Study at home advice

The majority of students have

to continue their studies remotely due to the current Covid-19 situation. Studying at home can be challenging as well as tiring. I decided to seek out other students through social media who encounter the same remote-studies struggles. This is their advice:

My study space

Find an online study group Before Covid-19 I used to study in groups of six people. I’m more productive when other people around me are also studying. By using social media and an app called Discord, I could continue my group study sessions online. I created a room with my own friends from university as well as with other students I happened to meet on this app.

Use a time management method The average attention span of an adult ranges from 20 up until 45 minutes. After the 45 minute mark, the quality of your focus will start to decline. By using a time management method you can maintain stable focus throughout longer study sessions. You can use the timer on your phone or download an app to do this.

Music My productivity improves with certain types of background music or noise. On Youtube you can find a wide variety of videos that can help you study. I personally love so-called ‘’Study with me videos’’ which are basically people filming themselves while studying. It might seem like a strange concept, but it can be quite motivating. When it comes to music, my personal favorites are lo-fi playlists and Jazz music.

Study area Creating a designated area for your studies and academic-related tasks can decrease feelings of stress and anxiety. Try to keep these stress-related tasks away from your ‘’relax’’ areas. For example, I never open my email or do any kind of academic-related tasks in my bed or kitchen.

Working with a planner Getting the most out of your planner or calendar increases your productivity and helps you to stay focused. For example, try to set a maximum amount of tasks a day and break down large projects into smaller tasks. Don’t know how to do this? Take a look at the following examples:

1. Instead of ‘’Work on Thesis’’ write down ‘’Finish chapter 1 of thesis’’ or ‘’spend 45 minutes finding sources for thesis’’.

2. Instead of ‘’Reply to emails’’ write down ‘’spend 30 minutes replying to emails’’.

Do you have any study at-home advice to share? Feel free to leave a comment!