Finals are now upon us. And, although exam season is already difficult, dealing with a pandemic has made it even more challenging. For instance, professors and students have had to fully transition to teaching and learning online. However, for those who have never taken online college classes, the shift was really abrupt and hard to adjust to.
And considering the fact that many schools are refraining from opening for at least the next few months, the likelihood of students attending class on campus is fairly low. So I can only assume that college courses will remain online for now (making online summer classes the reality for most students). However, taking these courses can be even more challenging because they are completed in so little time.
So, to help you guys out, I would like to tell you a few college final tips and different tips on taking online college classes that will be beneficial to you all.
Have A Dedicated Study/Work Space
One of the first tips that I have for you all is to have a dedicated study or workspace. And, If I had to make any suggestions, I would mostly suggest that you find a desk (or table) with plenty of space so that you can have plenty of room to place your work, laptop, calculators, highlighters, etc.
You should also consider having a drink and a snack on hand too. This will keep you from moving from the area and getting sidetracked by distractions. Plus, you’ll keep those pesky study hunger pangs away too.
Another tip that I have is to make sure that there is little to no noise in your preferred study space. However, if that’s not your cup of tea, you can try listening to game soundtracks while you study or other music that you might like (but not something that’s catchy enough to distract you from your work). For instance, my sister prefers to listen to lofi music while she studies. But I find that I study and do some of my best work when it is almost completely silent. So choose whichever method that works better for you.
Have A Dedicated Study/Work Time
Another thing that you need to do to prepare for your college finals (and online college courses) is to make sure that you have a dedicated time to study. One of the greatest benefits of doing this is that it will keep you organized and help you to study more frequently. So, you won’t have to study as much for finals or exams, because you have had frequent mini study sessions before your tests.
And, if you’re having trouble choosing a specific time to do your work, you can consider keeping your same school schedule to keep you on track.
Use The Pomodoro Method
Another study hack that I have for you is to use the Pomodoro method when you are working on your schoolwork and studying for tests. The reason why I suggest this method is because this process helps you to concentrate on your work fully for a given amount of time (known as a Pomodoro). However, it still allows you to have some sort of built-in break that will keep you from fatiguing yourself.
If you want to try out the Pomodoro method, try this calculator by Omni Calculator.
Remove Distractions
The next tip that I have for you guys is to remove distractions. So, make sure that the first thing that you do is to either put your phone on silent, turn on your phone’s do not disturb mode, or turn your phone off because it is so easy for our phones to distract us.
Another suggestion that I have for you is to use a focus app like Tide. This app is great because it not only uses the Pomodoro method, but it also provides background noise (such as noise in a busy cafe, a library, and noise on a rainy day) that can make it easier to concentrate if you need sound to do your work.
You could also add extensions to your computer to help you stay on tasks. For instance, you can use Chrome store extensions such as Focus-To-Do or Block Site that will not only help you to stick to a timeline and but also block sites (like YouTube, Instagram, etc.) that will make it harder for you to procrastinate.
Read To Learn
The next tip that I have for you is to try to read and understand your material. I know that it will be hard. I’ve taken quite a few online classes, and I know that, for many of them, they can get quite reading heavy. Yet, reading to learn can completely outweigh the cons.
However, you have to put in the work. And this involves reading the information at a reasonable pace (no skim reading), stopping to summarize and reiterate what you have just read, taking notes of key information, and connecting different concepts to one another.
Although this is very time consuming, it will help you to solidly have down the information. And, hopefully, you will have great notes to study for future tests.
Go To Class
Also, I would recommend that you guys ‘go’ to class. I know that having class online is super convenient, but that is what can also make it so much harder to make it to lectures. It makes it so much easier to ‘not show up’. However, not attending class does way more harm than good.
Now, I’m not proud to admit that I have skipped some classes in college. But for the classes that I did miss, I would have to frantically read the information and hope to have it down well enough for future assignments. And, most of times, I managed to do a decent job. But there were also times where I was completely lost when I came back to class. So, if you can, please try to make it to as many classes as you can.
Sleep
I know that this might sound a little silly, but guys, get some sleep. As a former college student, I know that sometimes sleep is thrown out the window because assignments need to be completed. I understand, I’ve been there.
And I know that this pandemic has probably messed up your sleeping schedule, but try to at least get 7 to 8 hours of sleep. And if you can’t sleep for that long, try scheduling in a nap. It’ll ensure that you can focus well while you are doing school work.
Create Distinction Between Leisure and Work Time
Have you ever heard stories about people who always work on their bed and can’t go to sleep because they associate their bed with work? The same can be said about other things as well.
Work Area
One thing that this can be applied to is where you do your work. As mentioned above, make sure that you have a specific study/work area to use while doing your assignments. So, when you move there, you’ll be ready to work.
Morning Schedule
The second thing that this will be applied to is your morning schedule. Just like you had a morning routine while you attended class physically, you’ll have to have one while taking online classes as well. This is because not having one can affect your productivity.
For instance, having a set time to wake up keeps your schedule the same. However, when you don’t, you start shifting your bedtime and waking time round, which can throw your entire day off (and change your work-time to leisure time). So, make sure that you have a scheduled time to wake up.
Also, after you wake up, make sure that you get ready for the day. Exercise, shower, and get dressed to transition yourself from sleep to work mode.
Electronic Devices
The third thing that this applies to is your electronic devices. Basically, I think that it will be beneficial to have different devices for different things.
For instance, my phone is my “leisure” product. I’m way more likely to watch videos, play games, read, listen to music, and visit social media sites on there. However, my ‘work’ electronic is my laptop.
And, although I do occasionally use my laptop for activities of leisure, the majority of the time I am using it to research information, write content, plan things out, etc. So, when I do switch to more leisurely tasks, it seems really odd to me. So, using this technique can work.
However, if you don’t have another device that you can choose between, or if you use all of your devices equally for leisure, try creating another account (what I mean is to create another login to the computer, so that one account is for fun and the other is for work). That way you can have a clear distinction between your study and leisure time.
Hopefully, you enjoyed learning how to stay focused in school, increase your productivity, and prepare for your college finals and exams!
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Hannah Roberts is the creator of Do. Live. Study. She loves to learn new things and hopes to help others as they go throughout their journey as an adult. You can connect with her below.