When I was heading into my freshman year of college I honestly had no idea what to expect when it came to classes and school work. All I knew was what I heard from teachers in high school. Everything they said were things along the lines of, “professors don’t care enough to remind you of assignments”, “they don’t let you make work up”, etc.
I didn’t know if my teachers in high school were just trying to scare us or if they meant it. Needless to say, I was nervous about being able to handle the workload and more importantly nervous to not miss any assignments.
The good news is, college isn’t as scary as I thought it would be. Luckily school and organization comes pretty easy to me so I was able to adjust quickly. If this isn’t your case, don’t worry because I have 5 important things to do to make sure you never miss an assignment again.
The secrets to never missing an assignment again:
1. Write down every single important date in your planner from your syllabi
Before the first week of the semester ends spend an afternoon writing down every single due date, reading, group project, exam, and anything else that you have to do. When I started doing this I was so much more relaxed about everything. I knew as long as it was in my planner I wouldn’t forget anything.
This makes it so much easier to update things if a professor changes the due date of an assignment instead of having to file through stacks of papers to find the syllabus for that class. Using this method is even more helpful if you are taking 5 or 6 classes. It’s so hard to keep track of everything in your head with so many assignments and other things to do for all of your classes.
I personally love this method. Having everything already laid out in my planner that I look at every day means I never miss a thing. I’m also able to schedule time in advance to work on each assignment because no due dates sneak up on me.
2. Check D2L/Blackboard or whatever software your college uses regularly
I can’t stress enough how important it is to check your online dashboard for school and your email too. I’ve met students who don’t use their school system or check their email and I seriously don’t know how they survive.
My professors are constantly updating D2L (what my college uses) with extra notes, assignment changes, exam date changes, and so much more. If you don’t want to miss turning in an assignment on time make sure you are keeping up with the professors updates.
3. Set reminders in your phone of due dates
Put all important due dates in your phone so you are notified when an assignment is due. I recommend setting the reminder for the day or two before something is due (or more in advance depending on the assignment) just in case you didn’t check your planner to see that something is due. This way you have a day or two to complete the assignment.
This is really helpful during midterms since there is so much to get done and a higher level of stress. During midterms all you are thinking about is studying for the exams. In my experience, most classes still have journal entries due or short essays. You don’t want to forget these smaller assignments in the midst of studying for the exams.
{ Related: Top 5 Secrets to Make Dean’s List Every Semester }
4. Have a designated folder and notebook for each class, preferably color coded
This is so important! This method is the best for staying organized. I’ve been using this since high school and owe a lot of my success in school to this. By having a specific folder and notebook (that is the same color) for a class makes it less likely that you will lose any important papers or assignments.
For example, the folder and notebook I use for my management course this semester are both purple. Only using this folder and notebook for everything to do with my management class keeps me very organized.
Not only does it keep your papers organized, if things are color coded you are less likely to bring the wrong folder or notebook to class. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen students go to hand in an assignment and they brought the wrong folder so they don’t have the assignment with them.
You can’t afford to not hand in an assignment. Most professors will give you a ZERO if you don’t hand it in. Have separate colored folders and notebook for every class so you don’t risk bringing the wrong folder and getting a zero!
5. Have a clean desk
A clean desk will help you stay on top of all your assignments. It will boost your productivity when it comes to getting essays done, projects, and studying.
Cleaning and organizing your desk should be done every week or so. Keeping on top of this will help you with your school work getting done on time. It might not make sense how the 2 things go together, but it really does make a difference.
Only keep your school stuff at your desk. I know it is hard in a small dorm room not to spread out and use your desk for things like doing makeup or painting your nails, but do your best. The least amount of stuff to distract you when you are working on assignments the better.
