Back to school for a nursing student brings a whole new set of classes, concepts, and skill sets. Sounds overwhelming, right? Well, it doesn’t have to be. We want to help you know out this school year by sharing must-follow study tips and a printable study schedule.

The Perfect Study Spot

• Location is key. Find a quiet spot that you can and will use consistently.
• Choose your study buddies wisely so you can focus on what you came to do, study.
• Turn off your phone and avoid potential interruptions that will cause you to multitask.

Back-to-School Bonus

One Stanford study suggests that persistent multitaskers perform poorly in various tasks, are more distracting and have difficulty in organizing information. Keep this in mind when choosing the perfect study spot!

Timing is Everything

• Embrace your inner morning person or night owl by knocking out a couple hours of studying, reading, notetaking, you name it, when you’re most alert.
• Get up and move! Exercising for a minimum of 20 minutes can help nursing students be more productive. Discover more productivity hacks here.
• Use that hour in between classes to prepare for the next one. It is highly effective to read before a lecture, not to mention, you won’t have to do it later.

Back-to-School Bonus

Be efficient when it comes to your schoolwork by keeping track of areas in which you are confident and areas in which you need improvement. Spend more time polishing the weaker areas. Not sure which ones need some TLC? Looking back at ATI proctored or practice assessments or quizzing yourself will give you a good frame of reference.

Strength in the Schedule

Create a schedule – one you can stick to with realistic goals and deadlines.

• Plan ahead! This will help to avoid cramming and that hardly-beneficial all nighter.
• Have a big project? Consider breaking it down into smaller tasks that you can schedule out over time.
• Study at the same time of day. After all, consistency forms a habit.
• Include regular breaks in your schedule – meals, exercise, and time with friends are all important to include.

Back-to-School Bonus

Set priorities at the start of each week! This will help you to stay focused and on track with your bigger goals and deadlines.

Looking for more ways to help you get organized?

Let these scheduling apps help you.

myHomework

This handy app syncs across devices so you can easily access your classes and assignments anytime and anywhere. This application currently has two versions, free and $4.99/year. See the differences between the two! Available for iOS, Android, Windows, Android Tablets, Kindle, Mac & Chromebook.

MyStudyLife

This app, available on all devices, helps to organize classes, tasks, exam, lectures and assignments. Oh, and not to mention, it’s free. Check out a sneak peek of this app.

Pocket Schedule

Notifications and organization filters are just a couple of the key features with this application. Get the full list. The only setback that we see? It’s only available for iOS.

ANY.DO

We love this app’s motto – get things done like a pro. From lists to tasks, ANY.DO syncs across all devices and is available for both iOS and Android. Extra bonus? There’s even a teamwork component for those group projects or study groups. Explore this productivity powerhouse.

Notability

From note-taking to photos to annotated PDFs, there isn’t much this application doesn’t do. This app is only designed for iPhone and iPad and costs $7.99, however, don’t let that discourage you. It has a four-star rating and raving reviews. Dive into the ins and outs even further. Prefer a good ole piece of paper and pencil? We don’t blame ya. Check out Day Designer’s printable calendar that will leave you planning out each day by the hour.