Construct a Well-Balanced Schedule
Just as we have different learning styles, people approach planning and time management differently. Some need every detail planned in advance and recorded on paper or on screen; others operate on a few scattered notes and an occasional list. This page offers some tips and a formal tool for planning your time. Use as much or as little as fits your style.
- Tips for Planning Study Time
- Construct your Schedule, Phase I: Classes and Meetings
- Construct your Schedule, Phase II: Essential Supports
- Construct your Schedule, Phase III: Study Time
- Summary
Tips for Planning Study Time
Study after lecture and before recitation. Studying after a lecture helps to solidify new information, and reviewing before recitation prepares you to address weak areas with the TA. Always makes use of the time between your classes, even if it's only 15 minutes.
Study during daytime hours. Of course, this is not fully possible, between MIT's intense scheduling and New England's long winter nights. But research shows that we learn more during daylight hours. Get as much done as you can between classes and in the early evening. Late evening and into the night you will be more prone to distractions, restless and eager for a break—even if you haven't been particularly productive. Occasionally a difficult assignment might keep you busy past midnight, but this should be the exception to the rule (and an indication than you need to plan better in the future).
Spread your assignments out over several days. Working on the same task for an extended period is draining, especially when you are having difficulties. Plan to work on the assignment steadily (perhaps 2-3 hours every other day) until it is due. This will give you time to work through difficult areas and seek help from the TA or a tutor if you become stuck. It will also give you some much needed variety.
Plan regular breaks. Look at the sample schedule for Phase 2. The white space (free time) is well scattered. Lunch and dinner are two guaranteed breaks of good length; use them to relax and unwind. Strategically add several regular breaks elsewhere in your schedule, just a half hour here and there. Never work through them. You need to give your mind an occasional rest in order to stay alert and productive, plus they will be something to look forward to.
Study on the weekends. It is nearly impossible to do all of your work on weekdays only, so don't try. Spread your work out evenly through the week. Give yourself a lighter load on the weekend, but continue to make progress on assignments and reading.
Construct Your Schedule: A Formal Tool
Even if you're not the type to print each day's to-do list at 6 am, it can be a useful exercise at the beginning of a term to make your plans more concrete by developing a schedule. An easy way to do this is to follow the steps outlined below. See also Building an Autopilot Schedule on Study Hacks, an external site written by an MIT postdoctoral fellow.
Phase 1: Add All Regularly Scheduled Meetings and Classes
This includes all of your academic, extracurricular, and work commitments that meet regularly throughout the term. As these are inflexible, the rest of your time will have to be arranged around these blocks.
Be certain to include fun breaks in your schedule as well, if they meet at a specific time. If your living group has a 10 pm study break that you enjoy, or you have a circle of friends that likes to go out for ice cream together at 7 on Wednesdays, put that on your schedule. These small, brief gatherings will be welcome study breaks for you later on.
Here is a sample schedule for Phase 1.
Phase 2: Add Time for Eating, Sleeping, and Personal Essentials
Make your eating times as consistent as possible, and give yourself at least a half-hour for lunch and dinner. You will have earned the break and eating with friends will be something you can look forward to.
Try to go to bed as close to the same time each night as possible. This helps shape a "sleep habit" that prevents insomnia and keeps you on track with your daytime commitments. On days when you need to get up a bit earlier you should plan to go to bed slightly earlier. Does this mean you have to go to bed at 9 every night? Of course not. If the best time for you to concentrate on your work is in the evening, then by all means work in the evening, but do be sure to get at minimum 6 hours of sleep, preferably 8. Remember, all of your studying is for naught if you are not alert enough to absorb the information. For help with sleep problems, see MIT Medical's Wellness page on sleep.
For your personal essentials, it is not necessary to schedule each item on your list (many only happen occasionally, like doctor's appointments), but remember that getting ready in the morning and traveling do take time. At this stage it might also be wise to add a two-hour block for "errands" on a weekend afternoon, just so you know you always have that time available for laundry, banking, and whatever else might come up.
Here is a sample schedule for Phase 2.
Phase 3: Add Time for Reading, Studying, and Assignments
This step takes some thought, because some ways of organizing your study time are more effective than others. Take a moment to review your notes on the Academic Load Breakdown. How many hours do you plan to spend on each subject? As an example, use the sample academic load below.
Subjects |
Total Units |
Lecture/Recitation Hours |
Laboratory/Field Work Hours |
Studying/Assignment Preparation Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
5.12 |
12 |
5 |
0 |
7 |
18.06 |
12 |
4 |
0 |
8 |
20.109 |
15 |
2 |
8 |
5 |
HASS |
12 |
2 |
2 |
8 |
Undergraduate Seminar |
6 |
2 |
0 |
4 |
TOTAL: |
57 |
15 |
10 |
32 |
Here is the sample schedule in Phase 3, with study times added.
Summary
Look at the final version of the sample schedule. This student is doing a substantial amount of work, 32 hours of studying and assignments combined with 25 hours of classes, labs, and recitations. This schedule adheres to the rules above, so the work is distributed evenly with breaks and free time in the mid-evening. If a 5.12 problem set takes longer than anticipated, this student has an extra hour built in from midnight to 1 am Monday through Thursday. There is flexibility in this schedule to adapt to changes, difficult assignments, and the occasional 8 pm call from mom that might throw things off an hour. This student has time to unwind and relax before bed, gets at least 6 hours of sleep per day or more and has fun on the weekend.
Balance is the key. Can you match this? Start with this blank Weekly Planner, follow the principles outlined above, and you'll be managing your time well.
