December 30, 2019
5 Tips for a Successful Semester
Whether you are a brand new student or you’ve been around for a few semesters, starting something new — like education — can be intimidating. But you can do it! Here are five tips to help you be successful this semester!
Tip 1: Manage your time
Do you know the feeling of staying up late, rushing to get an assignment done, and turning it in at the last minute? Everyone has the same 24 hours in a day, but how we choose to use that time determines our success.
Studies show that when people manage their time effectively, they experience lower levels of anxiety and perform better academically.1 You can manage your time more effectively by organizing important academic dates and deadlines into a calendar and prioritizing the assignments that require more time. As President Spencer W. Kimball said, “Wise time management is really the wise management of ourselves.”2
Tip 2: Stay accountable
Researchers have found that when you make a routine appointment to report to someone else, your likelihood of success skyrockets by up to 95%.3 The trick is deciding to become accountable even when you don’t necessarily have to. So, when it comes to your academic progress, decide to report on how you’re doing to a friend, family member, classmate, or the Lord. Tell them what your goals are and then routinely check in with them. Doing so can improve your performance!
Tip 3: Live a well-balanced life
Education can require a lot of hours out of your day, but it’s important to keep a proper balance in life. Prioritize your mental, physical, social, and spiritual nourishment. Take breaks between assignments, find something that you enjoy doing, and allow your mind time to relax. Make sure to get 7–9 hours of sleep each night, exercise regularly, and eat a well-balanced diet. Arrange time to focus on being with family and friends. Set a specific time each day to pray, study the scriptures, attend the temple, and so on. Scheduling out your day with a variety of balanced activities not only will help you be more productive but will keep you feeling healthy and happy.
Tip 4: Ask questions
When you don’t understand a concept, it’s okay to ask questions! You could ask your instructor or a mentor, classmate, or friend. Search for information from reliable internet sources and helpful books. Asking questions can help you get more out of your education and your classes will become more interesting and impactful! Above all, ask for direction from the Holy Ghost. We are promised that as we ask God in faith, we shall receive.4
Tip 5: Actively participate
Actively participate in your education by taking advantage of all the resources and opportunities available to you. Get involved by participating in group discussions, attending your gatherings (for PathwayConnect students), meeting up with other local students, participating in monthly devotionals, and reading BYU-Pathway blog articles and university emails. You will feel more connected and get more out of your education as you do.
As Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf said, “Happiness is the destination, but it’s also the path.”5 So, as you pursue higher education, remember to find joy in these additional opportunities to learn.
Comments on "5 Tips for a Successful Semester"
I am glad to be part of this wonderful program. It’s my first time studying online. Thanks for the 5 tips for a successful semester!
Thank you very much for the 5 tips, they will go a long way in improving my studies and ultimately my family life. I believed that at the age of 50 it was way too late to enroll, but like the words of Prophet, age means nothing. Thanks very much, may God richly bless you.
Impressive tips to succeed. I’m blessed by it , thank you for sharing.
Thank you for the 5 tips. They are more essential for me.
I’m a new student and also working. The tips are a great help. Thank you for sharing this kind of tips.
Thank you so much. These are exactly what I need to succeed.
Thank you so much. It worked for me too and now I’m in my final semester.
Thank you for sharing these wonderful five tips. I really appreciate them and they will for sure help me to succeed.
Gracias, realmente si es un poco intimidante y aveces se siente solo en el proceso
I was feeling very anxious starting a new semester at the same time as being a father and having a full-time job. But as I went through these five tips, I feel that it is possible for me to do this. All I need to do is to discipline myself when it comes managing time.
That’s amazing, Willy! We are glad the tips were helpful to you. You can do this! Don’t hesitate to reach out for extra support from your missionaries, fellow students, or BYU-Pathway Support if you need it!
It’s very helpful for me to learn these tips. Thank you, and good luck to every student around the world!
Asking questions or help from someone is one of my weaknesses, and I am very grateful for the five tips. They will help me change.
Thanks a lot for the five tips!
Thanks for sharing this helpful tips to help us as we embark on this course
Thank you so much for the five tips. I am so grateful.
Thanks for the beautiful tips. I know they will take me long way in life.
Beautifully said. I am very happy to come across these 5 tips, which can teach us a lot. Thanks very much!
These tips are awesome! I am yet to start my classes, but I am intrigued by tip no.2 on accountability, and how it can magnify my academic success! Thank you so much and be blessed!
This is very helpful, especially to a student like me who has a full time job and a family. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for preparing us for this Winter semester in PathwayConnect.
