College students across world have suddenly had their daily schedule thrown through a loop due to COVID-19 recently. With classes for the remainder of the Spring 2020 term and Summer 2020 going digital for GS, it can be hard to learn new study and work habits. These are some tips to make the transition a little easier for you.

1. Get a good night’s sleep

First and foremost, sleep. Being sent home from campus can feel like you are on an earlier summer break, so you might tend to stay up later and in turn wake up past noon. Personally, I am trying to break the habit of staying up until four a.m. every night watching “Criminal Minds.” If you are already in the habit of staying up through the night, try and force yourself to wake up and stay up a little earlier every day. And waking up and lounging in bed for hours doesn’t count! Go eat some breakfast, take a shower or even go for a morning walk/jog.

2. Find a time that works best for you

Everyone has different study techniques and only you can know what works best for you. Some night owls tend to crack open the books during the night so that leaves their day for doing whatever they want, while others might be the opposite. Choose the time of day/night where you have the highest energy level and when you feel the most productive. Don’t study right after you wake up or right before you’re about to go to sleep. Give your brain time to chill!

3. Separate work from play 

One of the “cardinal rules” of studying at home is to never study in your bed! Try and find a space in your house, like the kitchen table or a desk, to study. It’s best to reserve your bed for only sleeping because it can be easy to fall into a nap if you are somewhere comfortable. 

4. Give yourself breaks 

No one can study for eight hours straight and remain sane after. It’s important to give yourself breaks so you can give your brain time to recharge a little. But it is also important to limit the length of the breaks and how frequently you take them. You can divide the time and frequency differently according to your own personal study habits, but don’t pull the age old trick of “Well, the end time for my break is already past so I’ll just put it off a little while longer.” 

5. Use online resources

It’s easy to feel cut off from the world when you have suddenly become an online student, but GS has provided online resources you can access via your MyGeorgiaSouthern page. Beside those there are endless other ways to vary the ways you study. YouTube videos, such as CrashCourse, can help you summarize subjects that go into college-level detail. 

It may take a while to jump back into a school schedule due to COVID-19, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to! These tips can help you get back on track and to make to the most out of a bad situation.