Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

If you’re feeling stressed about your college work, you’re not alone.

In fact, did you know 1 out of 5 students say they feel stressed most of the time? With such a huge number of students struggling, what’s the underlying issue?

Many students feel overwhelmed trying to balance work, family, classes, and an ever-growing pile of homework.

If it’s become too much for you or if you’re trying to get a good start, you’ve come to the right place. Read on for some of the best strategies you can use to prevent you from falling behind in school!

Get Organized

Out of all the studying tips for college, the first one is this—get organized!

Start off with a calendar, diary, or schedule. Having everything noted down in an organized manner will give your brain space for more important things. Whether you physically write it down with a pen or use an app, keep on top of it.

Start this at the beginning of the semester and add to it every time you get a new assignment. For example add due dates, projects, exams, quizzes, and assignments. And regularly review your progress to see what you’ve accomplished, and how you can improve.

On top of an organized schedule, make sure you’re on top of all your papers. If it’s physical papers and notes, have designated folders. If you do most of your work on a device, make sure to organize a digital system too. And always have it backed up somewhere!

Be Like Rihanna

Be like Rihanna and “work, work, work, work, work!”

Try to work every day to avoid things piling up. Of course, some days you can work harder than others. But even on the weekends try to check some things off your list.

Doing something every day will keep you in the rhythm and avoid you from getting into a slump. While a schedule isn’t “written in stone” you should follow it as closely as you can.

However, make sure you also get enough rest. Because the average college student only gets 6.0 to 6.9 hours of sleep per night. And that’s not enough!

Break It Down

If you’re following your schedule, another one of the best tips for studying is to break it down. Break subjects and assignments down into manageable chunks for easy digestion.

The tactic of breaking down assignments into smaller milestones can make the work feel less intimidating. Give yourself mini-deadlines and take care of each chunk bit by bit. You’ll feel like you’re doing less, but you’ll actually be achieving more.

You can do the same thing when you’re revising for an exam. Figure out what you need to review, then break up the material into chunks.

Playing Catch Up

If you find yourself falling behind, it’s time to do an honest evaluation and assess the damage. You can do this by creating a list!

Go through all of your classes and assignments, and create a “catch-up list” to see where you’re falling behind. For each assignment, write down exactly WHAT you need to do and WHEN you need to do it. But don’t go over the top, assign yourself only one subject each day.

When you start checking things off your list, you’ll start to feel as though you’re getting somewhere.

Up Your Game

Even if you have a killer schedule, nothing’s going to work if you have poor study skills. Up your game and try to improve the basics.

For example, how long do you take to complete an assignment? If you’re taking hours and hours, yet other students are completing it within an hour, something’s up. Good study skills include being thorough, but that doesn’t mean you have to intensely explore every word in the material.

When reading, try skimming, scanning, visualizing, and focusing on the main ideas to draw out the point. When writing, use brainstorming, revising, editing, and outlining techniques. And when dealing with math, practicing problems is usually more beneficial than reading the theory over and over again.

Good study skills like these can reduce homework time dramatically!

On top of good study skills, make sure your environment is suitable for studying. It needs to be a quiet setting that is free from distraction. Yes, you may even need to turn off your devices!

Ask for Help

If you’re struggling to keep up, you’re probably not the only one. Chat to other students in your class, they may be able to give you some support. And once you realize the class is hard for everyone, you won’t feel so alone.

Your comrades in arms are great to talk to, but the best person you can talk to for studying tips is your teacher. After you’ve figured out what went wrong down the line, explain it all to your teacher.

Your teacher can give you the best studying tips to get back on track. They may also be able to connect you to helpful resources, such as counseling, tutors, and check-ins. Whatever plan your teacher helps you to come up with, commit to it.

But if you’re experiencing emotions you can’t deal with, make an appointment with a mental health counselor. Your college will have someone on hand who can help you to deal with these intense feelings

Knuckle Down

Of course, one of the best studying tips is to work hard. College was never going to be a walk in the park. To get results, you need to knuckle down.

If you’re behind, you may need to do some extra work to catch up. Whether it’s getting a tutor, arriving to class before everyone else, or staying later, it’s worth the extra work. And even if you’re on schedule, keep working hard to stay on top of everything.

Whatever it takes, try to get back on track. Everything worth having is worth the effort, right?

Falling Behind In School? Time to Take Action!

Yes, if you’re falling behind in school, remember these essential tips. A good schedule, support from others, and solid hard work will help you to win at college.

But if you’re not enrolled in a program yet and have other questions and concerns about w

Yes, if you’re falling behind in school, remember these essential tips. A good schedule, support from others, and solid hard work will help you to win at college.

But if you’re not enrolled in a program yet and have other questions and concerns about what’s required, contact us. We at Intercoast Colleges can give you all the information you need to make your time at college successful.