Typical undergrad sched?

[k12123]

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What would be a good schedule when i start college in the fall? For example:

9-1:30pm Classes
1:30-7pm Study/HW
8-10pm Break
10-11:30 Study for lecture for the next day?

Would this be an effective study plan? What about your guys, how would you describe your daily schedule? Thanks.

 

[Local]

Woah man, that would be very effective, just not realistic though.
First, your class time is going to be random, ranging form 8am to 9pm(typically science classes are in the morning and labs are 1-4).
The main concern here is that 8hours to study per day, isn't going to happen. There are going to be so many things going on that you're going to want to do. Whether it be clubs, events, or even just hanging out with your friends.
Studying is important, but balancing that with a social life is just as important. College is where you'll make your best friends, find out what you enjoy, and grow as a person. Don't try to miss out on life's best experiences because you're studying all day. You could easily achieve a 4.0 with 2-3 hours per day, and that's more then most people will do.

 

[k12123]

Woah man, that would be very effective, just not realistic though.
First, your class time is going to be random, ranging form 8am to 9pm(typically science classes are in the morning and labs are 1-4).
The main concern here is that 8hours to study per day, isn't going to happen. There are going to be so many things going on that you're going to want to do. Whether it be clubs, events, or even just hanging out with your friends.
Studying is important, but balancing that with a social life is just as important. College is where you'll make your best friends, find out what you enjoy, and grow as a person. Don't try to miss out on life's best experiences because you're studying all day. You could easily achieve a 4.0 with 2-3 hours per day, and that's more then most people will do.

Really? I was just anticipating a rigorous study schedule since there are so many ppl over at the allopathic thread who are struggling w/ their classes. In addition, I was somewhat neglectful in high school. I'm not failing anything, it's just that I don't want to make the same mistake again, well because I can't afford that if I want to go to MD.

 

[k12123]

Woah man, that would be very effective, just not realistic though.
First, your class time is going to be random, ranging form 8am to 9pm(typically science classes are in the morning and labs are 1-4).
The main concern here is that 8hours to study per day, isn't going to happen. There are going to be so many things going on that you're going to want to do. Whether it be clubs, events, or even just hanging out with your friends.
Studying is important, but balancing that with a social life is just as important. College is where you'll make your best friends, find out what you enjoy, and grow as a person. Don't try to miss out on life's best experiences because you're studying all day. You could easily achieve a 4.0 with 2-3 hours per day, and that's more then most people will do.

Really? Because I see so many ppl at the allopathic threads who r struggling w/ their classes. I was just anticipating for long study hours because I was neglectful in high school. I'm not failing or anything, it's just that I procrastinate all the tine even in my AP classes. It's just that I cannot make the same mistake again if I ever want to make it to MD.

 

[swaffles]

Local is right. That is an EXTREMELY efficient schedule but also impractical. I think you should budget it more according to how much time you want to spend on a certain task each day rather than give each task official times.

I personally took six classes a semester and my first semester was just too much work. Of the six classes I took my first semester, three of them required labs as well, which were three hours each. You might have to be ready for that sort of situation. So, for example, you might want to say 'I want to study for two hours a day' and try to fit that in whenever you have time. And spent the rest of the day on extracurriculars or hanging out with friends.

Most people who do really well in their undergrad don't really study ALL the time. Instead, they just usually have better time management skills than most. Most college students procrastinate and then study their butts off right before a test. People who time manage well study just a couple hours each day so that they don't have to cram so much at the end AND are able to recall everything after the test (something crammers suck at). They say that you forget 50% of what you learned by the next day and 80-90% by the end of the week - that is, if you don't review every day. So just do that. Take a few hours to review and spend the rest of the time enjoyably =)

 

[em3761]

9-1:30pm Classes
1:30-7pm Study/HW
8-10pm Break
10-11:30 Study for lecture for the next day?

Obviously the amount of studying you need to do is going to vary depending on how hard your classes are, but for the vast majority of college students this much studying isn't necessary. Even if you do all the extra stuff...additional practice problems, start studying for tests way early, etc., I really doubt you'll need to do more than 4-5 hours a day (and that's if your classes are hard).

