28 Aug 2013

preparing for university: creating a flexible timetable

This is another part of the 'Preparing for University' series in which I explain how I am timetabling my hours. When term starts, I will be balancing several things: uni work, netball, cooking, grocery shopping and some other more personal things. Because of this, I need to ensure I get a rough idea of how much spare time I will have and how much time I will devote to studying each week.

To do this, I have made a (somewhat ugly!) weekly timetable that I've printed out on A4 paper. In this, I will fill it in with the times I will be at uni, netball and other things that I know I will be doing for certain.


This is how Monday looks so far...


And with the week filled out:


The timetable is designed to be flexible and not a rigid thing that can't be changed. On alternate Saturday mornings, I may have a netball match and this hasn't been filled in but because of how I have arranged the study blocks, I can easily move that block to another day - or even get rid of it if I feel on top of my work.

Also, for the 'college' hours I have down, they aren't necessarily 100% contact times so I may have a block free for some study in the library while on campus. This can replace a study block that was originally intended for another day.

The number of study blocks for each week may be increased or decreased depending on how I get on with this timetable and the course; and that is what makes it 'flexible'.

One other thing is that this timetable can also be used for daily life and you could also use erasable pen or re-positionable sticky notes for it if you wanted.

However, I find this a good way to work out a rough plan of a normal week at uni - this way, I can be more realistic in terms of how many hours will be dedicated to each activity. For me, this isn't a timetable I will chop and change each week; it is a rough guide for estimating where my time will go. I will then review it at the end of the each term so that I will be prepared for the next term :)

I am aware that this system may not work for everyone - as some may prefer a more rigid schedule, but for me, this is enough.

16 comments

  1. I like the way you schedule things. I plan on doing the same tomorrow for university as well. Thanks for the idea. :)

    Leah | litaleah.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! Hope you find this useful :) I find it helps me structure my day better x

      Delete
  2. This is a very good idea. I really need to have a timetable like this otherwise I just laze around when I should be doing work!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Looks like a good plan - I think I need to try something similar. I need to plan more study time for this year, so I do actually do more work in my spare time!
    And your handwriting is just soo cute and neat!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hope you find a way to incorporate more study time next year :) I find having something like this helps me structure my days better.

      And thanks hehe, I always think my handwriting looks like a child's as I don't join up letters! x

      Delete
  4. This is brilliant! I am going to have to adopt something like this for my final terms in uni. I always say I need to plan out my time slots for studying and doing assignments but I never do and then feel overwhelmed when I am doing two assignments at the same times.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This is amazing! I was going to make a schedule and had no idea where to begin and here you are with this!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Looks like a good starting point. Good lluck for the new term.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi! I found your blog through my sister and I love your blog *u*
    I like to plan and write to-do list in my agenda too! I'm so glad I found your blog. Keep writing! And have a good day! ^o^

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Fairuz, thank you for your lovely comment :) Enjoy planning! :) x

      Delete
  8. This is such a good idea! Where did you get the weekly timetable from? Is it from a specific website, or did you just google it?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Carina, I made the timetable myself :) It's just a table made on Pages x

      Delete