In my country the role of the teacher is very strong; the students have their timetable, but here all the responsibility is on you. You have to organise your own study time and study progressively, little by little; don't leave things for the end, for the exams. - Isai
While you are studying on your university course there are likely to be many claims on your time and you will need to know how to manage them. You may be juggling your study time with social, family or other commitments or even with part-time work.
In these activities, you will think about how you use your time to find out what kind of study routine might work best for you, and then practise trying to organise a day's timetable for an international student on a university course in the UK.
How do you use your time?
You are going to find out what kind a person you are when it comes to using your own time.
Instruction
Think about each of these statements relating to your own use of time and select the tick or the cross before reading the feedback.
To make a selection, click on the tick if the statement is true for you or the cross if it is not true. You can click again if you wish to change your answer.
I work best in the morning.
I make lists of things I have to do and organise the order in which I will do them.
I work best when a task is urgent and I'm under pressure to get on with it.
I am easily distracted from a task by other things that I need to do.
I can manage lots of things at the same time.
I hate rushing and always start a task early, giving myself plenty of time to finish.
I work best in the afternoon or at night.
I like finishing one task before I start another.
When do you work best? If you work best in the morning this means that you should try to use the first part of the day for any study tasks that need mental alertness or concentration. Your peak of efficiency is likely to be early in the day and you probably leap out of bed full of energy in the morning. However, you may feel too tired to concentrate well late into the evening. If you work best in the afternoon or at night this means that you should use that time to do your most demanding study tasks. Your peak of efficiency is likely to be later on in the day. It may take you some time to get started in the morning.
Are you a methodical person, who takes tasks one by one, or someone who likes multi-tasking? As a student, if you make lists of things you have to do and organise the order in which you do them you probably like to have a system and enjoy spending time organising your study files and notes. This helps you identify what you have to do and find what you need quickly. You probably find it difficult to work on too many things at the same time and prefer to order them so that you can manage your study tasks more effectively. If you can manage lots of things at the same time you probably thrive on having lots of things to do and while working on one study task you may get ideas and inspiration for something else. Your active mind may be busy finding useful parallels between different aspects of your studies and this helps you progress.
Are you self-disciplined or do you need outside help to make you focus? If you work best when a task is urgent and you are under pressure you prefer to rely on external demands such as an approaching deadline for an assignment to help you focus on getting your work done. The sense of urgency probably drives you to work harder and it may be that you are able to produce better work in this way. If you hate rushing and always start a task early, giving plenty of time to finish you are probably the kind of student who likes to think things through carefully in order to produce your very best work. For this reason, you plan and organise your study time and are able to organise yourself effectively.
Is your mind on ten things at once or can you concentrate exclusively on one thing? If you are easily distracted from a task by other things this means that your mind is always searching for new stimulation. Because of this, it may be difficult to get your work done sometimes. You may need to train yourself to focus on one thing at a time so that you can complete any important study tasks that need to be done. If you like finishing one task before you start another you have no trouble concentrating on one thing and probably dislike having too many study tasks waiting for your attention. If your study tasks all arrive at once, you may need to think ahead sometimes and make preparations to begin another task before the current one is finished.
A day in the life of an international student
You are going to plan a day in the life of Carlos, an international student at a British university. Carlos leads a busy life and needs to fit a lot into his day at Uni. Many of the things he has to do are course-related but others are not. Can you organise his day for him so that he can manage to do everything he needs to?
Carlos
Instruction
Look at the list of tasks that Carlos has to fit into his plan for the day at Uni and decide when he should do each of them. Move each task into the appropriate time slot in his plan for the day. Use the 'check' button to see if you have organised his time well and then answer the three questions that follow.
To move an item, click on it with the mouse and drag it into the appropriate place in Carlos's plan for the day. You will need to think carefully as each task only matches one time slot in Carlos's plan for the day. If you change your mind, you can still move the tasks to another place.
Carlos's day at Uni
08:00
Get up, eat breakfast, print course assignment ready to submit to faculty office by midday.
08:15
08:30
09:00
Lecture.
10:30
11:30
12:15
Grab lunch and go to gym for sports practice.
14:00
14:30
15:00
16:00
Another seminar - not presenting in this one!
17:00
17:30
18:30
Unload washing machine, cook and eat evening meal, and then start planning next assignment.
20:00
23:30
Time to sleep!
After the gym, read set text and answer questions in preparation for 4pm seminar.
Course seminar on the other campus - our group is presenting!
Don't forget to load and start the washing machine before leaving the house!
Meet as arranged after lecture to discuss group presentation for seminar at 3pm.
Meet up with friends for a bit of relaxation in the pub.
Return library books used for last assignment; take out more books for the next one.
Submit course assignment before midday deadline.
Take bus in to Uni for 9am lecture.
Take the bus from Uni to the supermarket to do some food shopping before it closes at 7pm.
Walk over to the other campus for seminars this afternoon.
Here is the solution to the task: 08:00: Get up, eat breakfast, print course assignment ready to submit to faculty office by midday. 08:15: Don't forget to load and start the washing machine before leaving the house! 08:30: Take bus to Uni for 9am lecture. 09:00: Lecture. 10:30: Meet as arranged after lecture to discuss group presentation for seminar at 3pm. 11:30: Submit course assignment before midday deadline.Take bus in to Uni for 9am lecture. 12:15: Grab lunch and go to gym for sports practice. 14:00: After the gym, read set text and answer questions in preparation for 4pm seminar. 14:30: Walk over to the other campus for seminars this afternoon. 15:00: Course seminar on the other campus - our group is presenting! 16:00: Another seminar - not presenting in this one! 17:00: Return library books used for last assignment; take out more books for the next one. 17:30: Take the bus from Uni to the supermarket to do some food shopping before it closes at 7pm. 18:30: Unload washing machine, cook and eat evening meal, and then start planning next assignment. 20:00: Meet up with friends for a bit of relaxation in the pub. 23:30: Time to sleep!
1. How many timetabled course sessions did Carlos have to attend today and what were they?
Carlos had three timetabled sessions on his course today; a lecture in the morning and two seminars in the afternoon.
Academic timetables can vary a lot depending on the subject area and the kind of course you are doing. You may find that you have some very busy days, when you are attending timetabled sessions all day long, and other days that are very light, with only a few or even no timetabled sessions. Your course timetable is also liable to change from one semester to the next.
2. What other course-related activities did Carlos need to do?
Print out and submit course assignment Discuss group presentation Read set text and answer questions in preparation for seminar Return some library books and take out more Start planning next assignment
Besides attending timetabled sessions, like Carlos, you will have other course-related tasks to do. Your tutors may set some of these tasks while you will need to remember to do other tasks, such as submitting course assignments, yourself. It is your responsibility to do these tasks and important that you are able to manage your time effectively to do them.
3. What non course-related things did Carlos do?
Ate three times (It is important to eat regularly and properly) Did his washing Did some shopping Took some exercise at the gym (It is important to try to stay fit and healthy) Met his friends and relaxed at the end of the day (It is important to find time for relaxation) Went to bed at the end of the day (It is important to get enough sleep so that you are able to study effectively)
As well as organising your time for study, you will need to manage all the other aspects of your life while you are in the UK. Don't forget about these as they are also important.
Would you like to review the main points?
You should now have some understanding of what kind a person you are when it comes to using your time and what kind of study routine might suit you best. While organising Carlos's day at Uni you will have explored a typical set of student tasks and thought about what you will need to do to fit your own study tasks as well as everyday chores such as shopping into your own typical day whilst studying in the UK.
How do you use your time?
or the cross 
before reading the feedback.
A day in the life of an international student