I spend about 4 hours a day on homework/studying/school stuff (maybe more if there's a test coming up) and got a 4.0 my first semester (I'm in my second semester now). I have friends who study about half as much as I do and get similar results. Bottom line, it's how efficiently you study, not the amount of time you spend. Also, seriously, do fun stuff too...working all the time will just make you miserable.

 

[k12123]

Obviously the amount of studying you need to do is going to vary depending on how hard your classes are, but for the vast majority of college students this much studying isn't necessary. Even if you do all the extra stuff...additional practice problems, start studying for tests way early, etc., I really doubt you'll need to do more than 4-5 hours a day (and that's if your classes are hard).

I spend about 4 hours a day on homework/studying/school stuff (maybe more if there's a test coming up) and got a 4.0 my first semester (I'm in my second semester now). I have friends who study about half as much as I do and get similar results. Bottom line, it's how efficiently you study, not the amount of time you spend. Also, seriously, do fun stuff too...working all the time will just make you miserable.

Oh wow, that's amazing. Might i ask how you study? In other words, how do you focus? Because so many things in high school distracted me, which is why in the fall, i'm thinking of spending a lot more time in libraries that my house because when i'm at home, i get so distracted. Thanks.

 

[em3761]

It's not as hard as you'd think (though I won't lie, there are days when I really just don't want to work at all...) For one thing, in college you're only in class maybe 3-4 hours a day (more if you have lab, but typically that's just 1 or 2 days a week). So you have a lot more time to study. Realistically, if you're efficient about doing your work you can get it all done in the afternoon/evening and still have several hours to do whatever you want.

Here are a few things that I've found helpful
-Find a good place to study. Like you said, the library is always good. Find a couple of other places (empty classrooms, cafes) to go to just for variety.
-Start problem sets the day they're assigned. Seriously. You'll be glad you did.
-Write down all test dates/due dates somewhere (calendar, planner, whatever) so you know in advance if you have a bunch of stuff due the same day. Then, start planning/studying early so you don't need to freak out the night before.
-Never study for more than 90 mins. without a break. (I think this might vary from person to person, but as far as I'm concerned I just can't focus longer than that).
-Try to do your homework somewhere without internet. Otherwise (if you're like me) you'll just end up killing two hours online.
-Type up your notes after class; it'll help you remember them.
-If you're trying to do homework and completely unable to focus, take a break and do something else, then come back to it when you feel better.
-Try to plan something fun every day so you're motivated to do your work. If you're going to a movie at 7:30, you'll want to get your work done before then so you'll be more efficient.
-For math, chem and physics, read the chapter briefly and do ALL the practice problems (including the ones that weren't assigned.) Don't bother reviewing the chapter itself, just make sure you understand all the problems.

Most important: don't freak out. Try to enjoy yourself, don't just work. You'll get a sense for how much work you need to do, but I go to a pretty good college (top 20 LAC) and almost no one does more than 5 hours of homework a day...and there are a LOT of crazy premeds here. And never work just because "you feel like you should"...if you've done all your homework and studied for any upcoming tests, you've done enough--even if it only took you an hour. If you're done, you're done...don't create unnecessary work for yourself.

Sorry this post was so long! hope it helps

 

[k12123]

It's not as hard as you'd think (though I won't lie, there are days when I really just don't want to work at all...) For one thing, in college you're only in class maybe 3-4 hours a day (more if you have lab, but typically that's just 1 or 2 days a week). So you have a lot more time to study. Realistically, if you're efficient about doing your work you can get it all done in the afternoon/evening and still have several hours to do whatever you want.

