When you start university or college, the amount of material and the deadlines are nothing like secondary school. It is easy to feel lost, not know where to start and struggle to set priorities. The answer: plan your studies precisely. Here is a simple 5-step method, with a complete study schedule example.
Why make a study schedule?
A study schedule tells you every day what to do, for which course and for how long. It replaces the anxiety of “I have to study everything” with a series of small, doable tasks.
It also shows you early on whether the time available is enough. Better to find out in March than on the eve of the exams.
After the 5 steps, you will have two tools:
- for each course, a summary sheet: the approach, the tasks to do and the total time to spend on it;
- a schedule listing the exact tasks to do, day after day.
Step 1: gather information on each course
You can start at the beginning of the academic year. The aim is to collect as much information as possible on each course, while checking its quality and relevance.
Some examples of useful materials and information:
- the course notes and the lecturer’s slides;
- summaries and reference books;
- practical exercises, lab sessions and their answers;
- the exam format (written or oral, open book or not, duration);
- the type of questions (open, multiple choice, exercises);
- past exam questions and their answers.
Past exams are precious: they show what the lecturer really expects. Do check that the course has not changed in the meantime, though.
Step 2: list the tasks and estimate the time needed
It is best to have attended a few lectures or skimmed the course notes before this step. Each course is studied in its own way, depending on the subject, the materials, the type of exam and the way you learn.
For each course, list the tasks and estimate how many days each one will take you. Example for a first-year bachelor’s physics course:
- read the course notes: 4 days;
- read the course notes a second time: 2 days;
- write a summary: 2 days;
- study the summary: 2 days;
- redo all the practical exercises at least once: 5 days;
- make a formula sheet: 1 day.
Depending on the course, other tasks are added: studying your formula sheet, making a vocabulary list, building a timeline of key dates, redoing past exams under real conditions.
Your estimates will be imperfect at first. That is fine: after one exam period, you will know better how long each type of task takes you.
Step 3: make a summary sheet for each course
Now bring everything you have collected together on one sheet per course. A simple page or table is enough, with:
- the course name and exam date;
- the exam format and type of questions;
- the materials you have chosen;
- the approach you have chosen (for example: “material to understand, exercises first”);
- the list of tasks and their duration;
- the total number of days needed.
In our example, the physics course needs 16 days of work. Add up the totals for all your courses: you now know how much time you need for the whole exam period.
Step 4: build your study schedule
Time for the diary. This is where you decide when you will work on which course.
- Use a diary that covers the whole period until the end of your exams. One page per month leaves room to write.
- Note all your lectures, practical sessions, project slots and sports or cultural activities.
- Mark all the free slots for studying.
- Count the days available and compare that total with the number of days needed from step 3.
If time runs short, even after a few adjustments, you need to set priorities. Before deciding not to sit an exam, talk to your institution’s student support service: this decision affects your credits and the rest of your studies.
Finally, keep one or two free days a week in reserve. A schedule that is too tight breaks at the first setback.
Step 5: refine the schedule week by week
The golden rule: set yourself small deadlines. For each study session, write down exactly what you have to do.
“Summarise chapter 3 of physics” is a clear goal, easy to start, and therefore motivating. “Study physics” is not.
At the end of each week, compare what was planned with what was done, then adjust the following week. The schedule is a guide, not a contract: it changes with you.
Study schedule example
Let us go back to our first-year student. In April, between lectures and practical sessions, he has 10 days for studying. He spends 5 of them on physics, so he still has 11 days of physics to fit into May and the study leave before exams.
His first two weeks of April could look like this:
- Monday: physics, read chapters 1 and 2;
- Tuesday: chemistry, exercises from session 4;
- Wednesday: physics, read chapter 3;
- Thursday: lectures and lab, no studying planned;
- Friday: physics, summary of chapters 1 and 2;
- Saturday: reserve day to catch up;
- Sunday: rest.
Same logic the following week, with the other courses. The key point: every slot holds a precise task, and every task comes from the course’s summary sheet.
What about secondary school?
The method also works for secondary school pupils, on a smaller scale. Exams cover less material, but the principle stays the same: list the tasks, estimate how long they take and spread them over time.
Planning early is also good preparation for higher education, which in French-speaking Belgium runs on three exam sessions: January, June, then a resit session from mid-August to mid-September.
To learn more about how to study once your schedule is in place, read our 5 tips to study and pass your exams.
Need help getting organised?
Building your first study schedule is not easy. A coach can help you set it up and stick to it, with our private lessons in study skills.
My Sherpa also offers private lessons for higher education in every subject, at home anywhere in Belgium or online. An educational advisor listens to you and chooses the right coach for your situation.
