Coping with Studies

How to code with studies when there is many projects ongoing concurrently?

Hi @HuiShan! I believe many students are running the same questions in their heads now!

It is definitely not an easy as transition from secondary school to an IHL. Project work is something new to many. I do understand the complexity in project work as it requires a lot of research into unfamiliar topics and together with the studies…can be quite challenging.

But the beauty of project work is that it expands our thinking as we could see the different disciplines of work coming together!

The art of balancing studies and projects is certainly a challenging thing. One thing you could try to reframe is how the projects could reinforce your learnings from your studies. It is ‘folding’ similar things together to achieve better productivity. Doing 1 thing but it achieves several objectives at the same time.

Another way which is my personal fav, is prioritisation. It would require you to list down all your tasks that you need to do. Depending on your timeframe, you could put it as tasks to complete by which days or tasks to complete within the day by hour frame. To enhance this, I would usually break down the large tasks into even smaller manageable tasks.

Example:

  1. Project work: Usually comes in a fairly standard process such as research phase, synthesis of research, discussions, presentation preparation etc. Allocate specific time for each.

  2. Studies: Consistent studying does help you to smooth out the learning curve and stress! Might consider allocating specific times to complete those mini study sessions.

To further improve your productivity, you might want to explore aides to help you achieve those things faster.
Example,

  1. Project work: Any softwares/ calendars to promptly remind you on your upcoming tasks

  2. Studies: better memory techniques to quickly remember hard facts, mindmaps to breakdown concepts

Personal life experience: I found the same challenges when I was studying, but looking back as a working adult, I am appreciative of the learning experience. It was definitely a stretch on my capability and expanding on my energy tank =D

Btw, I moved this topic here to expand the conversation with the community. They may have more ideas than me!

You may also check out youth mindline to see which topics resonates with you!

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Helloo @HuiShan !! As a design student, I can share that you are definitely not along in feeling the pressure when it comes to overlappimg projects ><

I remember that when I first started, it really was very overwhelming especially when just the year before, I was more used to the day to day stroct schedule of studying and classes. With poly, the schedule is more flexible in a sense where you are responsible for the own progress of your work, so there is more pressure in that sense.

But over the years I realised I have become more at ease with the projects, and there are a few things I can share that helped me get here that might be helpful for you as well : )

  1. Setting 2-3 things to do everyday
    Besides school, I have many responsibilities outside, so having multiple projects plus the work of those responsibilities overlapping in deadlines is not hard to come across. But a small thing I do to help myself not procrastinate or lose motivation is to set just 2-3 things in total (spread across different projects) for that day to do. For example, do planning for Project A, sketching for Project B and writing drafts for Project C.
    This gives you a clear to do list to slowly clear all your projects, and if you cleared them early, through the day you can give yourself more tasks (but finish your first initial 3 tasks first, then progressively add more if you wany, but not too much that it is overwhelming). This really helped me to see clearly the parts or phases of my projects I was at, and what I could work more or less on. But it did so in a manner that was progressive so I wouldn’t be overwhelmed.

  2. Find 1 thing to do for rest
    With everything busy and bustling, it is hard to find time to rest which is very important for your mental wellbeing. My suggestion for this is to find 1 thing to do for rest, at least once throughout the week, and make sure you do it. Don’t ignore or brush doing this off because you’re behind, because it could defeat the purpose! Take that one hour or so in your week to just have you time. This gives you the opportunity to take a pause, and let your brain work on something else other than work. Some things you can do would be to treat yourself to a nice fulfilling meal, listen or play to some music, read a chapter in a book etc.

  3. Always check in with yourself
    In the midst of doing steps 1 and 2, sometimes it is easy to get distracted along the way by various things. Your feelings are important along the way as they tell you how youd body and mind are doing. If you feel a negative emotion, think about your reaction to having that emotion, and why you could possibly feel that way. For example, I am tired but I am angry about being tired. Why am I angry? Is it because I know I am procrastinating and shouldn’t feel tired? Should I be kinder to myself because the cause of my tiredness is due to the fact I have been working on the same problem for 3 hours, thus it feels like I’m procrastinating because I’ve made no progress even though I’ve been working at it? - Simply check yourself up along the way like this, and it might help you to recognise how you’re feeling as you do your projects, and help you distinguish what you need to do to feel better!

Overall, with life it will get busy, but the important thing is to know you are not alone in this! There will definitely be one person around you, you can learn to lean on if needed. And in the moments you find yourself unable to cope, take a break and be kind to yourself <3