How can I prepare for living at home during college rather than on campus?

You will need to focus on stress and time management. In order to manage stress you have to manage your time wisely. <span style="background-color: transparent;">You have to set a routine for yourself and stick to it for the most part. Once you get into the groove of a routine it will be much easier for you to manage your time and have enough time for everything you need to do (including relaxing). Make yourself to-do lists on a weekly basis, use Google calendar or a planner to keep track of events, deadlines, and due dates. In addition to setting a routine and sticking to it, plan out relaxing activities into your day. Or set aside a time, after everything is done for the day, that you can have "me" time. I have also personally found it essential to not only find time for myself but also make use of that time in a way that is best for me and my holistic wellness. I have found the HeadSpace app to be an essential tool in helping me relax and generally feel more relaxed throughout the day, Guided meditation, even if you have a busy schedule, will make you feel more at ease and relaxed throughout the day as a whole (not just when you have the time to relax and focus on that "me" time).</span>

<span style="background-color: transparent;">Set a routine.Use Google Calendar.Set aside Me TimeWrite weekly to-do lists and use a planner.Find a peaceful and restful activity that will help you feel relaxed.</span>

Claudia,

I "lived" at home for all 4 years of college. "Lived, " in quotation marks, because I truly was rarely home. Home was a place to take a shower, eat, and sleep. I recommend trying to schedule your classes so that the break time between classes is at least two classes long. If you have classes every day , this might look like:

MWF

9-10 class

10-12 break

12-1 class

1-2 class

T/Th

930-10:45 class

10:45-2:30 break

2:30 - 3:45 class

This gives you time to eat, and also to study. I found that a lot of people wasted the "off" time throughout the day, especially if it was only one class-length long, as it is barely long enough to get started studying and it is time to head off to the next class! I also strongly encourage you to find activities to join. I am not much of a joiner, but did manage to get involved with some political groups, which actually took me off campus to working on real campaigns. Also did charitable activities, and fundraisers during school carnivals.

Another idea, as pertains to the noisy ones in the household: You have the opportunity to be a role model for them, showing them about hard work, studying, and things like that. Depending of course on ages and dispositions, you might try to find a way occasionally to involve them with your studies. Vocabulary flashcards come to mind. You could even "pay" them to help you. . . clean their room for them, or something. I think it would be awesome for them to see someone working at learning, rather than simply thinking, "gee, she's so smart!"

Reluctantly, I am finally admitting that I in fact study better with "some" background noise, rather than silence. In fact, I used to study in the cafeteria sometimes. Only problem with this is when your friends see you and want to stop and visit.

I honestly think you will work this all out just fine, but it is good for you to be giving it a little thought right now!

KIm

Claudia, good question. College does require a healthy amount of studying to succeed, so you need to develop a study method and a way to manage time that works best for your. Be proactive about studying, don't procrastinate, advocate if you need help, and take responsibility.

Living at home may be a hurdle to some college experiences, but there are ways to still be involved. If I were you, I would try to spend as much time as possible on campus. Study in the library, make friends in your classes, be social, join clubs etc. If you head home right after class, you're not going to meet people and you will sadly miss out on some of the best aspects of college. Also studying at the library removes the issue of your noisy younger siblings!! All of the above may be more difficult if you live far away from campus, but I would try my best to be on-campus as much as possible and get involved in lots of activities .

Living at home could be a blessing. Distractions on campus are just as prevalent as at home. You can take the same approach if you want. While on campus, if your answer was to go to the library, you can do the same. Either go down to the library or use the school library. You can also put a sign on your door that says library so your younger siblings know you are studying. Creative problem solving is going to be a huge skillset you will be developing while in college and this is just the beginning.