USA Funds Life Skills Offers Time-Management Help for Your Students

Today’s college students have more on their plates than ever before. Many of them hold full- or part-time jobs, have families or are involved in on-campus activities. Couple those responsibilities with classwork, and students easily can become overwhelmed, especially if they don’t have good time-management skills.

USA Funds^® Life Skills^® Module 3, “Work Hard but Smart – How to Be Successful in School and Graduate on Time,” has many suggestions to help your students learn to manage their time effectively, both on a day-to-day basis and in plotting the course of their college careers.

The following are suggestions to help them make the most of their time while they are in school:

1. Develop a plan to finish school on time.
   • Make a program-planning checklist to be sure that you know what you need to do to finish your course work in your desired time frame.
   • Choose a major, or at least begin thinking about the type of major you want. For example, do you want to major in education, business, liberal arts or science? Choosing an area of study can help you to focus electives in that “school” to help maximize your education investment.
   • Meet with your adviser to help determine class schedules, sequencing of courses, and support to help you meet your goals.
   • Avoid the temptation to over-schedule or commit yourself to too many activities.
2. Identify strategies for making satisfactory academic progress.
   • Go to class, be on time, and don’t leave early.
   • Practice effective study habits: Do your reading, take notes, ask questions in class, participate in class, schedule time to study each day, and use your library.
   • Get to know your instructors, or at least make them aware of your presence.
   • Set your schedule to take advantage of your best times for studying and attending classes.
   • Prepare for exams by setting strategies for success: Study for a test a little at a time instead of cramming, check with instructors for past sample tests, study the book and the notes, and attend study sessions if possible.
3. Develop coping strategies for the demands of student life.
   • Make a time budget to see how you use your time and where improvements can be made.
   • Make a study budget to help allot your study hours to your advantage. To create this budget, determine how many hours a week you will need to study for each of your classes, and then break out your time for each day.
   • Manage the “crazy-makers,” or those things that can distract you and throw you off track for effective studying. One example could be a constantly ringing phone in your room that distracts your study time.
   • Create a list of key contacts on campus so that you have this information at your fingertips.
   • Make an effort to be friendly and make new connections.

USA Funds Life Skills Module 3 includes a student skills book and a trainer’s manual to assist those delivering the program. Materials are available for ordering online through the USA Funds Web site.

For more information, contact your USA Funds debt-management consultant.