well, it may be necessary to make fewer obligations to campus organizations, friends, or other drains on your schedule. Learn how to say no.
    Forth, avoid procrastinations and distractions. Scheduled study breaks are a good thing. Procrastination is not. It’s difficult and perhaps impossible to avoid all procrastination, but if you’re going to manage your time effectively, you need to learn how to keep it to a minimum. In a world full of text messaging and computer games, the distractions available to students are abundant and hard to resist. A detailed schedule is one good way to help you keep on track and avoid wasting time.
    Finally, take responsibility for time management. In college, nobody is there to manage your time but yourself. Constant reminders about deadlines and obligations won’t frequently come to you as you were in middle school. You need to take the initiative and get yourself organized. Do not budge from your schedule of activities unless there is an emergency situation. Only by practice, your skills for time management will be utilized to its fullest.
    To sum up briefly, we’ve discussed the differences of time spent in college and in high school as well as tips of time management. Remember, time management is a learned skill, and it might be a new skill for you. If you try to organize your time and it doesn’t go flawlessly at first, never fear. The more you manage your time, the easier this habit will become. I hope all of you have enjoyed this lecture. Best of luck, students!