Time Management
For a lot of first-time college students, the idea of time management is a new and daunting endeavor. In short, time management skills will help you organize your schedule and bring balance to your time so that you can cut unnecessary stress from your student and personal life. In this section of the LibGuide, you will find resources and tools on how to create the best schedule for yourself and to aid you in determining how much time you actually need for each activity.
Introduction to Time Management
What is "time management"?
Time management is the practice of "using the time that you have available in a useful and effective way" (Cambridge Dictionary).
What this means is that you have to ask yourself the following questions:
1. How much time do I actually have?
You know yourself best! It's important to be realistic about how long it takes you to do certain tasks such as getting up and getting ready, writing a 500-word prompt response, or practicing a presentation. As the video suggests, try to log how long it takes you to do certain tasks so that you are not pressed for time, when you gave yourself 30 minutes to complete a task that actually takes you an hour.
Remember: There are 24 hours a day and 168 hours in a week, be kind to yourself and try not to squeeze an unrealistic amount of activities into a small amount of time!
2. How much time do I need for school work outside of class?
On average, "Each unit of credit requires 2 to 3 hours of outside classwork per week" (cliffnotes)
So if you are enrolled in 15 credits, you will be spending about 30-45 hours a week doing outside classwork or studying. To put it in perspective, this is equivalent to a full-time job!
3. How can I balance my time?
First, remember that your semester will increase/decrease in workload depending on the time of the year! Be sure to check out the Dominican Academic Calendar so you can be ready for certain periods such as midterms and finals.
Check out the following resources for help on balancing your time effectively:
- Analyzing Your Time AuditSelf-assessment, recommendations, and resources to audit and organize your time to best meet your needs.
Planning an Assignment
One of the best ways to plan for an assignment is to have a method of breaking it down by steps and planning time for each section of the assignment. Below you will find an assignment tracker that will help you do just that!
- Assignment TrackerInstructions for filling out the assignment tracker template
1. Fill out the beginning of the form with the name of the course, the assignment title and value, the hours of work required, today’s date and the due date.
2. In the ‘Stages’ column, create a list of all of the things that you need to do to complete this assignment, e.g. brainstorming ideas, creating an outline, writing a rough draft. Use one line for each stage.
3. Give yourself a completion deadline for each task.
4. Check off each task as you finish them.
TIPS for Using the Assignment Tracker:
Make sure to plan enough time for each portion of your project or assignment you are working on.
Start planning early! Give yourself a minimum of two weeks to complete assignments so that you are not pressed for time.
Spread out your work. It is better to do your work in chunks instead of one big block to relieve some stress. Check out the "Pomodoro Technique" videos on the sidebar of this page!
Creating a Schedule
There are a couple of free resources available to you to create a weekly or monthly schedule:
Did you know that you have a free calendar through Outlook 365?
You can access this calendar by going to the "Quick Links" on dom.edu and clicking the link "Email". Once there, you will click on the icon on the screenshot below to access the calendar portion of your email. You can set alerts/reminders, share your calendar and send invites for things such as Zoom meetings, and add as many plans as you need to!
Google also has a free calendar option that you can access by creating a free Google account. You can also download the Google Calendar App on your phone for easy access. Similar to the Office 365 calendar, you can set reminders or even add your class schedule to it!