Thank you for the tips for successful learning. There is no shortcut to success!
Thank you for these helpful , much Kenyan love from me.
Thank you for these helpful tips — with love from Kenya.
I know as we follow these tips, we can become better students. Thank you for these guidelines!
I am so much grateful for this tips.
Thank you for the tips!
Thanks so much. Considering all these tips, I know I can achieve success!
Great information for anyone who is working on the road to success.
Wow, it is so amazing to hear from my brothers and sisters that there is hope as I pursue my path to success. I’m grateful for all the comments that have been made — they really build me up.
Thank you very much for the tips for a successful semester!
I realized that I really need to work on these 5 tips. Thank you for sharing these with us — love it!
Awesome article! I loved it, thank you so much!
Thank you for the words of encouragement. Very much appreciated!
Thanks a lot for the tips! They are a light to success.
Thanks for the tips! They’re so uplifting.
Thank you so much! I feel so blessed to read all five tips. I am grateful for the restored gospel, for our living prophet who leads and directs us in these last days, and the blessing of Education (PathwayConnect).
Thank you very much for the tips. I will consider them to be successful this semester.
Thank you very much for all the tips. I will keep all of them in mind.
Thank you!
I know that studying improves the lives of all the people around us. I firmly believe that we must broaden our horizon and work to grow closer to God in our seeking truth. I am grateful to the Lord for all the inspired programs. I am learning a lot of both material and spiritual things, and I hope to learn a lot more. Thank you for the patience and perseverance of each of you who endure my imperfections.
I am very happy to come across this article. I believe it will be helpful for me, if I follow it diligently.
These 5 tips are really helpful. Thank you so much!
I really enjoy reading this article. It is so useful, and I can’t wait to begin practicing theses tips in my own life so that I can have new learning habits that can lead me to success. The article contains powerful words that encourage me to better use my time and my life.
Tip number 5, Actively Participate, is one that stood out to me. We have so many opportunities to learn and socialize, and it makes all the difference if we take advantage of that.
Hi My Name Anil David from Pakistan This Article really help me Alot some time I Want to quit The program But after reading this article it’s change my mind wow 😲 so beautiful article ❣️
I totally appreciate these tips in order to have success in achieving goals. Thank you.
I know it will be of help to me. Thank you so much.
Thanks, this will be of great help to us beginners.
These tips are inspiring and educational, and they have really motivated me a lot on how to manage my time and have faith in the Lord. I’m so grateful. Thanks!
Thank you, noted.
This is indeed a student-centered school.
Well said!
I love these, absolutely agree with it. As a young single adult, mostly spend time on things that I like to do, but so far I’m taking an online education. I have to make a change by managing my time and myself too. But thanks anyway for sharing these most inspiring tips.
Merci beaucoup pour ces conseils. Ces derniers constituent des principes importants pour progresser dans tous les domaines de la vie.
Yes, it is a sacrifice to accomplish success. This is the true path.
Thank you very much. That was helpful.
Thank you for these 5 tips. They really are 5 keys to success. It will help me to organize my studies and have a wonderful semester.
BYU-Pathway is a gift from God or an answer to prayers.
I am privileged to have been enrolled at BYU-Pathway where I will get a quality education as I grow intellectually and spiritually. These five tips will be my ingredients for a successful semesters. Thank you and God bless you for what you have done.
I really trust in these 5 tips 100% for guiding us to success in our study and life. God is at the top on these tips, so we will get what is promised in these tips in our study.
I am gratefully inspired to have these tips. Thank thank you very much!
Thank you very much. These five steps are really helpful for any student that wants to have success. I’m grateful for knowing all this 🙏
Thanks for the tips 😉
Wow great information!
Thank you for these wonderful tips, and I believe that these tips will help me to become a successful student for my last semester in this year.
Thank you for these five very important tips. As a father of five, a husband, an employee, and a leader in the Church, these five tips will really help me organize my studies and have a successful semester.
Thank you! I’m loving this already.
Thank you for this information. It’s very helpful.
Thank you. Very helpful tips!
Thank you for these 5 tips. They’re great to make our study successful. Thanks a lot!
Very helpful
Very useful information. Thanks a lot, it’s very much appreciated.
Really wonderful principle. Easy to adapt. Thank you! 💗
Wonderful! I appreciate you sharing so much and I will remember these 5 tips
Love this .vinaka for sharing
Thank you for sharing these 5 tips. I got good tips.
I am glad that these steps have helped me to improve on my grades
Adhering to those five steps will create an enabling environment to study and learn.
