By Carlos Ferrand
cferrand@student.alamo.edu
There is no easy way to be successful in college, but good time management is at the core of success, student development Professor Suzanna Borawski said.
Borawski finds that many students do not devote enough time to their studies.
The shift to being an independent learner presents a challenge for most students, she said. Students only spend a few hours a week in each class and professors expect a bulk of the course work to be done on their own time.
“You have to give yourself the time to do quality work and turn in work that you’re proud of,” she said.
Writing everything down can have the largest impact on a student’s time management skills.
Students need to keep a written schedule, Borawski said. “You have got to write it down. You can’t just have those things floating around your head.”
A new environment offers benefits, too.
“It is easier to break a habit if you’re in a new environment,” she said. “Back in high school if you had the habit of procrastinating, now is a prime opportunity to change that habit.”
She said students should set-up an award system to treat themselves once they accomplish goals.
If a student does everything on a to-do list, they should reward themselves.
Time management is an important ingredient to success.
“If students get a handle on time management and getting their work done they’re going to succeed no doubt about it,” Borawski said.