[snoozeenwoozee]

Well, my problem is, I'm not sure if I'm feeling lazy or just tired... I lost motivation to do homework and put effort into studying unless if I'm cramming. Currently I am a sophomore, I am taking 3 honors classes (Trig/Pre-Calc, English, Chemistry) and 1 AP (WHAP) class; I'm not sure if that's considered a lot, but I'm getting straight B's in my honors/AP classes, low B's in some. My daily schedule is Mon-Fri, I have after school sport practice from 3-6pm *and Sat mornings 10am-1pm, in addition, on Mon and Wed, I have orchestra from 6-8pm. I'm not really thinking of quitting my sport or orchestra because I really like both and I work really hard at both. I was wondering if anyone with a similar schedule as mine could help me with my time management. By the time I get home, I feel unmotivated, tired, and I just want to knock out. I don't understand why I just sit in front of my computer for hours, wasting my time; I'm also not chatting. I feel like giving up my dream colleges, my GPA dropped dramatically from 4.3-3.8, first quarter until now.

Next year, I'm planning to keep the sport and orchestra, and take 2 AP classes, AP Bio and AP Calc AB. Would you guys think it's a decent choice if I were planning to apply for UCLA, UCSD, or Berkeley? I'm planning to major in optometry, but I'm not quite sure which schools are good for that. I was also considering architecture.

These are the activities I'm in so far:
-sport, orchestra
-a chinese cultural club *I am planning to try to run for a position like VP/P
-prom committee *we don't do much except for fundraising

These are the activities that I want to join next year:
-a service club
-red-cross
-maybe a math club- Mu Alpha Theta


So I was hoping if anyone would like to give me advice on how to manage my time or help me find motivation, or if anyone has a similar experience they want to share.

[christee8876]

If you're for sure going to go to a UC, I would recommend you dropping some of your extra curriculars.
Because the UC's main focus is on GPA and SAT score. unless you can write killer essay, chances are slim that you'll get into a top tier UC school with a GPA under 4.0.

First semester this year I was totally like that too. sooo unmotivated. haha I know this will sound lame, but I go to the library to do hw now. Like I bring all of my school stuff and spend a good 3 hours until I finish most of my homework because at home there's so many distractions like the tv and the computer. yeah, so try that because that really helped me. I studied 5 hours at the library and got my first A- on my AP Bio exam so it really helps

oh, and your schedule looks pretty good. you've actually got a really hard course load. good luck!

[snoozeenwoozee]

If you're for sure going to go to a UC, I would recommend you dropping some of your extra curriculars.
Because the UC's main focus is on GPA and SAT score. unless you can write killer essay, chances are slim that you'll get into a top tier UC school with a GPA under 4.0.

First semester this year I was totally like that too. sooo unmotivated. haha I know this will sound lame, but I go to the library to do hw now. Like I bring all of my school stuff and spend a good 3 hours until I finish most of my homework because at home there's so many distractions like the tv and the computer. yeah, so try that because that really helped me. I studied 5 hours at the library and got my first A- on my AP Bio exam so it really helps

oh, and your schedule looks pretty good. you've actually got a really hard course load. good luck!

Thanks for your response! I'd like to try it if I find the chance these last couple of months.

[JANG.]

i have the same problem, and i don't even have after school sports or anything, haha.

after school i'm pretty much drained, so i spend a good amount of time "relaxing", and then start HW at 10 or 11. like the person above said, going somewhere else to work on schoolwork really helps. rather than a library, i normally go to a cafe/coffee shop after school on some weekdays and just sit and work for a couple hours, until the majority of my work is done. i usually go with a friend, so its not so boring, and i'll be able to get help if i don't understand something. it helps me, but if friends distract you, it's best to go alone. you should try that for a week or so and see if it helps you at all. i usually bring a laptop with me because most of my assignments require internet, but if it's gonna be another distraction, i'd leave it at home. on the other hand, it's nice to take a break too, because working non-stop gets tiring, so if you can juggle work with free time on the computer, it might be a good idea to bring a laptop.

