Organizing Undergrad 101?
June 14, 2015 10:51 AM   Subscribe

I need a class on how to be organized before I start my degree this Fall! Sadly, no one actually teaches organizing undergrad 101 so I'm relying on Metafilter for all your best tips and tricks!

I'm going into Chemical Physics which means tons of reading and scrap paper for calculations. I'm a naturally scattered brain person who forgets names and meals, and ends up working 8-3 before remembering I was supposed to take a break. I need to counteract this so I don't write one lovely research project and ignore the rest of my life for ages.

So far the tips I have are;
- Get a portable whiteboard for calculations, rewrite on graph paper.
- Write schedule on arm under sleeve.
- Text self all room numbers for classes the first week.

I have an android phone and tablet and Windows laptop for any tech based ideas. I do poorly with paper agendas and currently use Google Calender. I am currently looking at things like Mendeley for the papers and taking advice on those programs as well.
posted by Liger to Education (13 answers total) 9 users marked this as a favorite
 
I'm currently working on my undergrad degree, and I've found Evernote to be an invaluable resource for keeping up with lecture notes, project ideas and so forth. I love being able to take notes in Evernote on my laptop or tablet and have them accessible anywhere I have an Internet connection. I have individual notebooks devoted to each chapter which includes notes I've taken as I read, along with my own annotations on those notes - such as suggestions for further reading for clarification.
posted by Telpethoron at 10:58 AM on June 14, 2015


That's great that you like Google Calendar. Use it! As soon as you get syllabi for your classes, put all the dates for the semester on there. Notice immediately weeks that you have multiples tests. You need to be studying as you go along, because those weeks will happen. Even in Chemical Physics, you will likely have some papers and projects. Look at those due dates and assign yourself mini-pre deadlines: look up sources by this date, have an outline by this date, write the first draft by this date, visit the writing center with the draft on this day, etc.

Speaking of the writing center, there are resources on campus: use them. Visit your professors' office hours. Come with questions. Use the writing center/tutoring center/peer tutoring/etc. to help you get through the grind of getting work done.

Many successful students give themselves a daily schedule: 2 hours this morning for going over class notes and homework for Class A, then Class A meets, then I eat lunch, where I spend some time reviewing the notes I took there. After lunch, I go to the library and work on the problem set for Class B because the professor's office hours start at 2, so I should be able to know what questions I have by then. After that, go to the gym. Then start on the reading for Class C for tomorrow. Read until 5, then head to work. Home right after work so I can get up the morning and finish the problem set for Class B. Learning to structure your time and treating studying as your job are keys to success in undergrad.
posted by hydropsyche at 11:26 AM on June 14, 2015 [3 favorites]


I do poorly with paper agendas and currently use Google Calender.

and

- Write schedule on arm under sleeve.

Put your schedule in your calendar; set reminders or timers for [x amount of minutes] before you're supposed to be in class/lab.

Set timers or reminders to take breaks and eat!

Also peruse the links google produces for "how to be organized in college".
posted by rtha at 11:28 AM on June 14, 2015 [2 favorites]


Cal Newport is often recommended on AskMe for study habits, how to be an organized student, etc.
posted by needled at 11:46 AM on June 14, 2015 [2 favorites]


One of my most influential professors wrote a really good introduction on how to pace yourself into school: Being Smart Is Not Enough

I would highly recommend it. Some people don't take it seriously, or burn out, or set unrealistic goals, or concentrate on the wrong problems.

I would certainly encourage you to get into a schedule, you will be busy, and need to get things done first, but organization can help you tremendously in the now and for the rest of your life.

The first semester they will throw a great deal at people and see who washes out.
posted by nickggully at 1:02 PM on June 14, 2015 [2 favorites]


Take a pic of your class schedule and room locations and make it your lock screen in your phone until you've memorized where they are. That might work better than texting them to yourself or writing on your arm every day.
posted by MultiFaceted at 1:06 PM on June 14, 2015 [3 favorites]


I found it helpful to note exam dates and due dates of major assignments on my calendar right when the semester started so that I would know if I had multiple exams on one day and stuff like that.

And Mendeley is great-- I highly recommend it.

Exercise regularly. Get enough sleep. Regularly clear out scrap paper that you won't look at again.
posted by gemutlichkeit at 3:03 PM on June 14, 2015


Make your own gradebook for each of your classes in a Google Spreadsheet (or similar), and set up formulas according to the grading criteria described in each classes' syllabus that will predict your final grade. This serves two purposes: 1) you will always know where you stand in each class and exactly what grades you need to earn on future assignments in order to get an A, and 2) you will have your own very neat and tidy record of the grades you have earned, in case there is a dispute or mistake made (happens more often than you think, especially with the bottom of the totem pole TAs who work on intro courses).

