How to Set SMART Goals as a University Student: Even If You’re Overwhelmed
“You can cut down a tree with a hammer, but it takes about 30 days. If you trade the hammer for an ax, you can cut it down in about 30 minutes. The difference between 30 days and 30 minutes is skills.” ~ Jim Rohn
Every year, millions of students join the University. It’s definitely a dream destination for many high schoolers.
However, as soon as they get there, reality hits them… That it’s going to be a bumpy ride…
University life can be both exciting and stressful. It all depends on how you look at it
Over 200 million university students around the world wake up daily to a mountain of challenges.
As to whether they will climb the mountain to get to its top (and enjoy the beautiful view of the world), or settle at its foot is purely a matter of choice.
Life in the university can easily feel like being in a jungle.
But one thing is assured, survival is for the smartest. These are the ones who are clever enough to trek through the jungle safely and come out successful.
In this post, we’ll tell you how to trek across the University jungle by setting SMART goals.
We’ll also share with you some of the challenges faced by a University student then show you how to deal with them by setting SMART goals with examples.
We’ll walk you through the definition and the secret personal benefits of setting SMART goals.
Table of Contents
How to Set SMART Goals as a University Student: Even If You’re Overwhelmed
27 Challenges of a University Student
The Secret Benefits of Setting SMART Goals For Yourself
7 SMART Goals Examples for University Students
The Bottom Line On SMART Goals for University Students (And Succeed)
Let’s dive in.
27 Challenges of a University Student
Life in the university comes with many challenges.
When you first set your foot in the University, one of the first things that you’ll encounter is Freedom.
Oh yes, there’s freedom to do almost anything (as long as it is legal). Depending on how you’ll handle it, the freedom will either build you or destroy you.
So, it’s both a challenge and an opportunity.
Reason is, the University views you as an adult who is capable of making choices.
Other challenges are:
1. Study life balance
2. Cost/financial needs
3. Time wastage
4. Decision making on personal development activities
5. Feeling lost in the large student body
6. Homesickness
7. Being out of touch with issues that affect lives and communities e.g., poverty; racial biases; inequality; discrimination; gender biases;
8. Independence
9. Culture shock
10. Anxiety
11. Competing interests
12. Health challenges
13. Poor academic performance
14. Being out of sync with the University
15. Other loud and vibrant activities taking place in the immediate surrounding of the campus
16. Accommodation
17. Relationships/dating
18. Drugs & alcohol (substance abuse)
19. Not knowing how to tackle individual and group assignments
20. Skipping classes
21. Missing exams/assignments
22. Fitting in socially
23. Poor eating habits
24. Feeling overwhelmed
25. Fear of missing out
26. Identify crisis
27. Stress
The Covid-19 pandemic has not made things any better.
In fact, a recent survey about student experiences during the fall semester and the corona virus pandemic in USA found that stress, anxiety and loneliness were their overriding concern.
As you can see, these are many challenges.
Without a smart action plan to overcome them, it can be a daunting task.
So then how do you navigate this jungle during your university lifetime?
Fortunately, there is a proven way.
It’s called the SMART goals way.
You need to have clear, specific and actionable plans in how you are going to carry yourself throughout your stay in the university until you proudly graduate.
Definition of SMART Goals
SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific; Measurable; Achievable; Realistic and; Time bound. So, when we talk of SMART goals it means the goals should satisfy the criteria set in this acronym where:
Specific means the goal is not vague but clear. You state exactly what you want to do and achieve.
Measurable means the results can be quantified or clearly stated in qualitative features. You’ll be able to measure your achievement in terms of quality or quantity.
Achievable means the goal has the potential to be attained; neither too difficult nor too easy.
Realistic means the goal can be practically implemented, considering your current circumstances.
Time bound means the goal is not open ended and has clear time frames on when it should be achieved.
The Secret Benefits of Setting SMART Goals For Yourself
In order to maintain its reputation and keep to the expectation of being the repository and generators of knowledge, the University relies on its students (and lecturers).
This explains the ever-present pressure on the students to demonstrate academic excellence.
SMART goals have been used in many areas of life such as business, social enterprises, sports, religious groups and academia.
The main benefit from all these groups has been improved achievement of results.
