30 Days, 30 Hacks: Mastering Your US Master's Journey

Studying abroad for a master's degree in the United States as an international student is an exciting yet demanding experience. One of the most crucial skills you'll need to master during this journey is time management. Effective time management will not only help you excel academically but also allow you to pursue your passions, socialize, and manage stress. Let’s focus specifically on time management strategies to help you strike a balance between these aspects of your life.

1. Prioritize Your Studies: Prioritizing your studies is paramount as you embark on your master's journey. Dedicate the bulk of your daily schedule to attending classes, completing assignments, and studying. Establish a well-structured study routine that aligns with your course requirements and adhere to it consistently. Make use of study techniques that enhance your efficiency, such as active learning, note-taking, and summarization. Prioritizing your studies not only ensures academic success but also sets a solid foundation for managing your time effectively in other areas of your life. There might be times when late-night peer study sessions might tire you, it does honestly suck to be alone pushing the limit everyday but trust me those classes are important, every day you might feel the urge to give up take rest, cover the syllabus using the recorded zoom sessions (yes I know it’s hard to believe that sessions are recorded, at least TAMU has the facility to do so), go for the class, reach out to your peers, reach out to your Professor, this is the time that is going to make or break your career (No Pressure :P).

2. Utilize Effective Study Techniques: To make the most of your study time, employ proven techniques that boost your learning efficiency. The Pomodoro Technique (link to the article: https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/pomodoro-technique), which involves focused study intervals followed by short breaks, helps maintain concentration and productivity. Engage in active learning by asking questions, discussing concepts with peers, and applying what you've learned to real-world scenarios. Taking organized notes and summarizing key information will aid in retaining and comprehending the material, saving you valuable time in your study sessions. Note-making is one of the best techniques I mastered during my course work and it helped me significantly to return back to those concepts with ease, even to this date I refer to my notes from the Machine Learning class to make an unbiased accurate RNN model.

3. Pursue Your Passion with Purpose: While academic pursuits are vital, it's equally important to nurture your passions and interests. Allocate dedicated time slots in your schedule for pursuing activities that bring you joy and fulfillment, whether it's playing a musical instrument, creating art, engaging in sports, or any other passion. These moments of engagement serve as valuable mental breaks and rejuvenate your creativity and motivation, ultimately enhancing your overall time management skills. Your university will provide you tremendous resources to help you relieve the stress, make use of it, feel obliged to participate, well because you paid for it (in dollars).

4. Plan Your Social Activities: Maintaining a social life is essential for your well-being, but it requires thoughtful planning. Schedule social activities in advance and adhere to your commitments. Designate specific days or evenings for socializing, ensuring that you can connect with friends, attend campus events, or explore new experiences without jeopardizing your academic responsibilities. Effective planning not only fosters social connections but also prevents stress related to last-minute social invitations that may disrupt your schedule. Always, Always spend your weekend exploring, the more you explore the better your networking is, the better your networking is the better your net worth. You can make the money again if you are happy and healthy but this time won’t be back.

5. Let Go of Stress Through Time Management: Stress management is crucial to maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Incorporate stress-relief techniques into your daily routine, such as meditation, deep breathing exercises, or yoga. By allocating time for these practices, you can proactively reduce stress and anxiety, enhancing your overall time management capabilities. These activities serve as vital self-care measures, ensuring that you remain resilient and focused during your academic journey. I myself used to participate in dance and yoga lessons to relieve any stress, I specifically chose classes during the week to let go of my mid-week blues. Trust me these sessions are going to bring a smile to your face, also most of these sessions have trial classes which you can attend for FREE, you can essentially spend an entire semester exploring these sessions.

6. Learn to Say No: As an international student, you may be eager to explore numerous opportunities and activities. However, it's essential to discern when to decline certain commitments. Overcommitting can lead to time management challenges and heightened stress levels. Prioritize activities that align with your academic and personal goals while being mindful of your limitations. Learning to say no when necessary allows you to strike a balance between your academic endeavors and extracurricular interests effectively. This is one thing that I’ve struggled with during my days at the university, pushing yourself for your work and enjoyment is good but to a certain extent, beyond that limit spend some time with yourself, enjoy your own company, read books spend time creating something, saying No and doing things for yourself will help you get into a level-mind.

7. Leverage Time Management Tools: Modern technology offers an array of tools and applications that can simplify your time management efforts. Utilize calendars, to-do lists, and task management apps to keep your commitments organized. Set reminders for crucial deadlines, meetings, and social events to ensure you stay on top of your responsibilities. These digital tools serve as valuable aids in maintaining structure and efficiency in your daily life. Reach out if you wanna learn more about these tools, or stay tuned for another newsletter where I discuss how and which tools to use to boost productivity.

8. Reflect and Adjust: Periodically evaluate your time management strategies to determine their effectiveness. Assess whether you're allocating an appropriate amount of time to different activities. Are there areas where you can optimize your schedule? Be flexible and open to adjustments as you gain insights into what works best for you. Reflecting on your time management practices allows you to fine-tune your approach and continually improve your ability to balance your academic pursuits, passions, social life, and stress management. The easiest thing you can do is create a spreadsheet to organize your day first thing in the morning, you might not stick to the schedule but it helps understanding how to take on the day, because every day away from home and comfort is challenging.

Reach out when you find yourself loosing to the coursework, help will always be given to those who ask for it.