Six Tips for Coping with Early College Classes

Most new college students look forward to not having to wake up as early as they had to in high school. However, it is sometimes necessary to take early morning classes as a freshman because more conveniently scheduled classes may be filled by upperclassmen. However, there are some things you can do to make taking early college classes more bearable. Here are some tips to make early classes more tolerable.

Early College Class Tip #1 - Get Enough Sleep
Do what you have to to get enough sleep the night before you have your early college class or classes. If this means going to bed an hour or two earlier than you normally do, deal with it. Being exhausted in class, lab, or recitation can mean that you don't take good notes, that you'll have difficulty paying attention, and that you won't perform as well on any evaluations. Likewise, you might miss important instructions for assignments. If you have an early college class, the best thing you can do for yourself and your grade is to get enough sleep.

Early College Class Tip #2 - Cut Down on Your Typical Caffeine Consumption
Some college students drink a lot of coffee or energy drinks, and more or less build up a tolerance to caffeine. If you have early college classes, caffeine can be your friend and can help you to start your day more easily. If you find that caffeine has lost its effect on you, try to cut back on it so that you can use it to your best advantage when dealing with your early classes.

Early College Class Tip #3 - Communicate With Your Roommate
It's likely that both you and your roommate will have at least one early class each. If this is the case, make sure that you and your roommate know each other's schedules. Make sure that you respect your roommate's need to sleep by using headphones to listen to music and keeping light to a minimum. Showing respect to them will make it more likely that they will show respect for you. It will be hard for either one of you to perform well in your early college classes if you both prevent each other from getting enough sleep.

Early College Class Tip #4 - Talk to Your RA if Necessary
Don't be afraid to talk to your Resident Assistant if other people in your dorm are being loud and preventing you from getting enough sleep. You shouldn't have to suffer in the morning because they choose to stay up late.

Early College Class Tip #5 - Simplify Your Morning Routine
Do as much as you can to cut down on the things you have to do in the morning. This may mean laying your clothes out for the next day, taking a shower at night instead of a morning one, getting any breakfast foods the night before, and packing your backpack for the next day. Doing all of this may mean that you get to sleep for an extra half hour, and may prevent you from forgetting important assignments or notebooks in the morning.

Early College Class Tip #6 - Don't Alter Your Sleep Schedule Drastically
If you have an early class, try to base your regular sleep schedule around it. If you have to wake up at 7 one morning, try to get up by 8 or 9 on most other days. Being able to sleep in is nice, but it will make getting up for your early college classes even more difficult.

Although most college students would prefer to not have classes at 8 in the morning, it is sometimes unavoidable. However, there are some things you can do to make early college classes more bearable. If you have any other advice for college students with early classes, or any relevant anecdotes of your own, please feel free to share your thoughts in the form of a comment. Thank you for reading!