How to Enjoy Student Life But Still Get Good Grades

Some people relate university solely to studying and place their degree as their number one priority, their ultimate aim being to get the best grades, whilst others relate university solely to partying and place getting drunk as their number one priority, their ultimate aim being to have the time of their life.

But what if you want both? What happens if you want to do well in your degree but you want to have a brilliant time partying as well? You don’t want studying to jeopardise having a good time or having a good time to jeopardise your grade. So, do you have to choose one or the other – books or booze, friends or tutors, libraries or nightclubs? Personally, I don’t think you do have to choose. I honestly think you can balance studying with partying and ultimately get the best of both worlds. And here’s how:

First and foremost, enjoy Fresher’s Week. Seriously – make the most of it! Not only is it the best time to make friends, but you won’t have freedom like it for the rest of the year in terms of work load, so if you’re going to go booze-mad at any time in the year – do it then, right at the beginning, before the real work starts.

When the university term starts properly, the work will start flowing, so keep a track of coursework deadlines and exam dates by pencilling them into a calendar or diary. This will give you a much clearer idea of the times that you need to be studying and the times that you will be able to kick back and enjoy a night out.

If there’s a party happening that you really want to go to but you know you have work to do, set yourself a target such as ‘I’ll go if I can finish all of my research’ or ‘I’ll go if I can write 500 words this afternoon’. If you reach your target, go out. You’ll enjoy the night much more knowing that you’ve done some of your work. Let’s face it – you’ll feel like celebrating! If you don’t reach your target, stay in. Yes, you’ll miss out but it’ll spur you on to get your work done so you can enjoy the next night out (and believe me, there will be more!)

Go to as many lectures and seminars as you can, even if you’ve been out the night before and you’re a bit hungover. Merely turning up means you’re getting the most out of uni – not lagging behind, using every opportunity to learn more information and taking advantage of the help available from tutors. After all, that’s what you’re paying for, right? You can crawl back into bed as soon as you finish anyway – that’s the beauty of living in halls or near campus!

When you get good grades, reward yourself with a big night out. Who knows – it might spur you on to try even harder and get an even better grade next time!

So there you go, it is possible to have the best of both worlds. Follow these simple steps and not only will you get the grades you’ve been hoping for and a degree to be proud of but you’ll walk away from university with brilliant memories as well.