This comes down largely to personal style, but for myself and many of my classmates in physics and chemistry courses, the best tool for notetaking and problem solving is a ream of plain white paper, a folder, and maybe some paper clips or binder clips. It's easier to take notes and solve problems in science classes on unlined paper because you'll be doing a lot of drawing that won't fit on lines; it's easier to use loose sheets of paper because you'll sometimes want to spread out many pages of notes in front of you. When it comes time to study for an exam, you can re-shuffle the most important sheets into study guides.
posted by telegraph at 3:15 PM on June 14, 2015


You may want to look into a ScanSnap, to help save and organize your paper notes.

I'm a fan of Zotero for organizing research, and since Zotero for Firefox can screenshot any webpage, you could also have a folder for things like your class schedule. If you scan your notes, Zotero can also help with organizing files.

Setting alarms on your phone might help remind you of appointments or to just take a break.
posted by Little Dawn at 10:26 PM on June 14, 2015


- Write schedule on arm under sleeve.

What? I mean, I guess if you lose your phone sure. But you have an Android phone. Presumably it's tied to a Google account. Set your calendar in there.

But what goes in your calendar? Everything! Specifically:

1. Class time. Duh. Set up recurring events for your classes.
2. Study time. The general rule of thumb is 3 hours for every hour in class. Which means the typical 15 credit hour term will be about 45 hours of work a week. Formulate a set of study blocks to do homework, read textbooks, and memorize key material. Try to schedule your blocks to remain 'on the clock' during the normal workday and your homework can be done by 5pm. These will be more effective if you can recruit 2-3 other people to study with you. Just add them to your existing calendar event and they'll get an invite they can add to theirs.
3. Meal breaks Might as well put them on the calender with popup reminders if you're seriously forgetting lunch breaks. Plus, if you want to build your social network, you should try to eat with different rotating groups.
4. Sleep. My student employees are notorious for Staying Up Too Late, and then Sleeping Through Class. Calendars can't force you to get to sleep, but they can remind you of the plan. 8-9 hours of sleep is a good plan for a healthy, rested mind. On a similar note, set up your phone as an alarm in the morning. They're much more flexible -- you can sleep in on weekends without stressing on sunday night whether you flipped it back on correctly.
5. Due Dates. My strategy in undergraduate was to stress out shortly after bedtime, going through a mental checklist wondering if I was missing an assignment. Don't be me, it sucks. Google calendars have a Tasks section. Use them. To the extent that syllabi have them, put your due dates in your calendar up front.
6. Fun time. Students need to recognize that their time is limited, and need to understand may not be able to go on WoW raids or Minecraft 24/7. Putting it on the calendar gives you motivation to stick to the work schedule, and highlights just how little time you really have.
7. Social events In your copious unstructured time, social events can slot in. It sounds like that might be seminars, but it could be Saturday night parties, etc.

Sadly, no one actually teaches organizing undergrad 101 so I'm relying on Metafilter for all your best tips and tricks!

It seems you're Canadian / EU, and I'm only familiar with US academia. However, you still might find Randy Pausch's lecture on time management, intended for undergraduates. So there is something of a organizing 101. And it's from a guy who ought to know something about time management: he was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer.
posted by pwnguin at 11:47 PM on June 14, 2015 [2 favorites]


Sadly, no one actually teaches organizing undergrad 101...

Actually, a lot of colleges do have 1-credit classes called things like "College Success Skills" and/or workshops put on by the academic advising office. So check if your college does something like this and register for it ASAP.
posted by Jacqueline at 10:31 AM on June 15, 2015


Go to office hours. Ask your teachers how to complete assignments, right when the assignments are due, so that you get off on the right foot. Also, then your teachers know your name, and your face, and when you email them asking for more help later they will go out of their way to give you guidance.

Office hours are like a magic spell that only 5% of undergraduates use. Use it.
posted by a fiendish thingy at 11:03 AM on June 15, 2015


Plan on spending three hours outside class studying/writing for every hour you spend inside class each week. So for a three-hour weekly class, block out nine hours. You might not use all that time each week, but you'll be glad you set the time aside.
posted by culfinglin at 2:46 PM on June 15, 2015


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