How to treat University/College like a full-time job?

 

From Course Timetable to Full-Time job

Leveraging your success between classes

One of the main differences between university and high school is that class/lecture time in university is limited to about 3hrs a week per course (labs extra). In that short time, instructors provide only essential information and introductions to critical concepts, processes, and challenging issues setting the stage for students to continue that learning  through reading, assignments, activities and practice problems outside class. In other words, university learning requires more self-directed learning outside of class time. 

For many students, finding the right balance in navigating independent studying is challenging. A big part of harnessing success at university is finding ways to optimize time outside of class in ways that also make time for you to enjoy and engage in university life. 

These are three maladaptive ways students might manage their independent studying

1. Some students turn university into a life consuming process that takes up all their time including evenings and weekends. This approach leaves little time to actually enjoy and embrace all the learning that happens outside of class through friendships, clubs, sports, part-time jobs. Even more concerning, it can lead to burnout and a lost sense of purpose. More work is not the goal. Efficient and effective work is!
   
   
2. Some students intend to "study" between classes, but the time between classes just disappears after stopping to chat or line up for coffee. Without a specific plan, they get sidelined because don’t really know what to do or where to start. When this happens, distraction easily takes hold. Coffee, gaming, and streaming video breaks start to fill in all the gaps and suddenly the day is over with no meaningful studying or homework progress. The work keeps piling up and motivation starts to decline. Often in this situation students start skipping classes to catch up and a vicious cycle of getting behind sets in.
   
   
3. Some students gather and store resources for studying later. They just roll with the flow. They show up to class to "enlightened" with stimulating ideas. They gather and store information and course materials (notes, videos, resources) to add to their future study materials. Active learning just keeps being pushed off until there is a deadline or midterm exam. This approach makes things seem overwhelming because there is too much to learn and its too late before they realize that.

If you shadow a successful student for a day or a week, you will notice they treat university like their full-time job. An employee in a company/workplace has a busy schedule with meetings everyday. The only way work gets done is by carefully planning the day/week to make progress before, during and after meetings. Sometimes that means getting code uploaded by the end of the day or having a report to your boss by the end of the week. While overtime may be necessary some days or weeks, the goal is to optimize paid work week hours. 

Successful students treat university like a full-time job. They plan their days with purpose and intent to optimize learning and assignment completion before, during and after scheduled classes and labs. These students break learning down into specific goals that can be achieved within a study session. They are clear about what they need to learn or accomplish within that study session. And, they schedule time to stay health and have fun because they know that contributes to more efficient and effective work days.

Scheduling your typical work week

Purpose: It is very easy to underestimate the amount of study time needed during a week and then run out of time when dealing with major course assignments, exams and projects.  This activity will help you schedule university like a full-time job. If you can approach university like that from day 1, you will be able to balance school with life, friends, family, health and fun. You will also find it easier to stay on top of things.

1. Document the commitments you have every week for class, labs, and tutorials. 
   In the example below, the student has chosen the 3-semester plan for 1st year Engineering & Computer science.  This means they have 12 hrs of class + 8 hrs of lab each week.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. Calculate how many hours of studying and learning are needed each week. This is an important reality check. It has implications for what you have time for outside of class (part time jobs, sports, social and family time). What is reasonable or realistic for one student will not be for another. The rule of thumb is 2-3 hour for every hour of class time assuming you start leveraging this study time the first full week of classes and don’t stockpile hours for the future. Some weeks won’t have lots of deadlines leaving room for study hours to be devoted to reviewing things learned this week and past weeks and leveraging practice testing to prime memory. Other weeks will have lot of assignment deadlines that use up large amounts of your “study time” and leave only limited hours for reviewing.
   

   For example

   • 7 courses
     meeting 3 hrs a week = 21 hrs of class + 42- hrs of studying per week. This is a full time job with lots of overtime and not much else
     
     
   • 6 courses
     meeting 3 hrs a week= 18 hrs of class + 36-54 hrs of studying per week. This is a full time job with overtime. 
     
     
   • 5 courses
     meeting 3hrs a week = 15hrs of class time + 30-45 hrs of studying per week. This is a full time job.
     
     
   • 4 courses
     meeting 3hrs a week = 12hrs of class + 24-36 hrs of studying per week.
   
   
3. In the example timetable earlier, the student has (12 hrs of class + 8 hrs of lab) = 24 to 36 hrs of studying. Add as many  1-2 hours study blocks to your schedule as needed to meet the targeted study hours calculated above. Maximize time between classes to block of “studying” blocks. Later we will focus on what to do in each study block but by scheduling small blocks of time, it forces you to get specific in planning those 1-2 work sessions and it acknowledges that learning is effortful and attention is limited. In the example below, the boxes with blue borders are the study hours. You will notice that there are free evenings and free time on the weekends (just like you would have if you were working full time). 
   
   
4. Add any other required commitments (e.g. work schedule, athletics schedule, special activities you do on a regular basis). Schedule time to take care of yourself including a short nutrition break for each meal, time for exercise or well-being activities. In the example above these are the YELLOW boxes. You will notice there are nutrition and exercise breaks scheduled throughout the day and protected time evenings and weekends for leisure activities, work, and some make up time if you misjudge what you can complete in one of those 1 hour study blocks.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. Once you have prepared your schedule, take a minute to reflect.  Is this time commitment is realistic for you? Can you still find time for work, fitness, nutrition and fun? How much time can you realistically devote to those non-academic pursuits that are important to you. Before you jump on the treadmill of the semester, really stop to make sure you are planning a semester that fulfills your needs and goals. 

 

© 2026 Dr. Allyson Hadwin and the PAR‑IT Research Lab.
This material may be shared, used, and distributed for educational purposes only, provided proper credit is given to the source. No commercial use or modification is permitted without explicit permission.