Other benefits that apply to the individual are:
Self-motivation
Without motivation, it will be very difficult to handle the overwhelming circumstances of University life. Many students have confessed to being overwhelmed by loneliness. In such a situation, you need a tool that will motivate you to continue carrying out your responsibilities. — no matter what!
Self-drive
A clear action plan is what you need in the midst of many activities that are screaming for your attention. It can be very easy to keep procrastinating your assignments until you realize you are just about to miss a deadline or have already missed it.
Self-esteem
The student population in most universities is usually huge. In such a set-up, it’s not uncommon to feel out of place. Other times the culture shock could fuel your self-doubt. When you feel like that, turning to your goals, might be the sure way to keep yourself in check and enable you achieve your academic dreams.
Self-confidence
A feeling of lack of achievement can easily erode your self-confidence. Assuming your main aim of going to the University is to pursue academic excellence, having SMART goals will boost your academic performance. Knowing that you have set your goals will increase your self-confidence even when situations become overwhelming like now during the Covid-19 the pandemic.
You can get more of this on:
7 SMART Goals Examples for University Students
It’s easy to assume that you understand what goals are but when it comes to setting them, it can get confusing. That’s why we’ve prepared these examples that you can relate with to make it easy for you to follow and set your own SMART Goals.
1. I will register for an online course in time management in May, 2021.
This goal seeks to address the need for good time management skills. As you now know, time management is a critical skill to your success in the university. It’s not enough to simply wish to excel in all that you do. You have to plan and put deliberate effort using a systematic approach like time management.
2. I will join the University online Peer Accountability Group and connect with other students weekly.
Online learning can cause fatigue and loneliness. This goal is to help you link up with your fellow students. where you check on one another. It will also help you connect, encourage one another and share ideas to help you achieve your goals and keep healthy — physically, spiritually and mentally.
3. I will meet all my lecturers once every month to cultivate a good relationship with them, seek clarification on areas I didn’t understand and learn about academic excellence from them.
This goal will help you have a personal relationship with your lecturers. When lecturers see enthusiasm in you, they are likely to go an extra mile to give you additional information on your area of study and general advice on best practice in academic performance. You can’t access such privileged information by keeping to yourself.
4. I will spend a maximum of 1 hour daily on social media to enable me catch up my friends and access social news.
This goal will help you achieve two things at the same time. Firstly, it will enable you to be disciplined in the amount of time you allocate to online socialization. On the other hand, it will help you to consistently keep in touch with your friends and other social networks.
5. I will join the University Sports Association and participate in playing basketball 3 times a week to enable me attain physical and mental fitness.
This goal will help you get to know other students, thus widen your network. It will also put you in a routine keep fit programme (through games) and enhance your physical and mental health.
6. Within the first week of the semester, I will develop a personal timetable that incorporates all my academic (lectures and assignments) and non-academic activities (such sports, volunteering and social activities) for the semester.
This goal will keep your activities in check and ensure that no task that is due your attention falls through the cracks. It will also help you balance your time between academic and non-academic activities so that you don’t concentrate on one aspect too much while ignoring the other.
7. I will participate in a volunteer programme every month to help me build my career.
After all, the reason you went to the University is to get the necessary knowledge and skills for a career. Anything that will assist in achieving this objective is more than welcome. Furthermore, volunteering will give you an overview of some real-life situations and enable you adjust your mindset concerning social integration.
The Bottom Line On SMART Goals for University Students (Is Action)
SMART goals will assist you get value in the activities you undertake.
They will serve as a guide concerning what you should do while in the University, why you should do, when and how you should do it.
This road-map will keep you accountable as you will be able to tell whether you are achieving the intended results or not. Such a tool reminds you that success is connected with action.
The only way to demonstrate your action is to use the SMART goals in your university life. And soon you’ll realize that:
“The more you discipline yourself to use your time well, the happier you will feel and the better will be the quality of your life in every area.” ~ Brian Tracy
To learn more about SMART Goals please visit:
Q-Train Consulting on LinkedIn: What Everybody Ought To Know About Setting SMART Goals In 2021
Hope you enjoyed and have learnt a thing or two from reading this post. Please leave your comments.
