The Student Pocket Guide | 6 Reasons to Get that Assignment in Early
Written by Michael Tefula
1.      No, you don’t work better under pressure.

Seriously, you’re telling me you would rather delay completing your work so that the pressure and danger of missing a deadline magically inspires you to produce your best work ever? While it’s possible to excel under such pressure, it’s too much of a gamble. The results can range from miraculous, all the way to disastrous.

2.      So you can get other assignments in on time.

Student life is a busy life. It’s hard enough fitting in all those society events or as you near graduation and job applications. But when you add to the mix the demands of various other modules on your course, it’s wise to ensure you complete coursework and group projects a bit earlier so as to mitigate running late in other assignments.

3.      Enjoy a different kind of procrastination.

The least harmful and perhaps even most comfortable form of procrastination is that which revolves around lightweight decisions. Instead of having a troubled and indecisive mind, worrying about whether you should start your work or not, just get your uni work out of the way first. This will enable you to spend as long as you want deciding things like what to wear in the morning (trust me, each minute spent debating whether to wear that hoody or not eventually piles up to hours of wasted time).

4.      Room to improve

Not all of us are perfectionists but if you are, then you will need that extra week to format and make your coursework as great as a ridiculously priced, but equally enviable Apple product. If you aren’t too much of a detail freak, quickly complete your assignment to a reasonable standard anyway. And if you find that you can’t fill the extra time with other time-wasting activities, give your work some finishing touches (e.g. clean up that bibliography, get some charts and diagrams going, or try some word play). These touches might end up being the difference between a 2.1 and a first.

5.      Help your friends

I once finished my coursework so early that I had plenty of time to look over the essays of some of my friends. They appreciated the help, owed me a few drinks, and I learnt more during the process. Unfortunately I actually performed worse on the essay than my friends (maybe I should have spent more of the additional free time on point 4, above).  Regardless, I still think the free time you get from finishing your work early would be well spent helping friends who may be struggling. There is something that clicks, in terms of understanding concepts, once you try explaining an idea to someone else other than to yourself. Give it a go.

6.      Be free

It’s hard to enjoy a bit of trash TV, whilst also having a nagging essay deadline on your mind. Shows like ITV’s Take Me Out or BBC 3’s Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents deserve your full attention, without the indecisiveness and worry of whether you should be working or not. Save yourself the grief. Get that assignment in early and enjoy your free time a free student.