Thank you very much
Thank you for taking your time sharing this information
Thanks for helping me know the way to a successful academic achievement it’s really helpful.
Thank you, very helpful tips!
Thank you
Thank you! These tips are very helpful. I will use them for my semester.
These are very helpful tips, and they’ve answered my concerns on how I can reach my goals.
I really appreciate your 5 tips.
Thank you so much!
Thanks very much for your help.
Thanks for sharing with us these 5 tips. I feel more comfortable starting my classes this semester. I need to find joy in this beautiful path.
Thank you very much for sharing. I strongly believe that it will help me throughout my learning journey. Once more, thanks.
Tips give us additional patterns for attaining higher education, and I’m glad these are being shared. Thank you so much!
Thank you, I’m so blessed and excited to learn through BYU-Pathway. Thank you for the tips – they are more than helpful.
Thanks for the tips. I do believe that these tips are the key to our academic progress.
Thank you so much for the tips!
These five tips are very true and practical. We just need to apply them to be successful.
Thank you so much for those powerful tips! They mean a lot for our success.
Thank you for sharing these tips for success with us.
Great tips for a 41 year old going to school for the first time since high school!
Thanks! Truly, these tips are leading BYU-Pathway students to success.
Chasing five birds and being able to catch one or two is far better than chasing 50 and bringing home nothing. This is what time management has taught me. Time management is so fulfilling and strengthens family relationships. It helps us to find joy by focusing less on the circumstances of our lives (Helaman 3:34) but more on the focus of our lives (Helaman 3:35) as we are advised by President Nelson.
I am glad to hear about these five steps for a successful semester.
I’m sure by believing that those tips are helpful
I appreciate your tips. I know that I can apply them in others areas in my life to have success.
To be successful we have to accept the harder right then the easyer ronge
Thanks for the tips
Am trying to apply them as I study every day
The five tips are designed to help me succeed this semester.
Thanks for the five tips. They are achievable goals, and I like them all: especially tip number four, “Ask questions or search for information from reliable internet sources and helpful books.”
I’m fully agree with these five steps to become successful. They tell me how to prepare myself for this semester in order to find success. I love it! It’s helpful to me in my point of view. Thanks a lot.
To be successful these five tips are of great worth.
I’ll make it as a point of duty to stay ahead of my weekly assignment. By the grace of God
How we choose to use our time determines our success
Thanks for showing me how to manage my time and how to succeed in this semester.
Thank you for the tips
Very true indeed. I absolutely agree.
Thanks for these tips because sometimes when we focus on something we forget everything and it is important to get a balance. I’m going to practice all of them.
Very true, I believe in all of the tips and pray that I may apply all of them.
i agree
I agree with these 5 tips for a successful semester.
Yeah, definitely powerful tips. I hope I can apply them all.
They are really helpful and I will work towards them.
Thanks for sharing this with me. I need to manage my time effectively in order to pursue my goals.
Totally agree if you take these 5 steps as daily living and you are committed to doing all the homework and achievement, you will have a successful education, thanks for the 5 steps they are really helpful.
They are so amazing
I think if you are proactive in all you do, it can work.
I like to be effective in all I’m doing and I don’t like failing. Thanks for sending me this message.
Very good steps to follow 😍❤
It’s really good to see these five tips. I will do my best to work towards it, especially time management.
These five tips are very inspiring. I was so worried about how I could manage my timetable, but with this ideas I’m inspired.
I know following the 5 tips will help me this semester
I am grateful to know these 5 Tips for a successful semester because it really reminds me what I should do. Sometimes I can’t manage my time well because I prioritize unnecessary things. Now I have the knowledge how to live a well balanced life.
I am inspired to take this path; a whole new path in my mental, social and spiritual growth. How lucky l am!
Thanks so very much for sharing this 5 tips, they’re really nice keys to success.
It is true! So it is up to me to follow them.
I’m excited to try out these amazing tips
I am highly motivated by these 5 tips for a successful semester.
I totally agree with these five tips. If we work with them we will surely be successful in our education. Thanks.
The five tips can take many far especially if we follow and seek the spirit as well.
Thank you for your tips! I can testify that when I put my scripture study first, I seem to have more time for everything else, including schoolwork! I appreciate the reminder!
Thank you very for these wonderful rules, I really love it.
I am really thankful for the 5 tips for academic success and steps to follow from now on in my life.
I am really grateful to be at BYU-Pathway!!
Thank you for the tips! I know they are going to help me.
Thank you for the tips, I cannot wait to put them in practice.
Thank you so much for giving us the 5 tips that would help us to be successful in our academic pursuits. I have given it special acronyms in my notebook: MSLAA.
