I finally uploaded ALL of my Academic Planner pages (which can be found here here) & thought this would be the perfect opportunity to finally talk about school. Especially since I get so many questions about what I’m doing in school, how I stay motivated, how I use my planner, & so on.

ACADEMIC PLANNER

Projects & Exams

There are 12 dedicated pages for projects and exams to track project due dates, assignments and components needed to complete them. In my planner, each page is a month & the projects/exams on the page will be determined by the DUE date.

Academic Planner | Customizable Event Stickers | Metallic Sticker Pack

Monthly View

I use the calendar to mark important due dates from my syllabus: exams, tests, projects, & assignments.

Weekly View

I love the to do lists on the side & how it is more customizable than the previous academic planner! The biggest essential for my academic planner is the Customizable Event Stickers from EC that I use to put the course labels on. For this planner, I making every 2 rows for a specific course (label with the course sticker). You can see all of my weekly pages here.

Notes

Similar to the Deluxe Monthly Planner, the Academic Planner has 4 note pages at the end of each month. I am going to use each page for a class to track assignments, due dates, & important information.

Back

One thing to note is that there isn’t extra note pages or a pocket in the back of the academic planner like the LifePlanners have. So I did add a Note Pad with the CoilClip Connectors and a Large Clear Sticky Corner Pocket to the back of my planner as well as a Pen Holder for when I take my planner with me. Another thing to note is that I order 1-2 pages of Customizable Event Stickers for EACH class so I have enough though out the semester.

Enrolling

First things first. I love school, setting goals & working towards something. Earning my MBA has always been my main goal. I never thought twice about not going to school. There were semesters where I couldn’t pay for tuition or I chose to focus on work instead of enrolling in courses, but I didn’t let that stop me from going back the next seamster. To me, a degree is something I want & have always wanted & when I want something, I get it. Nothing comes easy, especially earning your degree. You HAVE to want it. There’s long nights of studying, group projects with people that you don’t understand how they got in to the school in the first place, potential loans that are going to take years to pay off, & times where you miss going out with your friends to take a test or finish a assignment that is only worth 1% of your grade. You have to find something that drives you to earn your degree whether it’s for a job you want, to secure your job, to promote, or just to have to support yourself or someone else. I always say that I am “earning” my degree instead of “getting” it. No one is giving you the degree. You’re putting in time and effort to EARN your degree. You’re managing your time, working on projects, expanding your skill set, and most importantly accomplishing a goal. How many people do you hear quit school & don’t go back? Or just don’t go at all? That’s why getting a degree is so important and sets you apart.

Major

Choosing a major can be difficult. I’ve switched my major a couple of times & I’m actually about to switch it again.. I wanted to be a journalism major since I was little. Growing up I wanted to be a reporter & then later on wanted to work for a magazine (another reason I started this blog). It wasn’t until I took my first business class in high school that I decided I wanted to go to school for business. I LOVE business, every job you are going to have is a business & you can apply the concepts you learn at work. If you’re undecided or selecting a major then take required courses first or intro courses to help select a major.

Courses

You go to school to get the job you want. So when you enroll take the classes you want. Obviously you have to take the required courses but those electives are YOURS. When I’m degree planning & choosing which courses to take each semester I always try to take the required courses first. BUT to help keep things as interesting as it possibly can get for school, I try to make sure to have a course I will love and keep me engaged when I take a course that I know I will hate (typically a math course).

FAQ

What’s your current classification?

I am currently in my second semester of Grad School.

What is your major?

I am currently earning my MBA with an emphasis in Information Systems but I will be changing my major back to Marketing soon. I earned my Bachelor’s in Marketing & Management last December.

What Academic Planner do you use?

I use the Erin Condren Academic Planner.

How do you use your Academic Planner?

You can see my Planner Pages here.