Managing all of your college classes can be a full time job, but most college students have to balance their classes with extracurriculars as well. Spending time outside the classroom is a huge part of the college experience. Whether those experiences happen while playing on a sports field, in the chatter of a newsroom, or backstage of a play, it's important to make time for extracurriculars during college, but the question is how exactly can you make that time?

Here are three tips for how best to manage your time and balance your coursework with your other activities:

1) Start a calendar.

Take a moment at the beginning of the semester to sit down with all of your syllabi and your calendar. Get all of your midterms, papers, and major assignment due dates down off the bat. Be sure to add other big dates in there too, like game days or debate weekends. Now is the time to plan ahead - if any weeks look really busy, make sure to get started on things early. Get your readings and problem sets done ahead of time and stay ahead of the ball.

2) Avoid the scroll.

More often than not, the first thing people do when they sit down to study is check their social media. Before you know it, you've spent half an hour not getting work done. Planning out when you'll get assignments done is a crucial part of time management in college, but that only works if things go according to plan. Whether you're just getting started or taking a short break, avoid getting pulled into the never ending scroll of social media. Read about The Black Mirror Effect to learn how following this tip can help more than your just studies.

3) Use your resources.

Everyone has classes they struggle with. If you know you have trouble finishing a class's problem sets, understanding the lecture, or tackling a research paper, don't be shy about asking for help. Take advantage of office hours or TA study sessions. The time you take to get your questions answered will be well worth the investment. You'll be able to complete your assignments more quickly and with a lot less frustration.

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