Whether you’re a first year freshman or a fifth year super senior, it can be intimidating to start a new school year. Between the new classes, busy social calendars, and various professional responsibilities, it can be a lot to handle. To combat this, we walk you through five easy ways to get organized in college and tackle all the things a new school year brings!
Method 1: Planner
Our first way to get organized in college is the tried and true planner. Amazon and Target both have tons of beautiful planners for around $10. Blue Sky and Five Star are two of the best brands for academic planners, as they are meant for students. Additionally, they make it easy for you to keep your schoolwork organized in one place! Most come with a weekly, daily, and monthly view, and they have various sizes for you as well.
Planners are probably the most traditional option, and many students have used them for high school. In my own experience, I found that planners were not necessarily the best option for me in college. They worked very well for to-do lists and classes with a lot of busy work. However, many college classes are composed of larger assignments, thus reducing the need for a planner in some senses. This was just personal–I know many people who they still work well for.
Planners might be a good option for you if you:
- Want something you can throw into your backpack
- Enjoy keeping everything organized in real time (i.e., as a professor announces assignments)
- Want to have both monthly and weekly views of your schedule
- Appreciate having something designed for academics
Method 2: Wall Calendar
Originally, I preferred using a planner. However, during my sophomore year of college, I bought a wall calendar, and I realized how much easier it was for me to stay organized and know what was happening when. I appreciated the fact that I was able to write my notes on it, have more space to do so, and see everything at once. Because most of my classes only had large assignments, it was more appropriate for me.
Wall calendars are great for the following purposes:
- Big assignment due dates
- Appointments
- Office hours
- School deadlines
- Months at a glance
- A holistic approach to your schedule
- Organizing through highlighting
- Tracking major projects, goals, and to-do’s
Method 3: Sticky Notes
This is probably my favorite method to get organized in college. When I was entering my finals week of my freshman year of college, I wanted to make sure I had absolutely everything planned out by the day for the next few weeks. On top of that, I was losing motivation quickly and needed some incentive to feel productive. Enter the sticky note method! I started to write down everything I had to do either for a class or for the day on a sticky note. Then, I’d place it on my desk (where I could easily see it as I worked) and cross things off as I did them. Once everything was done, the sticky note went in the recycling. This is still one of my most preferred methods, as it’s quick and more tactile, plus you get a clear visual of your accomplishments of the day.
If you’re like me and really enjoy this method, you can even set out sticky notes for days of the week, then move them down the line as you accomplish things. It helps you to see what you need to do immediately and what’s coming up, and you can add things as soon as you find out about them!
The sticky note method is great for:
- Writing things as they come
- Tactile and visual people
- People who don’t want to commit to a planner
- Saving space
- Daily to-do lists
Method 4: Google Calendar and Phone Reminders
For the people who want everything accessible at all times, these are excellent options to get organized in college. While I’m definitely someone who prefers writing my plans down, I can’t deny that Google Calendars is a fantastic option for work. It allows you to color code everything, see what’s coming up, invite others to meetings, and have everything in one place. Especially if you work on your phone or your laptop all day long, this is a handy tab to have.
In my experience, this is especially useful when you’re looking at your daily and weekly schedules. It isn’t as good for to do lists and tasks–that’s what you should use phone reminder or Sticky Notes (the app, not the physical ones) for. With this, however, you don’t have to risk leaving your sticky note/planner/calendar/bulletin board at home!
Virtual calendars are great for:
- Always having it with you
- Organizing virtual classes or meetings
- Color coding and differentiating between calendars
- Receiving reminders on your phone
Method 5: Bulletin Board
The bulletin board method is similar to the sticky note method, and it’s even better if you’re someone who values aesthetic appearances. Here, all you do is buy a bulletin board (I bought mine at Target for $7) and some cute push pins (I loved these cute butterfly ones from Amazon). If you want to go the extra mile, you can even get fancy stationary or slips that will complement the board. When I do this, I like to just cut colorful slips of paper up and use them.
Then, just like you do with the sticky note method, you pin up each task and take it down when you’ve completed it. There’s something very fulfilling and satisfying about watching the board slowly get less and less cluttered, and physically removing the tasks only enhances that. I like to do this daily, that way everything is in one place and I can feel accomplished by the end of my workday. If you’re really into organizing like I am, you can get two bulletin boards (I did the same one and set them up for symmetry) and use one for work or school-related things and the other for personal things. This is an excellent way to keep your work/school life and home life separate, and it helps to prevent you from feeling so overwhelmed.
The bulletin board method might be great for you if you:
- Are a more kinesthetic person
- Need visual reminders of what you need to do
- Work from home
- Enjoy creating a solid aesthetic
A Final Word on How to Get Organized in College
These methods are just the tip of the organizing iceberg, and if you really want to get organized, you’ll probably end up doing multiple methods. For example, I like to have my wall calendar for my big events and deadlines. Then, I used sticky notes for my daily tasks. For work, I use a shared Google calendar to organize meetings and see what my work duties will entail. I then transfer big events to my sticky notes and wall calendar. For personal and school-related things, my bulletin boards work great, since they are right above my home workspace.
At the end of the day, it’s all about finding the combination that works for you. If you can get away with just using a planner, fantastic! If you need to use all five methods to feel a sense of security, that’s just as great.
Which methods do you prefer? Let me know in the comments!
