Since many of y’all have started or are about to start school, I thought I’d tell you about this website called Study Hacks.  It’s written by Cal Newport – he went to Dartmouth, is currently a PhD student at MIT, and has published two books about doing well at college (How to Become a Straight-A Student and How to Win at College).  His blog has also won an award for Best Education Blog.

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Cal gives lots of good advice on how to study better.  I’m a big believer in studying better before studying harder.  Don’t get me wrong – working hard is important…there is a minimum threshold of effort you need to put in to do well.  But just studying 24/7 doesn’t guarantee you’ll do well.  There are so many people who bust their butts writing a paper, or reading the text cover to cover, or lock themselves in a windowless room studying studying studying, only to receive a grade that just sucks the life force out of them.

So what’s a poor student to do?  You have to make good choices and use your time wisely to make the best out of your education.  School, especially college, is supposed to be fun as well.

Here are some examples of Cal’s articles:

• What is Your Time Worth?
• How Much Does Intelligence Matter at College?
• Does Being Exceptional Require an Exceptional Amount of Work?
• Stop Procrastinating by Making it Easier to Procrastinate
• The Art of Taking Science Notes
• What If My Dream Major Turns Into a Nightmare?
• The Study Hacks Guide to Beating Student Stress
• The Science of Student Burnout

I can tell you from experience that perhaps the most difficult academic challenge for college students is time management – especially learning how to deal with procrastination.  I don’t know if it’s the sudden freedom or the jam-packed schedules, but all-night cramming sessions – complete with the over-caffeinated jitters and anxiety that come with them – are a familiar scene on campus.  And it’s not just for school – you see it in the working world too.  There are people who run around crazy trying to meet a deadline, and there are those who don’t but still get things done.

I suppose this is one way to go about doing things, but if you don’t like this kind of stress, you don’t have to engage in it.  It is a choice.  I know at times things can get overwhelming and it seems like you don’t have a choice in the classes you take, the amount of work you’re given, the sadistic personality of your teachers, etc.  But you’d be surprised at how much control you have over your education.

Got any other tips or sites you’d like to share? Lay it down in comments!