How to Create Your Study Plan for 2014

To approach studying in 2014 on the right foot, you need to organize and plan your study from step one. In this post, we share some tips that will help you create an effective study plan. These tips will help you accomplish your study goals by optimizing your study activities while taking account of other areas of your life such as friends, sports and just good old fashioned relaxation.

There are several methods for creating a study plan which can be adapted to suit different study routines. To avoid getting lost in the midst of so much information in the coming weeks and months, you should start to create your study timetable now. Begin by mapping out your study goals which will boost your motivation to study throughout your study schedule.

Methods for an Effective Study Plan

1. Be Realistic: Determine the number of hours you will have to study during the day and throughout the week. Be realistic and seek to balance your study routine with your social life and hobbies but also include time to rest.
2. Understand your Routine: Choose the best time to study for you. Once you decide what works best for you, stick with it.
3. Organize your Time: Divide your study plan up according to the number of topics/subjects you need to have covered before your exams. For example, if you have 8 subjects and you have 2 months before the exam then study 2 subject per day and assign a day of the week for general exercises and rest.
4. Keep it Interesting: Feel free to shake up your weekly plan if you feel it is becoming too boring.

 

 Tips for a Balanced Study Plan

1. Prioritize your Subjects: It isn’t mandatory to assign the same length of time for each topic, you need to prioritize by assessing the subjects you need to dedicate more time to than others. Give the subjects you find difficult extra time.
2. Vary Your Study: You shouldn’t study the same subject for more than 3 hours at a time. After a long time studying the same subject, your levels of concentration will decrease much faster.
3. Be Creative: Switch it up between more theoretical and more exact materials. Include different activities and methodologies so your levels of concentration don’t wane. For example, switch between reading an essay and creating a Mind Map summary or taking a Quiz.

Online Tools to Help You Create Your Study Plan

ExamTime offers a free Calendar tool which allows you to enter all your activities and how much time you have assigned to them. When your plan is complete you can fine tune it by seeing how long you have devoted to each subject.

You can simply enter the time dedicated to classes, reading, studying, exercise and anything else you need to do. This way you can build a study plan with much better balance which will be realistic and achievable.

See the example below:

Do not let your plan overwhelm you, establish goals and work towards them respecting the natural limits that will allow you to study and live a normal life. With this mindset, your efforts will be rewarded with good results whether you’re in school or university!

Need to prepare? Start creating your study plan now.

Happy studying!