Managing Workloads - Keele University

Managing workloads

Managing your workload

Degree level studies pose particular challenges to time management which means even experienced students can struggle. At Keele, you will follow up to 2 principal subjects (1 if you are single honours, 2 if you are dual honours) together with additional elective subjects. For each of these, there will be:

  • need for attendance at lectures and seminars
  • seminar preparation
  • consolidation of your knowledge
  • reading and lots of it!
  • research for seminars and coursework

You will also want to (and should) make time for social activities such as clubs and societies, sports, socialising, etc. In addition, many students have to cope with part-time work and family responsibilities; nobody operates in a vacuum and these factors will affect the time and concentration you have to expend on your studies.

The first thing to do in the search for more efficient time management is to work out how you use your time at the moment. Marshall and Rowland, in their Guide to Learning Independently (3rd ed.) (Buckingham: Open UP, 1998) cite this anonymous viewpoint: 'Time is like money. If you have lots of it to spare, you have more choice about how you spend it. If it is in short supply, knowing where it has gone can help you budget for the future.'

Choosing how to use your time so that you get the most out of your day/week/month and accomplish the things that you want to/have to do, is really what we mean by ‘time management’. The key to not feeling overwhelmed is to know what your goals are and what time is available to you to achieve them. Make sure you are really clear about why you are learning what you are learning and how it relates to the course as a whole and to what you will be assessed on (this is particularly important when balancing the demands of two subjects plus complementary studies modules).

Time management step by step

Step one

Get a piece of paper and think back about how long you spent on each of the following over the last few days:

  • Sleeping
  • Eating
  • Personal/home/family activities
  • Lecture, seminars and other formal class time
  • Private study
  • Travel
  • Part-time job
  • Domestic chores - errands e.g. posting a letter; housework; cooking; food shopping

Step two

Now consider how you could use this time more effectively.

Can you use the odd hours in between classes to read an article?

Could you read an article on the bus?

Step three

Now estimate how long you want to spend on each task.

For example, reducing your lie-in or increasing reading time. Try to do this realistically - you won't keep to the plan if you've timetabled 4 hours sleep per night, no leisure time and five hours per day in the library.

Step four

Now write out a timetable for yourself.

Include in it all your 'in class' time. Then add obligations which can't be avoided - picking the kids up from school, employment, team training, etc. Now consider whether any of this time is flexible enough for you to incorporate study - could you read an article on the bus, for example? Don't forget to schedule mealtimes. Now all the time you have left free on your timetable is theoretically time available for study. It is then up to you how you organise it.

For example:

  • Do you study best in the morning or afternoon?
  • Is it a more efficient use of your time to do all your errands at once?
  • Can you combine more than one thing at once e.g. go to the library and do research for more than one module; go to Sainsbury's on the way back from work etc.

Factor in some "spare" time for anything unexpected that might crop up like feeling ill, dealing with a crisis, mislaying a book, etc. If you don’t end up using this time you can use it to study or to relax as appropriate. Photocopy this weekly plan so these permanent time commitments are already in place on each weekly schedule.

Schedule the odd hours in between classes as study time and go and sit somewhere quiet and review your lecture notes or some other less demanding task.

Schedule blocks of study time for certain activities such as preparing for a tutorial or researching for an essay.

Remember to schedule enough time to actively read articles and cases several times, as it may take a while for passages to make sense. Schedule complex work, such as the first reading of a judgement, when you are most alert. Are you an early bird or a night owl?

If your mind is prone to wandering, keep a notepad next to you and as you have distracting thoughts and ideas about things you should or could do, quickly write them on the pad instead of worrying that you will forget them. When you've finished studying, look at the notepad and do what you have to do (a similar thing works if your thoughts are keeping you awake at night).

Buying a wallchart (or picking up a free one at the Student Union) is also a really good idea as it will give you a medium-term overview of your commitments.