Top 10 Productivity Hacks for Students

Navigating student life can be quite a juggling act. Balancing assignments, exams, extracurricular activities and personal responsibilities requires a level of organisation and efficiency that can be hard to maintain. Looking for a way to make student life easier? Productivity apps are the way forward. With all of your tasks, deadlines and other important notes streamlined on your phone, you’ll feel right on track and be able to effectively manage your time and enhance your academic performance. It doesn’t all have to be digital, though—there are plenty of ways you can keep ahead of the game, and we’ll be exploring these too!

 

Whether you’re struggling to keep up with your coursework, aiming to improve your study habits, or simply looking to make the most out of your time, here are the top productivity hacks for students for all aspects of your life.

 

Before we get into digital tools, one of the best productivity hacks for students is to break down your big, scary-looking tasks into more manageable chunks, especially when it comes to assignments. Multitasking makes us 40% less productive, so splitting up your tasks is a great place to start. 
 

For example, before beginning your paper, plan out the order of which topics you’d like to touch on—start with the introduction, body and conclusion. This can act as your skeleton. Now that you know what you want to talk about, do your research! Type up all of the information you’ll need for your assignment, not forgetting any references. Once you have everything you need, the rest of the paper will come naturally to you. If it still looks daunting, set a 60-minute timer and see how much you can get done. If you feel like you can do more, great! If not, you can always come back to it at a later date. 

 

The ABCDE method is a great way of prioritising your tasks. Simply assign your tasks to a letter using the below statements and work your way through them from A-E:

 

A-tasks: high importance, high urgency
B-tasks: medium importance, medium urgency
C-tasks: low importance, high urgency
D-tasks: low importance, low urgency
E-tasks: eliminate

 

Notion is a productivity app that serves as an all-in-one workspace. It allows you to create notes, manage projects, set reminders and seamlessly collaborate with your classmates. Notion is particularly beneficial as it enables you to organise class notes, track assignments and deadlines, as well as plan your study schedule efficiently.
One of the standout features of Notion is its personalised dashboard. It helps you monitor your progress across different subjects, ensuring you stay on track and also integrates various types of content, including text, images and links—it’s the perfect digital notebook.

 

Todoist is a great task management app that helps you keep track of all your assignments and deadlines. It combines to-do lists, calendars and reminders into one intuitive interface. For students, Todoist is invaluable for staying organised, which is essential for maintaining productivity.

 

The app’s "Today" view helps you focus on what needs to be done immediately by showing you your most urgent tasks. It also supports voice entry, allowing you to quickly add tasks without typing. Integration with other calendars ensures that all your commitments are synchronised, so you never miss a thing. By prioritising tasks and setting deadlines, Todoist helps you manage your time effectively and stay on top of your workload.

 

Staying focused can be a challenge, especially with the numerous distractions of modern life. Maximising focus is imperative for top productivity. Sometimes a change of scenery is a good place to start, so try studying in the library or a study hall—anywhere but your bedroom! If you’re looking for student accommodation Leicester, try finding one that has its very own study lounge, like at Novel. This way, it won’t be as much of a chore to get to a new study-friendly environment.

 

For added motivation, try downloading Forest. It’s a unique productivity app that helps you concentrate by gamifying the focus process. When you start a study session, you plant a virtual tree. The tree grows as long as you stay focused, but if you leave the app, the tree dies.
 

This simple yet effective concept encourages you to stay off your phone and concentrate on your tasks. Over time, you can grow a forest, which visually represents your dedication and productivity. Forest is perfect for students who need a little extra motivation to stay focused during study sessions.

 

Quizlet is an excellent app for students that allows you to create, share and study flashcards. It's a fantastic resource for exam preparation, enabling you to study on the go. With access to study materials created by other students as well as the ability to create your own, Quizlet offers a variety of study modes to suit different learning styles.

Whether you prefer flashcards, multiple-choice quizzes, or question-and-answer tests, Quizlet has you covered. The app’s interactive learning tools make studying more engaging and effective, helping you retain information better and perform well in exams.

 

Google Drive is a cloud storage service that allows you to store and share files online. For students, it’s an indispensable tool for organising documents and collaborating on projects. By organising your files into folders, you can easily retrieve documents, ensuring you never lose important assignments.

 

Google Drive's collaborative features, such as real-time editing and commenting, make it perfect for group projects. You can work on documents simultaneously with classmates, ensuring everyone can contribute and track progress. 

 

Arguably one of the most crucial productivity hacks is to get adequate sleep. It’s vital for maintaining productivity and overall well-being. However, students often struggle with maintaining a healthy sleep schedule due to the demands of their studies and social life. Sleep Cycle is an intelligent alarm clock that analyses your sleep patterns and wakes you up during the lightest sleep phase, ensuring you wake up feeling refreshed.

 

The app provides detailed insights into your sleep quality and offers tips for improvement. By getting quality rest, you enhance your concentration, memory retention and overall academic performance. 

 

SimpleMind is a mind-mapping app that helps you visually organise your thoughts and ideas. This can be particularly useful for brainstorming sessions, planning essays, or studying complex topics. By breaking down information into manageable chunks, you can understand and remember it more easily.

 

The app’s user-friendly design and customisable templates allow you to create detailed mind maps quickly and efficiently. SimpleMind is an excellent tool for students looking to enhance their study sessions and boost productivity through visual learning techniques.

 

Another of the best productivity hacks for students is to download GoConqr. This app is an all-in-one learning platform that offers a variety of tools, including mind maps, flashcards, quizzes and notes. It’s designed to help students create and share study resources, fostering a collaborative learning environment.

 

The app’s diverse range of study aids caters to different learning styles, ensuring you find the method that works best for you. GoConqr’s community features allow you to connect with other students, share study materials and collaborate on projects. 

 

Incorporating the right productivity hacks into your daily routine can significantly enhance your organisation and time management skills. By leveraging these productivity apps, you can achieve your academic and personal goals more efficiently. Embrace these tools to stay on top of your studies, reduce stress and make the most out of your student life. 

Looking for a place to stay whilst you study? Secure your student accommodation Leicester today.