Time Management Tips for Students Working on their Online Degree

If you are someone who works full-time while simultaneously pursuing a online degree, you undoubtedly have little free time for much else. When you are not at work, you are either working on an assignment, reading your textbook, or otherwise doing something related to your degree program.

Unfortunately, when you burn the candle at both ends for a prolonged period, it can do significant damage to your health by dramatically increasing your body’s production of stress hormones. Stress can cause you to develop a variety of health problems including anxiety, depression, eating disorders, and insomnia.

However, there is good news. By carefully managing your time it is possible to create some much-needed downtime in your schedule so you can rest and recuperate to reduce mental stress and recharge your batteries.

The following are five highly effective time management strategies for students juggling work and pursuing an online degree

Take Care of the Most Important Things First

Create a “to do” list of things you need to take care of each day. After your list is finished, read through it and identify the most important thing on the list, then find the second most important thing, the third, and so forth. By prioritizing the tasks you need to accomplish, you may find that some of the items on your list can wait. This is especially true if you have had a particularly stressful day and you truly need a break. Vacuuming the living room floor can wait till tomorrow. Check out our article about managing stress as a student.

Delegate Some Things to Others

If there is someone in your life who can help you with some housework, mowing the lawn, or other tasks to help free up some of your time, then by all means do not be afraid to ask for some help. This will allow you to gain some valuable free time you can use for homework, studying, and of course, relaxing.

Sometimes You Have to Say “No.”

To create some extra time to recuperate from work and study, it is sometimes necessary to say “no” to some requests of your time, especially when they involve non-essential or trivial things. Just explain to the person making the request that since you are simultaneously working and pursuing a college degree, that you do not currently have much spare time. If that person is a true friend, then he or she will surely understand.

Be Mindful of the Time You Spend on Social Media and Watching TV

While keeping up with your friends on social media and watching television are enjoyable, they can also take up a lot of your time. They may also cause some to postpone taking care of some important tasks until they become last-minute emergencies. Social media and television aren’t bad things, necessarily, and can be used to rest and relax. However, for some they are too much of a distraction and can cause disruptions to an otherwise productive schedule. If you enjoy social media and watching television, save them as a reward for when you’ve accomplished everything on your daily “to do” list.

Don’t Be a Perfectionist

Striving for perfection in whatever you are doing is certainly a noble goal, but it can also cause you to take more time than necessary to complete certain tasks. If you can identify some things on your “to do” list where “good enough” will suffice, don’t spend any more time on those items than required. Complete the task to a passable level and then move on to other things, like resting and relaxing.