Catherine McGrath

Ella Souder, a senior majoring in marine biology and ecology at the University of Miami, hates presenting in front of people.

However, in the last semester of her undergraduate degree, Souder is enrolled in a class where presentations are weekly assignments. Between working eight hours a week and juggling an 18-credit course load, she ends up putting off these assignments.

“Yeah, so practicing presentations and writing out what I need to say for the presentation I procrastinate on the most definitely,” Souder said. “Just because I’m kind of an uncomfortable presenter. So, it’s just something that I don’t enjoy working on.”

When it comes time to present, Souder said she often regrets having not spent more time practicing her presentation. Still, she finds herself putting it off weekly.

College professors advise their students against starting assignments or cramming for exams the night before. Despite this warning, Richter Library remains open into the dark hours of the night because college students procrastinate. It can feel like there isn’t much you can do to motivate yourself until the due date is within a few hours and the pressure is on. If you’re a college student who often stays up late completing assignments, continue reading to learn how to curb your procrastination.

While there is no fool-proof cure for procrastination, seasoned college students develop tricks and strategies that help tame it. Anna Coon a senior political science and journalism major, said that procrastination isn’t a constant struggle for her.

“There are weeks when I’m super productive and others that I put everything off. I think it has a lot to do with the current state of my mental health,” Coon said.

Procrastinating assignments often becomes overwhelming for her, increasing overall stress levels. To avoid fluctuating rates of productivity, the senior tries to remain busy.

“Once I have a few days off without doing work I have a hard time getting back into school mode,” she said. “So, if I keep myself busy working on anything, a resume, portfolio, whatever it is, I can go back into completing assignments more easily.”

This can be an effective strategy to utilize over holiday breaks or summers.

Throughout the school week, students might find themselves avoiding work by spending time with friends leading to collective procrastination. “If I’m already trying to procrastinate something and then my roommates are not trying to do work then they’re like let’s do something else. And then we’re both procrastinating together,” Souder said.

The senior designates time for schoolwork using Google calendar, a Google account feature that allows you to easily schedule meetings and get reminders about upcoming events. Google calendar alerts you 15 minutes prior to scheduled activities. You can also differentiate between events and tasks. It can be downloaded onto your phone so that notifications appear on both desktop and mobile devices.

“I also have a digital sticky note on my desktop where I just keep like a running to-do list,” she said.

Dr. Firdaus S. Dhabhar, a professor in the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, and Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, studies stress-related mechanisms. He believes that there are two types of stress: good and bad. His lab studies both.

“Take some time to think and plan,” he said. “And then jump in and start working on the task while being open to correcting or changing course if needed, but not at such a late time in the process that it could lead you to miss your deadline.”

Dhabhar stressed the importance of reducing chronic or bad stress while also advising college students to recognize that short-term stress can be beneficial under the appropriate circumstances.

“This is based on our research which shows that in contrast to chronic or bad stress that has numerous deleterious effects on mind and body, short-term (minutes to hours) stress can actually have beneficial effects,” he said.

It is natural for students to sometimes doubt their abilities, Dhabhar said.

“Most of us experience this at one point or another. So, know that you are not alone, and just get started,” he said.

Procrastination can negatively affect your ability to excel in college so, it’s important to catch it early. However, taking time to deliberate on a task can often improve the results. Just don’t wait until the night before.