Helping College Students with Time Management

College is underway! Your college student should be settling into a routine and balancing the busy schedule that comes with college life. Or are they?

Students often start to feel overwhelmed by their schedules at this time of the year, especially if they signed up for a lot of social and recreational commitments when school started. As assignments pile up, it may be time for students to look at their time management skills.

It can be tough for parents to know what to do if a student begins feeling the strain of a busy schedule. It's normal to worry about your child's time management, but it can be hard to know how to help without crossing the line into parental interference, especially as students adjust to their new independence.

Campus Resources

Fortunately, most campuses have services that can help to make this transition easier. Many colleges offer assistance through their guidance offices to help new students adjust to college life.

If study skills are a problem, encourage your student to visit the learning lab or study skill center.

Because we know that good study skills promote independent learning, there are many strategies available to help students achieve their goal of educational success. Only your kids can assess their own study skills and habits. With some help, they can assess what they need to improve or develop.

Time Management

How we use our time is often a result of habit. While adults may have figured out routines that work for them, we sometimes think our kids are not making the most of their time. The following strategy may help you and your children see how they use their time.

Encourage your child to keep a detailed diary for a week or two so they can see where they are spending their time and how long certain activities take.

This is an excellent way to keep track of where time goes. They may be surprised at how much time they can redirect to studying without giving up leisure and relaxation activities.

After keeping records for one week, they will see how much time they have available and when. Assigning study time to fit this schedule shows how much time they have for other activities. They will now be able to create their hourly, daily and weekly schedule.

Establishing an hourly schedule for each day allows them to block out times over which they have no choice. Scheduled classes, labs, tutorials, meals, part-time work and sleep won't change.

If your student participates in a lot of extracurricular activities, they may have to prioritize all their commitments. If it looks as if they truly cannot handle everything on their plate, then something should be dropped. They may want to say goodbye to the extracurricular activities they enjoy the least.

Figuring out how to fit in schoolwork can take some practice. Estimating how much time assignments will take can be adjusted throughout the first half of the semester. Breaking the assignment down into manageable tasks helps to fit it into the schedule.

Focusing on the important tasks is critical. Spending too much time on the relatively unimportant parts of an assignment can take time away from what really needs to be done. Learning to prioritize is essential.

How Can You Help?

Most of this will not be new to your child. They most likely had sessions in high school on study habits. However, what might be new is that they are expected to become truly independent learners once they're in college. Teachers will no longer check up on them.

Freshmen college students are now totally responsible for their own learning and using the appropriate study techniques to improve their overall study patterns and educational success.

Often, kids experience difficulty adjusting to post-secondary education because of parental expectations. Try to understand their concerns. Be patient. Do some research, and find out what services are available at their institution. Your son or daughter may only need guidance and support to help them adjust to college expectations.