How to get your assignment completed before the deadline

Being able to produce quality assignments whilst meeting deadlines is a key skill for all students. However, this can be easier said than done, and students often find themselves rushing at the last minute or even missing the deadline completely. So if you struggle with deadlines, check out our top tips for getting your work done on time:

Make a schedule

Completing assignments before the deadline requires time management, and time management requires organisation. So you need to get yourself and your work organised by creating a schedule or timetable. You can do this in a variety of ways; get a diary, calendar, write it on up on your computer or print a timetable off from the internet. Once your assignment is set, get started early and make a schedule for how long you’re going to work on it for each day before the deadline, depending on how much work it requires. Of course, you can have the odd day off, but keeping to a working schedule will help you keep your time and work organised and avoid any last-minute rushes. If you feel you are going to struggle to meet your deadlines, even with an organised schedule, why not try university assignment writing services for some expert help?

Set a personal deadline

Working to the actual deadline is always a bit of a risk, as there’s the chance that something can go wrong at the last minute and you won’t have time to fix it. This can be anything from realising you’ve written on the wrong question to your internet failing. The best way round this is to set your own personal deadline, at the very least a day but ideally up to a week before the deadline. This will mean that if there are any last minute hitches you’ll have plenty of time to fix them. This will also help you avoid the stress that comes with rushing to finish an essay and you’ll be less likely to make mistakes that will have a negative effect on your grade.

Set targets

As well as setting a personal deadline for the completed work, it’s helpful to set yourself mini-deadlines. For example, you can break your project down into individual steps and set a date by which to complete each one. So if you’re writing a dissertation, set separate deadlines for the literature review, methodology, analysis and so forth. This will help you keep your work structured and will allow you to hand in regular drafts to your tutor to get valuable feedback. This is helpful as there are no repercussions if you miss out on of your targets, but it will give you an idea of where you’re at and how much work you will need to do to catch up so that you can adjust your schedule accordingly.

Write at sensible times and places

Many students have a particularly unhelpful habit of writing late in the evening or at night. Whilst this may work for some, for others it can be counterproductive, so it’s best to try and work during the day if possible. Coming home at the end of the day after hours of lectures or socialising with friends can make studying and working difficult for various reasons. It’s also good to try and get out to the library rather than locking yourself away in your room – working in a public place when it’s light outside and your fellow students are working around you will help maintain your productivity and positivity.

Fight procrastination

Without doubt the biggest obstacle that prevents students meeting deadlines is the dreaded procrastination. Unfortunately, this is also the hardest bad habit to overcome. However, there are lots of different methods you can try to overcome procrastination. One popular way is to break up your studying with short breaks – put your phone away and work from anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour (depending on how bad a procrastinator you are!) and give yourself a 5 minute break. Getting some decent headphones and listening to music also helps a lot of students focus. If these don’t help, you may need to take more extreme measures – temporarily deactivate Facebook, delete some apps, or even leave your phone at home and head to the library (I know, unthinkable right?!). These may seem extreme and uncomfortable at first, but you need to do what’s necessary to help you work and meet that deadline.