4 Hacks for an Organized College Life

4 Hacks for an Organized College Life Perhaps youre midway through your first year of college, or working on your third or fourth year. Regardless of your academic status, the start of a semester is a great time to regroup and reorganize. Its often a busy time, and it can sometimes be challenging to stay on track. Therefore, the more organizational strategies you can incorporate into your routine, the better. Hacks for getting your college life organized include adding a whiteboard to your wall, maintaining a balanced daily schedule, and reviewing events at the end of each day. The start of a new semester can be overwhelming, but finding strategies to stay on top of your tasks can set you on a path to success. Here are four hacks for an organized college life: 1. Maintain a balanced daily schedule College can quickly become all-consuming. However, if you establish healthy boundaries and strive to maintain balance, you can keep yourself healthier and happier, and likely become a less stressed college student. Strive to maintain an 8/8/8 balance each day when it comes to sleep, school, and your personal life. You have 24 hours in a day, and not all of them should be spent studyingjust like not all of them should be spent socializing. Maintaining an 8/8/8 schedule may be made easier with the help of an electronic or paper planner. Start by blocking out time for all of your existing activities to see how much time you spend in each of the three categories. Then, adjust as needed. Check in with yourself frequently to make sure your schedule is still working for you. [RELATED: 6 Habits to Become a More Organized Student] 2. Add a whiteboard or chalkboard to your wall Everyone knows to-do lists can help keep you on track when youre a college student trying to stay organized. Keeping that list right in front of you when youre in your roomon a highly visible whiteboard or chalkboardis a great way to keep yourself on task. A board is a great space to write to-do lists, as well as important reminders like appointments, phone numbers, and other notes. You can also attach important papers and documents to your board with magnets, helping you keep them front of mind. Update your board daily with the following in order to stay as organized as possible: Tasks Paperwork Reminders Upcoming events [RELATED: 5 Daily Habits Youll Be Thankful For] 3. Incorporate a weekly cleaning session into your schedule When youre a busy college student, its easy to overlook cleaning your living space. Adding a weekly cleaning session of an hour or two to your schedule to tidy up and arrange your things can work wonders for keeping you organized. The more frequently you look at and re-evaluate the items in your room, the less likely you are to lose track of important things and information. Plus, a clean space may incentivize you to spend more time in your room studying, as well as simply relaxing and enjoying college life. [RELATED: 3 Ways Students Can Benefit From Journaling] 4. End each day with a recap It can be a challenge for even the most organized college student to stay on top of schoolwork, classes, exams, friends, family, and personal matters. This is why ending your day with a short recap of what youve accomplished that day, and what you need to do the next day, can be beneficial. Write down a short bullet list of the days accomplishments, any tasks you didnt have time to complete, the highlights of your day, and any urgent matters that need tending to the next day. Review your recap the next morning and youll be instantly brought up to speed as to where you left off. Any topics you want to know more about? Let us know! The Varsity Tutors Blog editors love hearing your feedback and opinions. Feel free to email us at blog@varsitytutors.com.