For some people, school is already in full swing, and for others, classes haven’t begun yet. No matter where you are, I’m sure you aren’t fully prepared for the semester that lies ahead. There are many different reasons to not be prepared. Maybe this is your first year away from home, maybe this is the hardest semester you’ve had thus far in your college career, maybe you’re a senior and this is your final push, or for many of us, maybe you're in denial that summer is over and you refuse to accept that the school year is quickly approaching. Time is now of the essence and you can’t spend any time unprepared for what is about to come. Here are a few of my personal tips on how to stay on top of this semester.

1. Get a planner.

Small or big, purple or blue, rectangle or square, it doesn’t even matter. As long as you have something with the days of the week for you to write down the mass of things you’ll have due, you’ll be in good shape.

2. Make a to-do list.

In order to make sure you are completely aware of everything you need to do, make a to- do list. It might sound silly, but without it, it is so easy to forget something. It’s also the best feeling to cross off things on your to-do list once it's completed.

3. Get a binder and a notebook for each class.

It’s so much easier to keep all of your notes for one class together and all of your handouts in the same place. It seems like an obvious thing, but people seem to forget organization once they get to college.

4. Manage your time.

If you don’t want schoolwork to consume all of your time, manage your time so you can get the important things done and still be able to hang out with friends and catch all of the games on campus. It sucks to be the only one who can’t partake in activities because you procrastinated or sucked at time management.

5. Don’t procrastinate.

This goes along with time management, but don’t procrastinate and wait until the last minute to do things. Your final product won’t be the best if you cram it in last minute, and you won’t be happy with your grade. Professors can easily tell the difference between hard work and rushed work.

5. Don’t stress yourself.

I know that more times than not it seems impossible to not stress about the seemingly endless amounts of papers, presentations and readings. But stressing about it doesn’t change it, and it certainly doesn’t help the situation. Try your hardest to not over stress yourself or it’ll be a long semester.

6. Stay organized.

Life gets busy, and as the semester goes on, your room will get messy and you will feel like your life is out of control because you are unorganized. Take a few minutes out of each day to pick up your room and organize your desk and book bag. If you do a little organizing each day, it won’t spiral out of control.

7. Stay motivated.

Undergrad is four years if you do it right. It only takes four years to get a degree in the field of your dreams. It’s not an easy four years by any means. Remember that the end result is a college degree. Stay motivated even when it gets hard and seems impossible. It is worth it and will be the most rewarding thing when it’s all said and done.