Many people consider college to be like high school, but with the difficulty level set three notches higher. Because of that, some people are too intimidated to go to college, thinking about how studying would be even more tedious. In truth, it is. College serves as the transition to professional life. It’s where you acquire everything there is to know about your chosen field before you venture out to make a name for yourself.
As such, you just can’t expect college to be a walk in the park. The training you get from it is necessary, so there’s nothing else you need to do other than work hard and study hard to earn your degree.
Just like everything else in life, there are ways you can get around the difficulties of college. Endless paperwork and lectures may exert their pressure on you, but with the right skills you can make it past the hardest that each semester has to offer.
Here are three of the most essential study skills you will need to get you through college.
- Time management
If you haven’t taken time management seriously yet, then college can be the best place to start practicing. For one, you will have an endless stream of assignments and academic papers to prepare. Add in examinations here and there, and you can easily get lost under the heavy workload. One way to get around this issue is to simply practice good time management.
Make a list of the things you need to do for the week. Once that’s done, rank each task or activity based on their importance. If one project has to involve a great deal of time and effort, you may as well flag it as high priority. For minor tasks, you can complete them right after you’re done with the most important ones. That way, you can focus more on your priorities and avoid spending energy and time needlessly on less important things.
- Research skills
Right after time management, research skills are also crucial since they allow you to complete any academic task without impinging on quality. Sure, you can always use Wikipedia for a 1,500-word reaction paper, but copy-pasting isn’t really a part of learning. Research in itself is an educational process, so you will need to spend time and energy trying to find the information you need for certain tasks.
You will need to hone your research skills through proper indexing and cataloging. It’s also important to use every available means for gathering sources. For one, if you’re doing research on the works of Saint Augustine, you can find great resources online that are relevant to the topic. You will need to make sure you cite your sources carefully and document the date you accessed them.
- Stress management
Seniors are particularly familiar with the fact that college is at its most difficult during the last year. This would explain why most college students choose to drop out at that point. The stress can be daunting, making it fairly easy for just about anyone to call it quits.
Rather than give up, you will need to hold on until the most difficult part of senior year passes. You only need proper stress management for that. If you think you have worked hard enough, you may as well go through an extensive period of rest. That way, you can resume doing your final tasks feeling fresh and rejuvenated.