Here are a few things that I've found helpful
-Find a good place to study. Like you said, the library is always good. Find a couple of other places (empty classrooms, cafes) to go to just for variety.
-Start problem sets the day they're assigned. Seriously. You'll be glad you did.
-Write down all test dates/due dates somewhere (calendar, planner, whatever) so you know in advance if you have a bunch of stuff due the same day. Then, start planning/studying early so you don't need to freak out the night before.
-Never study for more than 90 mins. without a break. (I think this might vary from person to person, but as far as I'm concerned I just can't focus longer than that).
-Try to do your homework somewhere without internet. Otherwise (if you're like me) you'll just end up killing two hours online.
-Type up your notes after class; it'll help you remember them.
-If you're trying to do homework and completely unable to focus, take a break and do something else, then come back to it when you feel better.
-Try to plan something fun every day so you're motivated to do your work. If you're going to a movie at 7:30, you'll want to get your work done before then so you'll be more efficient.
-For math, chem and physics, read the chapter briefly and do ALL the practice problems (including the ones that weren't assigned.) Don't bother reviewing the chapter itself, just make sure you understand all the problems.

Most important: don't freak out. Try to enjoy yourself, don't just work. You'll get a sense for how much work you need to do, but I go to a pretty good college (top 20 LAC) and almost no one does more than 5 hours of homework a day...and there are a LOT of crazy premeds here. And never work just because "you feel like you should"...if you've done all your homework and studied for any upcoming tests, you've done enough--even if it only took you an hour. If you're done, you're done...don't create unnecessary work for yourself.

Sorry this post was so long! hope it helps

Oh no problem, it helps a lot. I'm so anxious to start college because I just did so bad in HS (2.6 GPA), mostly because I procrastinated so much so I wanna start strong and end strong. As for math, that seems like a very effective method, I wasn't bad in math, it's just I feel that I neglected it so much which is why I never did well in it. However, all the advise I'm getting puts my mind at ease. I just feel that I would do whatever it takes to get into med school. I guess that motivation would help me as long as I never lose sight of it. Anyway, thanks for the advice.

 

[em3761]

no problem, good luck 🙂

 

[MojoRisin]

wake up at 740 for your 8 o'clock class

class 8-noon
12-1 eat
1-2:30 or 3 study/hw
3-5 workout
5-8 socialize mingle/sober sex
8-??? socialize, drink, mingle/drunk sex

rinse

repeat

and don't get drunk more than 6 days a week, you don't want to become an alcoholic

 

[Curl]

8am-5pmish class/studying/working/eating when possible/working out/socializing
5pm-sleep, free time- includes everything else, even additional studying or work if needed.
As you might have noticed my schedule is really more of a rough guide than anything 😉

 

[BigRedBeta]

What would be a good schedule when i start college in the fall? For example:

9-1:30pm Classes
1:30-7pm Study/HW
8-10pm Break
10-11:30 Study for lecture for the next day?

Would this be an effective study plan? What about your guys, how would you describe your daily schedule? Thanks.

There are 2 MAJOR, med school dream crippling, issues with this plan.

1) it ignores the social life of college. If you can't handle pre-med classes without having a social life, then you need to be doing something else. Seriously. The most important reason is for sanity, the second is it's actually going to make you a better physician... For most providers, being a doctor is a talking job, and if you don't like being around others, it's not a good choice. Having experiences to share and knowing how to connect with a diverse array of people is important.

2) Maybe study/HW time is meant to include all the other aspects of being a premed. But if youre just studying, you're not going to get into medical school. You have to work on all the other things that med schools are looking for. That would include volunteering, your on campus student organizations, doing research, clinical experience, etc.

 

[URHere]

You need to include something in your schedule that makes you seem like an actual person. I am assuming that you have hobbies, passions, and friends, right? Classes can't be your only priority or you will not enjoy the next four years of your life.

My schedule in college may not have been typical, but it was enjoyable, and it looked something like this:

5-8AM - Crew practice (or gym)
8AM - 9AM - Study
9AM-1PM - Various classes or research lab, depending on the day
1PM-2PM - Lunch / Study
2PM-5PM - Lab courses, workshops, or research lab, depending on the day
5PM-7PM - Martial Arts, or TAing workshops, depending on the day
7PM -??? - Theatre or Sorority activities

Weekends and various downtimes were for studying, volunteering, clubs, working part-time jobs, and spending time with friends.