While it’s true that online college classes can let you earn a degree from anywhere, it can be harder to succeed in online classes than brick-and-mortar ones. That’s because you need to have a lot of self-discipline to attend your online classes and stick with your coursework without the pressure of an in-person class and the supervision of a professor to keep you on schedule.
With strong time-management skills and the ability to self-start, you can use online college as a stepping stone to a better life. Here’s what you need to do to get to graduation day.
Practice Accountability
In a virtual classroom, no one will be writing your upcoming due dates down on the board. There won’t even be a board. It’ll be entirely up to you to keep track of when your assignments are due and to give yourself enough time to do them so you aren’t panicking to complete your work two hours before the deadline. Use a planner to keep track of due dates as per your syllabus. Check in with it regularly. Enlist a classmate, partner, or friend as your accountability buddy if you’re having trouble keeping yourself accountable.
Portion Out Your Time
When you’re juggling family and work commitments on top of a college course load, you need to carefully manage your time. One effective strategy is time-blocking. You have all your assignment due dates written out in your planner, along with your work schedules and any important personal events that you might need to work around. Sit down at the beginning of each week and look at the week ahead. Allot chunks of time each day to work on your college courses, and stick to that schedule.
Keep a Regular Study Space
Keeping a regular study space, whether it’s in your home or at a local cafe or library, can help you establish study time as part of your daily routine. Ideally, you’ll want to set up a study space at home that can be used only for studying. It should be away from the noise of the household and it should have space for you to store your study materials so you know where everything is when you need it. If you have to leave your house to find a quiet study space, keep your materials organized in a backpack or satchel so you never have to search for anything.
Escape Distractions
When you’re studying online for a bachelor’s in business administration or some other college degree, it can be easy to get distracted. That’s why a private study space can be so helpful – you can get away from the noise of the TV and kids, and focus on your work. Experiment with using a white noise app or music to block out distractions as necessary. Make sure your family knows when your planned study times are, so they’ll know not to bother you.
Seek Out Peer Interactions
Making friends and networking is a crucial part of the college experience, and it’s one you don’t have to miss out on just because you’re not sitting in a lecture hall with your classmates. Participate actively in class discussions. If there’s a group chat for your classmates, use it – if there isn’t, make one. Organize virtual study groups or even virtual social meetups. If you have any classmates nearby, hang out with them in person if you can.
Ask for Help When You Need It
There’s no shame in asking for help when you don’t understand the course material or when you’re struggling with a specific assignment. You can reach out to a classmate for help, or you can go right to the professor. Most college professors are happy to help a student that reaches out for extra assistance.
Most professors who teach online also host office hours online, so you can video chat with the professor privately and get help with your assignments. You may also want to ask your professors about internship opportunities in your field or about opportunities to help with research in your field, or simply about what classes you should take in the future if you want to get into the field. Fostering relationships with your professors can come in handy when you need references for grad school applications or even for your first job.
Online college classes can be just as beneficial as in-person courses, but many people struggle due to the high level of self-discipline you need to succeed in online courses. Take your online college education seriously, and hold yourself accountable to do the work, and you’ll be collecting your degree from the mailman before you know it.
The post Here’s How to Succeed in Online College Classes appeared first on Personal Branding Blog.
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