How To Avoid Burnout As A College Student

🗓️ March 27,  2026

✍🏾 Isabelle Hector

As a college student, your day is never truly done. Tackling classes, jobs, extracurriculars, and still making time for yourself is not easy. According to acls.org  between 60-80% of college students experience academic burnout. In this article, I will be giving you 3 tips to avoid burnout and reminding you to take a breather every once in a while.

Tip #1:Time Management and Organization

As cliché as it may sound, planning out your day and schedule is the key to success. Using a planner or a digital calendar allows you to keep track of your assignment due dates while also being able to block out time for events or extracurriculars. Not keeping track of your assignments can lead to last-minute cramming, which is definitely an easy way to burn out. Trying to complete large amounts of work in a short time can lead to moodiness and irritability, according to an article on medium.com. A great digital calendar app is Notion. Notion allows you to directly link due dates from Canvas to their app, so you get reminders when assignments are due.

Tip #2:Set Realistic Goals

As a college student, it can be easy to want to take on the world and say yes to every opportunity that presents itself. You can get so caught up in this cycle that you forget it’s ok to set multiple small goals for yourself and only say yes to things that you know you can really give your 100% too. Setting more goals realistic to the time and effort that you can offer makes all the difference. When completing tasks and assignments, it can be easy to tell when you put your all into something vs when you don’t. Setting realistic goals allows you to remind yourself to take a breath and accomplish tasks in ways that work for you.

Tip #3: It’s Okay To Take Breaks

Sometimes completing academic tasks can be a lot, and everyone needs a break every once in a while. So while it’s important to complete your assignment its just as important to make sure your are prioritizng yoru physical and mental health. That’s why taking breaks and breathers is important. When studying for a test or writing papers, make sure to implement 20-30-minute breaks where you can take a breather, stretch, or get something to eat/drink. Prioritizing trying to get at least 6-8 hours of sleep each night can also be beneficial as ot allows you to be energized to take on the day.

Tip #4:Take Advantage of School Resources.

Most, if not all, schools should offer tutoring services as well as counseling/ therapy. You must utilize these services because at the end of the day, they come out of your tuition whether you use them or not. You can also form study groups on campus and hold each other accountable for due dates and projects while studying and learning more together. Doing tasks with a group orknowing that there are people you can turn to when times get hard can  make all the difference when it comes to burnout