How to Manage Assignment Deadlines as a Working Student

If you’re trying to balance work, school and adult responsibilities all at the same time, you might find that your calendar is absolutely packed.

You may not know where or how to fit your assignment deadlines into your schedule. If this is the case, you are most definitely not alone.

When I first started studying while working full time, I tried planning ahead. I tried using calendars and notebooks to stay organized. I even tried creating an intricate dashboard in this online program called Obsidian!

Surprisingly, although my dashboard comes in handy, it’s the simple things that help me keep track of assignment deadlines.

In this post, you’ll learn some of my conventional and unconventional techniques to help me complete assignments on time and still have time for life.

Why Deadlines can feel impossible for some Working Students + Practical Tips

Unpredictable & Busy Life Schedules

It’s challenging, to say the least, to juggle work, school, and life. Especially when unexpected events, social plans, or emergencies arise.

When these happen, it can derail your original plans that you worked so hard to create. For me, that’s quite frustrating.

Furthermore, it causes a Domino effect, because now you have to push things back to another day, which delays the other future plans you have!

This can cut into your time to work on those assignments and submit them on time.

Build in some flexibility into your calendar

I have learned that strict schedules are my worst enemy as a working student.

If you find that calendars, planners, or notebooks help you stay organized, try giving yourself blocks of time each day that count as ‘Wild Cards.’

These Wild Card periods, you’re free to do anything. This can be work, rest, working on school work, catching up on backlogs, doing chores, or having fun with family.

You’ll be able to judge what’s best to work on, which can help you better keep up with those assignment deadlines. It also provides that schedule flexibility, just in case.

Multiple Assignments Due on the Same Day

Another thing that’s challenging for adult students is having multiple deadlines on the same day. This caused analysis paralysis for me because I didn’t know what college projects to work on first.

I had to figure out a way to work on all of my assignments at the same time. This is impossible because I’m not a robot haha.

Forget prioritizing…just do something.

The best solution for me has been to just start on anything.

As I progress through any assignment, I gather more data on how difficult the class or assignment is. This allows me to pivot to my other assignments once I feel comfortable with my progress on assignment 1.

Rather than worrying about prioritizing first, this method allows me to at least make some progress.

This is a more intentional way of using time, which will allow you to better prioritize future assignments with your classes.

You still need to figure out your assignment workflows

Another reason why it can feel impossible to keep up with assignment deadlines, especially if you’re a non-traditional student is because you’re not adjusted to your new workflows yet!

When I first returned to college after a 2 year break, I was working full-time, and was continuing through an online program. I had totally forgotten how to write an academic paper and how to research sources.

It took me about 2 weeks and two assignments where I was basically winging it. However, the experience and feedback I gained from those assignments made each consecutive assignment that much easier.

I was able to develop a workflow that worked best for me. And, at the same time, this allowed me to develop a rough weekly routine that worked best with my full-time work schedule. It’s not perfect, but at least I’m getting my assignments done!

Don’t be so hard on yourself 🙂

I say this to say give yourself grace. Those first 2-3 weeks of the semester are going to be tumultuous as you’re learning class requirements and shifting your life schedule around.

After that, you’ll adjust.

You’re trying to cram everything into 1-2 days

Another reason keeping assignment deadlines might feel impossible is because you’re trying to complete your assignments all at once.

This could come from procrastination – waiting until the due date to start that project. Or, it could be you’re trying to do everything early to get it out of the way.

I’ve done both, and I’ve found that the solution is finding a happy medium.

Spread your work out over the course of the week

For example, I like to dedicate roughly 1-2 hours 4-5 days a week to assignments. On Tuesdays, I complete my required readings at lunch time at work.

Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays (and sometimes Sundays if needed), I write out my papers for the week.

Your schedule and needs may be different, especially if you take in-person classes, or have to study for exams. But the point still stands:

I’ve found that consistent input beats cramming in the long-term. It’s also more sustainable.

You’re trying too hard to make everything perfect

The next reason why you may be overwhelmed by assignment deadlines is that you’re trying too hard.

Remember, fitting assignment deadlines into a packed schedule as a working student is not about doing more. Nor is it about feeling more productive.

Rather, it’s more important that you are more intentional with your time and energy. So how can we do this?

Reduce your energy expenditure and spread it across working and school

First, if you’re an extra hard worker, it’s time to dial back the effort. If you usually stay late at your job, do what you can to reduce your hours to your regular times if possible.

I had to come to terms with not being the top performer at work, nor being the very best in my college class, at least during this season.

Since we’re human, we have a limited amount of energy we can expend.

Reducing the amount of energy that is dedicated to both work and school, while still being effective in both areas, is what will allow sustainability.

Make sure you define your goals and priorities. For me, I want to successfully graduate with my Bachelor’s degree in 18 months, while still keeping my job. As a result, I’ve adjusted my energy expenditure accordingly.

Use ethical methods to increase assignment efficiency

Another way to reduce time and energy requirements is by using more efficient (but still ethical) methods to complete classwork.

I have recently been using Text-to-Speech to draft my discussion board posts. It feels like cheating at first because it’s not as hard as typing everything out, but it’s not!

I’ve had to tell myself that I’m not gonna get a medal for not using Text-to-Speech.

My husband showed me this and it has been a game changer. Everything is still in your own words, but the computer is typing it up for you. Plus, you talk faster than you type.

I highly giving this a shot to make it easier to meet your assignment deadlines!

Conclusion

To recap, we’ve discussed some reasons why it’s difficult to manage assignment deadlines as a working student. We’ve also covered some practical tips to help you be more effective and efficient when completing your homework and projects.

I’m always looking to learn more, so let me know in the comments if you have any tips you use to help manage your classwork.