Tips for Taking Notes on Your Laptop

These days, taking notes by hand is no longer a requirement at most colleges, universities and continuing education programs. If you have a laptop, you can bring it to class and type your notes directly into your work processing program. This makes sense for a number of reasons: First, most people can type about fifty words-per-minute more than they can write by hand, so you're bound to be more efficient. Second, taking notes on your laptop allows you to go back and rearrange.

Still, even if you are taking notes on your laptop, note-taking skills don't always come naturally. Many students struggle with taking proper notes and realize that their test scores are suffering. If you don't know how to pick out key topics and words as your professor gives his lecture, you're going to write down unimportant information and leave out the crucial stuff.

Look at Your Screen

Rather than staring at your professor or instructor when taking notes on your laptop, look at the computer screen and simply listen to what is being said. This allows you to focus your attention more clearly and you won't run the risk of typing gibberish because you weren't paying attention to what your fingers were typing. The only time when your eyes should leave the screen is when you need to look at a diagram, illustration or list on the white board or overhead projector.

Listen for Repeats

When your teacher repeats a phrase or tidbit of information, it is probably important. Anything that is said more than once should find an automatic home in the notes on your laptop, regardless of whether or not you feel that it's important. Professors and instructors know that taking notes can sometimes be overwhelming and they'll repeat information that might find its way onto an exam.

Don't Worry About Organization

The great thing about taking notes on your laptop is that you can always go back into your notes and rearrange sentences or lists so that they make more sense for studying. This doesn't mean that you should write one long paragraph; simply put a line break in between your thoughts and keep going. Don't worry about punctuation or highlighting or font sizes until the lecture is over and you can go back to rearrange.

Turn Off Sounds

It is important to be polite to the rest of the students when you are taking notes on your laptop. Turn off the speakers or reduce the volume to its lowest setting so that your notes are punctuated by a series of beeps, dings or alerts. You have to remember that everyone else needs to hear what the professor is saying and you don't want to be known as "that guy".

Type in Shorthand

Most students learn how to take notes in their own brand of shorthand, so maximize your use of the laptop by coming up with shorthand for typing. If you don't like studying with the shortened form of words, you can always go back and retype it later, but remember that even though you can probably type faster than you can write, you can't possibly type faster than your professor speaks.