In my opinion, my bullet journal is what helped get me through college in one piece. If you want, you can read about my whole bullet journal journey here. Honestly though, if I had not started bullet journaling during my freshman year, I do not know how I would have made it this far. They have helped me stay organized, on top of my myriad of assignments each semester and provided a place to keep track of all my odds and ends which undoubtably come up as a college student.
Therefore, I am here, not only as moral support to all of my fellow college students, but to help and guide you to becoming the best, most put-together student possible! Through the use of your bullet journal, you can stay on top of this week’s tasks while simultaneously organizing and preparing yourself for all of your future tasks so that you do not get bogged down!
9 Bullet Journal Ideas to Incorporate as a College Student
1. Year/Semester at a Glance (Future Log)
This one has been a saving grace on multiple occasions. As I mentioned in my first post, I use a future log at the start of every bullet journal I have had because it gives me a place to jot down events/assignments that I learn about months before they occur or are due. Throughout the schoolyear, I constantly reference this spread to check on dates or add upcoming events. Since I usually create my monthly spreads for the next month in the middle of the current month, I will write everything down in my future log and then migrate those dates to my monthly once it is designed.
2. Grade Tracker
While some professors enjoy using the technology provided to them, this is not always the case. Therefore, in order to quickly and easily track your progress in your courses, I recommend keeping a grade tracker. Take the assignments laid out in the syllabus (as well as their weight on your overall grade) and then make a chart so that when you receive your grades for those assignments during the semester, you can plug the numbers in right away. (Plus, this will help at the end of the semester when determining how much you need to get on that final exam in order to get an A in the class!)
3. 4-Year Plan
No matter whether you are a freshman or an upperclassman, adding a 4-year plan into your bullet journal can really help with planning for your future and ease the stress that comes along with scheduling classes each semester. I know my 4-year plan changed many times throughout my 4 years, but that merely gave me the chance to update my plan to fit my aspirations. Plotting out your classes for the coming years can really help you determine what you want to do with your degree or even if this is the right path for you.
4. Semester Schedule
I am a VERY visual person, so at the start of each semester, I write out my schedule so I can see it plain and simple. Along with my classes, I lay out times I will be working (if they remain consistent throughout the semester) as well as my club meeting times. Then, whenever an event comes up during the week, I can easily glance at my schedule to determine if I will be free during that time period.
5. Budget/Spending Log/Payment Tracker
For many students, money is something that can weigh heavily on your mind. Keeping track of how much you make, when to pay your bills and where you are spending your extra money is very important in general, but especially for students. Creating a spread (or two) to keep track of it all can help immensely.
6. Study Time Tracker
With all of the assignments, exams and reading that professors can assign, it can be difficult to manage it all and ensure you are dedicating enough time to each individual class. Therefore, creating a study time tracker can help to focus you on what you have already worked on and shed light onto the assignments or courses that still need attention. A tip for this idea is to make sure you make use of color coding. That will help you to see what courses you have spent a lot of time on and what ones you have not – especially if you work on multiple courses in one day.
7. Sleep Tracker
Although this does not exactly relate to being a college student, it is still incredibly important to ensure you are keeping up with your health. As we all know, it is recommended that we get around 8 hours of sleep each night, however, I do not believe that most college students know how to do that. Therefore, keeping a log of your asleep/awake hours can help you to determine if your current lifestyle is a healthy one of if there are things that you need to change. Sometimes keeping a log like this can be a real eye-opener!
8. To-do List
While I will typically incorporate a to-do section into my weekly spreads, another idea is to dedicate a whole page to keeping a to-do list. I am really into post-it notes, so I have always liked the idea of designing a “to-do list” page where you could outline where to stick your post-it notes and then you could easily change them each day/week/etc. while always knowing where in your bullet journal to reference them as needed.
9. Morning/Night/Daily Routine
Finally, I have found that the best way to have a productive day/week is to know when each of the essential tasks are getting done and then being able to plan my life around that. Therefore, I am a big fan of setting up a routine, whether that be specifically for the morning/night or just an overall daily routine. I enjoy getting out of bed each morning knowing that I will brush my teeth, make my bed, get dressed, eat breakfast and then be able to start my day! This is your opportunity to determine what your perfect morning/night/day looks like in order to spark your productivity!
I hope you are able to take these ideas and make them yours in order to foster the most productive you possible. And I hope you are able to find as much relief in your bullet journal as I was able to find it mine. And if you ever lose motivation, know that you can always count on your support system to be there to get you back on track!
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