Before I share some tips on how to get an A in almost any course in your college/university, I would like to clarify that it's easier than you think and you don't need to work hard at all if you plan things ahead of time. I am taking one of the hardest engineering majors at New Jersey Institute of Technology and I am currently enrolled in a 4-year bachelor's program. Also, I am almost half done with my degree and finally after 2 years of experience I figured out an EASY and PLANNED way to get an A in almost any class. So, without wasting time let me share some tips with all of you guys who find themselves struggling while taking 16 or 18 credits:
[Note: Summer and Winter breaks are when you can work and do full time jobs. It's never a good idea to work while enrolled as a full time student. Plus, get straight A's and hopefully your college or the State would bestow you with scholarship money if you can't afford college]
- It doesn't matter how many credits you are taking; what matters is how you PLAN to handle them. Let's assume you are taking 16 credits a semester (about 5 – 6 classes), all you have to do is study 3-4 hours a day. Let's plan these 3-4 hours for your first day:
Assume that you have 3 one and a half hour classes every day (which is about 4 hour and 30 minutes of class time during a day), you would have to spend about 3-4 hours studying outside class for the material you covered in class that day, which includes revising the material your professor just explained and doing a little bit of homework which is due next week.
Now, let’s say another day you have 2 classes, then you can spend about 2 hours revising the material (the rest of the time is free). The material you just learned in a one and a half hour class should not take you more than an hour to revise after the class, later that day. The key secret is to revise the material you studied every single day rather than leaving it to the last days and then studying your a** off to get a C in the class. Hope you understood that point! Trust me it's not hard because all you have to do is prevent yourself from things that might distract you (you know what those are). Plus, you’d still have enough free time to hang out with friends every single day, to play your favorite sport and to relax. Don't believe me? Check this out:
Class starts at 10 am every day
You spend 4 hours and 30 minutes in class
Spend about 3 hours studying whatever you learn that day
4.5 + 3 = 7.5 hours
You sleep at 11 pm so you can wake up for class at 7 or 8 am (That's 8-9 hours of sleep)
Now, you do the Math and tell me how much free time you would still have everyday? About 4-5 hours.
Plus, some of the days you would only have 2 classes. More free time :)
Try this when your new semester starts and you would see the result at the end.
Weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) are for completing projects and studying for quizzes and tests. Studying for quizzes and tests shouldn’t take long because you already know everything and you are basically revising. (Oh WoW! You already revised your test a couple of times and you still have Sunday left. Party Time!)
It's stupid to say “I can't pay attention in class”. It's really easy with the following steps:
- Just TURN OFF your phone for 3-4 hours a day during lectures.
- Sit in front, this would prevent you from taking to your friends because the professor is looking right at yourself.
- Ask questions if you don't understand something. Some people are shy to ask because they think they might sound stupid in front of the whole class. If you feel the same way, right before asking a question say to yourself that you don't give a sh** about others and simply ask the question. (It works!)
- If you miss some concepts, watch YouTube Videos on the required topic and you should be good to go. (Remember, don’t let YouTube distract you, you’d have plenty of time later to watch babies laughing).
- Make sure when you’re taking notes, you are not just copying of the board without understanding. Don’t let copies notes distract you from not paying attention. Sometimes it is better to just listen to the lecturer and understand instead of trying to quickly copy all the notes. [Some professor, have PowerPoints that students can download later to review the chapters, this is really good because you can fully pay attention is class]
If you are assigned any big projects, just start them the day they were assigned on, and spend like 30 minutes every day on them and you should be done way before the due day.
Planning is really important if you want to follow these tips. Planning means actually writing down what you are going to do that specific day. And, don't let your guests distract you from your plans. Whenever I am home during week days and a guest comes, I simply say Hi, sit with them for about 10 minutes and just go back to my room to finish my planned tasks; because, you would always have enough time to spend with your relatives on weekend parties.
As I mentioned before, working during a 16 credit semester is never a good option. Let me share with you my way of getting some money. I study during a semester, get straight A's, and the college asks me to apply for a couple of scholarships because of my good GPA and I get awarded.
The key to success is planning. For example, a social event is coming up on your campus, and you want to go. PLAN to study before so you can enjoy that event. Don’t be a Nerd! Ace your exams, while enjoying life! Yes, you can do it!