If you are looking into studying a course online in the near future, one of the things you may wonder is how you are going to balance study with the rest of your adult life. Trying to find the time for study as well as work, social time and family time can be a little difficult, but by making time during the week for study you will be able to earn a great qualification and further your career. Here is how you can study online successfully this year.
Get to know online study
If you have chosen an online program rather than a classroom because you think it will be easier, you are in for a big surprise. Online study is not an easier route than an in person course, it is simply a more convenient way to to study the same course. When studying online you will likely be given a login and details to use to enter a dashboard. The dashboard will contain resources, your work and everything else you will need to complete the course. The whole idea is to complete the course as quickly as you can. If you enjoy learning independently then this is the ideal way to study for you.,
You’ll need connection
Make sure that above everything else you have reliable internet connection at home where you will be studying. It might seem like an obvious statement, but a surprising number of people I’ll encounter issues from not checking their internet connection before starting a course. A great way to make sure you have several ways to access your work is to complete it on Google Drive. This will allow you to access it from any device with your login details and this means you can work on the go if you need to.
Create a study space
If you are going to be studying exclusively at home and nowhere else, you will need to designate a part of the house which will be your study place. Although the idea of sitting in front of the TV with your family and studying is great, in reality you will get too easily distracted and this will affect your ability to retain information. You are better off finding a quiet part of the house and dedicating a small amount of time to your study each evening. This way you will learn consistently and you’ll be able to retain the information much more easily.
Identify your goals
When you start an online course it will be different to when you are a student at school. You will not have a teacher telling you what to learn every day and when you need to do your homework, it is your responsibility entirely to ensure that go get everything right. This means that you absolutely must give yourself attainable study goals and force yourself to complete them every week. This can include reading a certain chapter, completing some tests for revision or even completing an assignment. Whichever you decide to choose, you will at least have some way of honing in your study for a purpose.
Make a study plan
The most important thing you have to do when you are studying at home rather than in a classroom is to make sure that you set a clear time each week to study. Making time in your hectic schedule for studying might be difficult at first but you need to do this and stick to it if you are going to succeed with your course. Think about spending an hour or two every work evening on study, and maybe even think of spending some time during your lunch break if you need to brush up on some knowledge. Leave the weekends free because this is your time to rest and refresh for the week ahead.
Make a calendar
A lot of the time when you have an online course you will have different deadlines for certain projects. One of the easiest things you can do to ensure that you stick to the plan and know when everything is due is to make a calendar. You can either create this online or you can physically draw it on paper and hang it somewhere that you will always be able to see it. This will allow you to always ensure that you know where you are at and how much time you have left.
Make to-do lists
Once you have made a general plan and a calendar for your work, you can start creating a to-do list for each night of the week when you plan to study. A to-do list will make it easier for you because it means that you will have a specific task in your mind every time you sit down at your desk, therefore not only will you get more done, but the time will feel as if it is going quicker.
Stick to your plan
You know when you started going to the gym last month and you stayed really consistent for a week and then started to forget to go? Well, you can’t do that with studying. Once you have made a plan and a schedule for your study you need to make sure that you stick to it.
Ask for help
Just because you are an adult doesn’t mean you can’t ask someone for help when you are stuck on a tough question or subject. If you are ever having issues with your work you can ask the tutors online and have a chat one on one with them. This will allow you to spell out the issues you are having and be able to have someone explain it thoroughly to you in a way that you understand. There is no shame in asking, it will help you in the long term.
Revise, revise, revise
When you are studying you have to make sure that you revise every single opportunity you get. We all know that revising isn’t the best activity in the world, but it is something which you need to do to make sure that you are able to retain the information you need for the future. Every time you finish a chapter or a section of your study, write yourself some study notes, revise it and then test yourself to make sure that you have understood all of the information put in front of you.