Striking a Healthy Work-Life Balance While at University: My Top Tips

10 December 2024

As the January and summer exam season creep around the corner and deadlines start to add up, I find that striking a healthy-work life balance can become challenging. However, I have some tried and tested methods to effectively manage both and make the most out of university!

Create a schedule
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The most important aspect of work life balance is scheduling your activities. I first make a calendar and plot all my activities, such as society events and plans with friends. I then add in my lectures and seminars. Afterwards, I try to find free slots between them and dedicate this time to my asynchronous tasks and uni work. 

Change according to priority

Of course, as I approach deadlines, I know I need to prioritise my academics and sacrifice some short-term social activities for my long-term education. Not all activities need to be removed though!

I evaluate how close my social activities are to my deadlines, how much time I need to dedicate to finishing my Uni work effectively, and see if I can finish my work before the social event. 

Healthy breaks

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It’s good to keep in mind that you can’t keep working all the time and completely minimise time with friends and family.Studies show that working nonstop with no time to rest reduces productivity, so there’s no point in shutting out all social activities. I always make sure to include some activities, from going to the gym to dinner with my mates, at least three times a week. 

Work with your friends

One method I use to make work less monotonous and isolating is a group study session with my friends. We split our time at the library or UG study space in WBS, with 40-minute blocks of studying, and 20-minute breaks to chat and grab a snack together between study blocks. Not only do I get my work done, but I can catch up with my friends without having to plan separate social events, saving me a lot of time!

Stick to your schedule

Whenever I deviate from my set schedule, I find myself in a situation where I’m either behind on work, having to catch up on work because I prioritised going out, or cancelling on my friends last minute to make up for work I missed earlier in the week.

 Not only does this ruin plans, but it leaves me feeling overwhelmed if I let a mountain of work pile up. Sticking to a schedule makes sure you stay on top of work and ensures you have ample time for extracurriculars as well! 

Planning Around Society Events

Joining a society is a rite of passage for a lot of students, including myself. I find that several society events are planned in the evenings or on weekends. This helps me plan my schedule by setting my academic work during the day, sort of like a 9-5, and leaving my evenings free for society events. However, I always check what type of event it is, how long it lasts, and if it’ll tire me out too much, making me unproductive the day after. I always recommend adding society events to your work- life schedule, as that’s where I made the most friends and lifelong connections!

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