as for your extracurriculars, it's really good that you'll be continuing your sport and orchestra. colleges like consistency and dedication. junior year is the most important, so there's always room to improve and bump your GPA up. while GPA, test scores, and essays are the most important to most UC's, extracurriculars are important too. if you really struggle with doing things on the side while studying, it wouldn't make or break you to drop a few outside stuff. but a lot of times extracurriculars can really help you stand out with the admission process when every applicant has around the same academic stats, so if you can, try to keep those going too.

good luck with everything! don't fret too much now, you still have another year to do well. (:

[bombb_]

i have the same problem, and i don't even have after school sports or anything, haha.

after school i'm pretty much drained, so i spend a good amount of time "relaxing", and then start HW at 10 or 11.

i started laughing to myself when i saw that.
i was like "O: thats just like me!"
haha. like exactly. no joke.

yeah relaxing until 10. what a lie to myself.



anyways what i try to do is just think of my future. or talk to those friends that are uuuuuuuuuuuber motivated and do their hw and get good grades and actually make sense. (smart people=awesome, i wish im smart)

because, i feel talking and being around motivated people push me. haha like in my ap us history class, i was sitting next to the salutorian, and this kid just emanates intelligence. and i always did my hw on time, good, and i actually did well. and then second semester, my teacher moved our seats. and now im just blahh.
haha.
bummer!

[silentxtears]

I've had that problem. Even though I'm always busy with my extracurriculars, I make sure to at least have one or two free weekdays (after school) so I can focus more on homework. I always do my homework at the school library because it helps me a LOT. Few distractions compared to doing homework at home. Since you have a lot of activities after school though, then maybe you should just find a quiet space at home (without the distractions of a computer, phone, or tv) to do work...

My workloads during sophomore and junior year weren't very heavy (but then again, my school doesn't offer many AP classes) compared to others... I've only taken 3 AP classes so far. I only take classes I'm personally interested in.. otherwise I'll just hate them so bad and do horribly in them. But yeah, taking AP classes does show that you're challenging yourself. So take what you like.

I say keep your extracurriculars if you really love them. When writing your personal statements, I think your experiences from those extracurriculars will be helpful in knowing what to write for your statements. I personally think that powerful essays overpower GPA and SAT scores (as long as they are decent).

You should check out the websites for those schools to check out their programs for whatever you're interested in. You could do that during the summer since you'd probably have a lot of time. Cal Poly SLO is also known for their architecture program.

Btw, I got into UCLA, UCSD, and UCI. Sometimes I felt very unmotivated, but I think about my family and what kind of future I want and I just really work from there on. Just do your best in what you do! Good luck

[emceej]

HAHAHA. im just like JANG. but i start on homework earlier than that tho.
maybe 8? LOL. but still, i wasted like 4-5 hours doing nonsense D:

anyways, i actually have a class that helps me catch up with my work, chill, and manage my time. it's called AVID. it prepares us for college but also focuses on catch up etc...so try to consider that next year if you guys have it at your school. it seems like you have a lot of things on your hands and you might want to consider dropping some of them. i'm not discouraging you or anything. i'm just saying that you would probably be better off focusing more on your school work, rather than the extra curricular stuff. honors/ap isn't easy. and that requires a lot more time than the regular classes.

if i were you i would try to keep at least 1-2 of your extra stuff and see how that feels compared to the other 2-3 you have. it would still look good on your resume/essays. it seems like your a hardworking kid so i know you can do it ^^ just don't try to spoon everything in your mouth. your body and mind can only take so much. good luck!~

[dianasaur]

i wouldn't drop extracurriculars if you're aiming for those 3 schools. my friend got into SD with a low gpa, 1860 SAT I, low SAT IIs only because he had the whole extracurricular activity list filled. extracurriculars help a LOT. if you have grades + that then you'll have a good chance of getting into UCLA.
as for the time management thing.. its really self-motivation. you either have it or you dont :/

[Christinaisweird]

i'm going to become like that for next year for sophomore.
i'm preparing for IB.
it's nothing to really stress about it makes me realize that how important time is.

[zkunninglookz]

wow..isn't that alot of things to do?...