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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UTM chapter.

Personality types say a lot about a person. Every personality test I take highlights my niche: organization. I love staying organized. I geek out over planners and highlighters. Not all of us have that preference for organization, though. Organization, though, is a key to your academic career. 

The obvious key to organization is a planner of some sort. If that’s electronic or paper, the planner is vital. I know that it may not have been necessary in the past, but it will be necessary very soon. 

My planner isn’t fancy. I got it at Target. It was less than $20. It consists of January through December. I don’t use a bunch of colors. I use my one black pen and a highlighter to bring my attention to the most important stuff. At this point, organizing my planner is a sense of comfort for me. 

I also keep a white board on my wall with the week lined out. The planner is a nice overview, but on my weekly board, I can write specific details like room numbers. It is also exciting to get an overview of my week before it even starts. Along with this, I like to keep my cork board full of useful information. 

Just to add one more layer to keeping my schedule clear, I also print out my schedule and have it on my computer desk at the start of the semester. I also like to make a screenshot of my schedule my wallpaper on my phone so that I can see it right away when I unlock my phone. 

I keep my Monday/Wednesday/Friday binders separate from Tuesday/Thursday. Since those classes are grouped together, I like to keep them properly organized. In my binders, I have dividers for each class. I prioritize putting my papers in the right section every time. It doesn’t have to be a binder, of course. Notebooks work the same way. 

Your phone is a very useful tool. You can set reminders and calendar events to keep important dates at your fingertips. You can color code those by type and you can set alarms. 

Being organized helps you in many ways through college: time management, wellness and academics. Though your activities and assignments are still your responsibilities, it relieves quite a bit of weight off of your shoulders.

 

I am a sophomore broadcast communications major and theatre minor at the University of Tennessee at Martin. When I’m not in class or participating in events on campus, I spend my time reading, doing yoga, working out, or petting my cats.
I am a pre-vet major who loves to laugh (especially at myself), drink coffee, and spend time with my dog, Cora. I moved from Massachusetts to Tennessee to attend college at UTM and compete for their division 1 rifle team.