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Academic Success

Student Survival Guide: Creating a Weekly Schedule

What is a weekly schedule?

A weekly schedule is a way to keep track of your activities and tasks for the week. A weekly schedule includes everything you have to get done, and helps you plan out when you can get things done. It also helps you see how much time you have available. This module explains how to create a useful weekly schedule.

Strategies for Creating Your Weekly Schedule

  • Plan for real life.Be realistic about what you can accomplish each day. For example, make sure you have some gaps between activities to allow for down time, eating, and travel.
  • Give yourself enough time.Budget at least 1 hour of homework for every hour of class time.
  • Plan study time.Plan blocks of time when you can study and work on assignments, and then figure out what work you need to do in each time slot.
  • Plan time for fun.Leave time in your schedule for the things that make life worthwhile, such as hobbies or time with friends.
  • Don’t over commit.Try to avoid cramming your schedule with activities and tasks. Leave some free time for flexibility. Remember: you are not going to be able to predict for all of the unexpected events that can and will happen.
  • Spread things out.Try to spread activities without fixed times across the week so that they are not all concentrated on already busy days.

Creating Your Schedule for the Week

Why Use a Weekly Schedule?

Watch the video to find out why you should use a weekly schedule.

How to create a weekly schedule

Watch the video or follow the steps below to create your own weekly schedule.

Steps

  1. Find a weekly schedule template that works for you. Use one of the following options:
  2. Add your classes into the schedule.
  3. Add other commitments items that are already scheduled for the week, including classes, appointments, and part-time work.
  4. Add dedicated study / homework time for working on your courses. Spread these study blocks across the week instead of on busy days. -- eg. doing readings, working on assignments, or reviewing for a test. In most cases, you will need one hour outside of class for each hour spent in class. Be sure to schedule these hours for when you are at your best.
  5. Add the specific class work you need to do for the week into these study periods, e.g. assigned readings, assignments, studying, etc.
  6. Add activities that need to be done that week but don’t have a set time. Try to spread these activities across the week so that they are not all concentrated on already busy days.
  7. Add other activities that provide balance in your life, such as spending time with friends or going to the gym.

Using Outlook

Creating a weekly schedule in Outlook has several advantages:

  • You can create a separate calendar just for your weekly schedule, and can hide this calendar from view, as needed.
  • You can access these calendars online from anywhere and on multiple devices.
  • You can download the Outlook app and allow your phone to send you notifications about events.

How to Create a Weekly Schedule Through Outlook/ Office 365

Watch this video to learn how to create a schedule through Outlook using Office 365.

Using Google Calendar

Creating a weekly schedule in Google Calendar has several advantages:

  • You can create a separate calendar just for your weekly schedule, and can hide this calendar from view, as needed.
  • You can access these calendars online from anywhere and on multiple devices.
  • You can download the Google Calendar app and allow your phone to send you notifications about events.

How to Create a Weekly Schedule Using Google Calendar

Watch this video to learn how to create a schedule using Google Calendar.