Sarah Kawaguchi is a senior at McGill University in Montreal, planning to attend med-school this fall. Academically, her undergraduate program has been very intense but she still manages to spend time volunteering and hanging out with friends. How does he get it all done? EduGuide asked her to share her secrets to success. Here's what she said.
"If I were to give a first year student only three pieces of advice regarding staying organized in university, they would be the following: plan ahead, write things down, and optimize the work environment.
Wherever possible, I leave myself more than enough time to prepare for a midterm, write a paper or even complete a simple homework assignment. That way, if an unexpected assignment, test or extracurricular commitment comes up, I avoid having to sacrifice something in order to get everything done, and minimize stress.
Part of planning ahead also involves strategically structuring my time to maximize efficiency. In other words, if I have a philosophy paper due the same day as a biology midterm, I will always write the paper first and study biology second, so that the midterm material is fresh in my mind. (When a paper is finished, it can be set aside and even handed in early, but a midterm has to be taken on the assigned day). However, if a tutorial for the midterm is being offered a week prior and I judge that it will be useful, I try to work on both philosophy and biology simultaneously. Starting a paper a month early may seem strange, but ultimately, planning ahead allows me to be more efficient, less pressed for time, and more flexible in terms of participating in extracurricular activities and spending time with friends.
Secondly, the value of an agenda is not to be underestimated. Not only can I keep tabs on all of the small details that I have to take care of, but I also get a global picture of my assignments, exams, meetings, and other commitments. This allows me to structure my time and again is instrumental in planning ahead. Writing things down has been particularly important to me, perhaps even more so than in high school. After all, one of the biggest changes for most first year students is having final exams worth 60, 70, sometimes even 100% of the final course mark, while the most they were ever worth in high school was 15 or 30. Thus, understanding exactly how much time I will have to study for each final exam allows me to start early and not have to cram everything in at the last minute.
Finally, I have experimented with various working environments in order to determine which conditions are most effective for me. Although it is a bit of a trial and error process, everyone eventually comes to understand what time of day, location, lighting, heating, etc. works for him/her, and understanding this helps to make studying a more effective and even agreeable experience. "