How to: Be Organized at SUNY Oneonta

Alex Di Palermo, Staff Writer |

Imagine this: it’s Sunday night. You think you have done all your assignments, so you are watching Euphoria. While watching, you get a text from your best friend and realize you have a paper due in your literature class at midnight. While freaking out that you only have under two hours to compose an entire paper, you realize you must make a PowerPoint presentation for your group project to present at 8 a.m. in the morning. Also, you forgot to show up to your club meeting earlier in the day. 

As a college student, it’s easy to lose track of your things, events, and assignments. Sometimes, it feels like I would lose my head if it was not attached. If you relate to this and have a hard time being organized, don’t fear… help is here! 

Recently, Dr. Sarah Portway, a fashion professor here at SUNY Oneonta, hosted a student panel giving advice on how to be organized. This was a very beneficial event to attend, not only because there was pizza, but because the advice was extremely helpful for students who may need help staying organized.  

Now that technology has grown to be a vital part of our everyday lives, it can be helpful. If you are a person who uses technology, like your phone that you are on for hours every day, it can be helpful to start utilizing apps and features that these devices have. 

Students shared their methods of using their iPhone, like setting reminders, alarms, and utilizing Google and Microsoft apps so they can access documents on their phone and computer. Calendar apps like Outlook or TimeTree were also beneficial. This helps students stay on top of tasks, assignments, events, and plan their days so they are not over to under-booked!  

Additionally, using tools like Google Docs, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft OneNote has helped students take neater, more organized notes while in class. Especially for those with bad handwriting, it can be helpful to be able to read and understand your notes! 

There are still students who handwrite everything, and that is great! For those students, it would be beneficial to learn and practice the Cornell Note Taking Method to enhance their notes. Not only this but it’s nice to invest in planners and notebooks made for note-taking. Whatever methods work for you are the best methods! 

For keeping track of assignments, whether you live on your computer or in your notebooks, it is important to always have your syllabi accessible. Though these assignments may change, it’s important to know what you must do and when! Some students write down their assignments every week, every month, or at the beginning of each semester! No matter when you decide to do this, there is nothing more satisfying than crossing a task off your list! 

These methods may not work for everyone, and that is okay! It’s important to stay calm and do what works for you. Sometimes, it takes time to find your best organizational methods!