Quick Tips for Students with ADHD

1. Use a planner. Write down every due date/deadline/exam in your planner, as well as weekly readings and assignments. Keep it with you at all times and check it at least 3 times a day.


2. Once a week, e.g. on Sunday night, create a weekly To-Do list. Make the items on your To-Do list specific tasks and prioritize them according to their importance. Distribute your tasks across the week, putting high priority tasks early in the week so you are more likely to complete them. Track your accomplishments- this feels great!


3. Treat school as your job. Use a weekly schedule to organize and your time and ensure you are keeping up. Stay on top of things by working during daytime hours, and using the evenings and weekends for relaxing, studying, or catching up if you are behind.


4. If you have trouble getting to bed at night and waking up in the morning, create morning and evening routines to help you transition in and out of activities more easily and ensure you maintain a healthy sleep schedule.


5. Break down large assignments using the QLC assignment calculator. Put deadlines for each part of the assignment in your planner.


6. When preparing for midterms or final exams, use a Study Plan to organize your study time and activities and ensure you feel prepared to write each of your exams.


7. If you have trouble getting started, motivate yourself by thinking about how your daily tasks relate to your long term goals. Set small goals, and give yourself rewards for accomplishing specific tasks.


8. If you find yourself losing focus, figure out your attention span for a particular task or subject. Can you stay focused for 10 minutes? 20 minutes? Once you have established your attention span for a course, divide your work into chunks that will take that long to complete and take 5 minute breaks in between.


9. Make your work area distraction free: turn off technology, set specific times to check texts and emails, and use a distraction pad to get wandering thoughts out of your head.


10. If you find yourself discouraged, think about your inner script – the voice in your head. Is this voice positive and encouraging? Is it helping your to be your best? Positive self-talk is one of the most powerful tools you can use to get started and stay on track.


11. Go to the ADHD at University Module for more strategies.