Thanks so much for these testimonies, I will prayerfully consider them for my success.
Thanks for sharing these five tips. They will really help me as I’m on my education journey.
These five tips all together have helped me organize my time and prioritize assignments. They helped me to establish a balanced life and as a result, I was able to turn in my assignments on time and earned “A” grades in all my PathwayConnect courses. I strongly recommend these success tips to any student who would like to achieve a balanced success.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Godstime! I’m glad you were able to apply these tips in your life and reach your goals. Congratulations!
I think these tips are the secret to every successful being…I called myself a success right after I finished reading. Very stupendous indeed!
Thanks for that! I will definitely use those tips.
It’s good to have these tips around this time. Thanks!
I really agree that this is really gonna help with using time wisely.
I need to apply these; they are helpful.
Indeed, it is very true.
Wow, all of these tips are amazing, thanks!
And not only for Pathway, but also for my entire life. 😊😊
This is going to help a lot as I begin my new educational journey!
Thanks for all these tips. I am truly honored that the Lord can truly speak to us right now in our time through all His living servants.
I really needed this and am glad I had the opportunity to read it. It really will be of help to me.
These tips are really great and very useful. If we adhere to them, they will be very helpful in our academic and personal career.
This is a successful life pattern …big thanks!
These tips are really the way not only to gaining education, but also for a fulfilled and balanced lifestyle.
These are certainly useful tips as sharing our challenges helps us resolve such problems and forge ahead. A problem once shared is half resolved. We get further revelation on the issue.
Truly, time management is really neccesary and has helped me do better even as this semester just started.
Thanks a lot for your amazing article. I love these tips and I have been doing them. I have seen some improvement!
I’m so glad you’ve had success using these tips, Gaurav! Best of luck with the rest of your semester!
Thanks for giving me a head start to face my challenges.
Nice tips to follow.
I can so relate! It was hard for me to manage my time last semester while working full-time. Thank you so much for your article!
I’m glad you found this article helpful, Phoebe! Congratulations on making it through last semester while working full-time. That’s an amazing accomplishment!
These are very insightful tips that would lead to a safe destination.
Thanks for sharing those tips.
I appreciate the tips because they are a way forward in my learning process.
I believe it will help me a lot along the road of this semester. Thanks!
Thank you.
Thank you so much for helping us be prepared.
I feel these tips are going to be so helpful as I’ve already been practicing some of these that were also suggested by my former Pathway instructor.
I really think that these tips will help me. We see it at PathwayConnect, it really works!! Thank you.
Thanks for the tips!
Thank you for these tips. I will follow this step by step in order to learn and be a better me.
Thank you so much for this helpful information.
I love these tips, they help calm me down and are truly helpful for me for this upcoming semester. Thank you so much.
Thanks for this great piece. I am ready to follow these steps.
I can’t believe these tips are helping me improve academically. I’m encouraging everyone to strictly adopt these. Thank you.
This is was what I was looking for, and I sure appreciate the tips.
Thanks so much for these tips, they are so helpful!
Great tips, I really appreciate them.
I am really grateful for the opportunity and the tips. Time management is my best life tool. While I was on my mission and after my mission, it has really blessed my life. It’s really going to help me a lot in my PathwayConnect program.
I love these tips, and they are very helpful!
I am indeed grateful for these five tips and the five truths from President Nelson. Our Father does know our needs and has provided laws to help us accomplish and achieve all things. These tips, if followed, will help me have a fulfilling semester.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Christiana! Have a wonderful semester!
Thank you, I’ll need it!
I love these tips, thanks so much.
Thanks for these tips!
I really appreciate every tip you post.
Thanks so much.
Indeed, these are successful tips that I will apply.
Thanks so much for these five great tips. I believe they will be helpful and will guide me through this semester.
Thank you for the tips. I know it will help me in this upcoming semester.
Absolutely! Very helpful, and I know if anyone can capitalize on these articles, then they have found the gateway to success.
I truly agree with these five steps. I discovered that I was not able to manage my time wisely, which really affected me a lot. Thanks so much for sharing this.
I’m glad this article was helpful to you, Sunday!
Yes, very well. Thanks once more👏👏
Yes Lauren Conrad, I appreciate it.
These five steps are true.
I totally agree with the 5 tips for a successful semester. I know if we strive to follow these tips, we will be very successful in our educational journey.
These five tips are very essential and they’re marrow to my bones.
Thanks a lot for these 5 tips, I am really sure they will help us to carry on easier in our learning.
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