Do you ever look on Tabula and feel like there’s an overwhelming number of deadlines? I would like to share my experience with deadlines as a second year History student and offer some advice for those who feel like the work is starting to pile up.
As a first-year student I heard the advice ‘try everything’ and took that quite literally. I pushed myself to join societies, sports and go out more. People often said to me ‘first year doesn’t count’ and so I tried to push my deadlines to the back of my mind and have fun. This led to cramming, stress, and eventual burnout - to the point where I wouldn’t re-read my essays before I handed them in.
I promised myself I would prioritise my health and my work more in second year. Now that it has arrived, deadlines have begun to fill my Tabula page and I find myself starting to fall into the same trap. I have made some advice for myself and for others in the hope that no-one feels alone.
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Plan ahead. Try and look at your deadlines as soon as you can and create a mini plan. I know the dates can often feel never ending but by creating a plan it helps to process your workload in stages. This could take the form of a list, a mind-map or any method that helps you order your work.
Talk to your course mates and your seminar tutor if you feel overwhelmed. Your seminar tutors are there to help! It can be quite hard and as a naturally shy person myself I found emailing less intimidating than in-person meetings. Equally, talking to your course mates can help you form a better plan of your ideas and help you feel less alone.
Make sure to take time for yourself. When deadlines catch up to you it’s easy to feel like every second you are not working is a waste, however this will eventually lead to burnout. Taking some time to do something you enjoy; whether it is a sport, baking or watching tv is crucial.
Make a personal deadline different to the one on Tabula. A course mate gave me this advice and it has been super helpful. It allows you to write an essay earlier than the prescribed deadline and leaves time for any edits, spell-checks and grammar issues that could be missed.
Take small steps. I feel that this is the most important. Deadlines can feel impossible to reach when you leave your assignment until the last minute. Deciding a title for an essay, picking a question, or speaking to a course mate about what you don’t understand are all small steps that will help you feel more in control.
This list is not exhaustive, however, I have found these tips to be helpful. I think setting up good habits when it comes to deadlines is really useful as it provides a good basis for future careers and projects.
These tips are all things I have slowly learnt by making mistakes in first year and I’m sure there are more mistakes to come, but I have found them steadily making my experience with deadlines and the dreaded Tabula page slightly better.
After handing in two rather large essays over the past week it is clear to me that progress is certainly not linear. Ultimately, the most important thing is your health and if you feel it slipping for an assignment then you need to put your health first. Warwick provides two self-certifications where deadlines can be extended with no questions asked and I thoroughly recommend using them as it helps to balance the occasions where time management just isn’t possible.
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