College life is about so much more than just reading and writing papers. There are events to go to, workouts to squeeze in, dinners with friends, visits with family, jobs and all kinds of other responsibilities on top of your course load. So when you're taking a full load (12 hours or more) and trying to fit everything else in, sometimes you're going to be down to the last minute and there's just no other way to get it done than to stay up all night working away. (Yes, you should learn good time management skills while in college, but even the most well-meaning, organized person can end up too close to a deadline sometimes.) And it is totally common to get overwhelmed (maybe you have 3 big assignments all due in the same week). Sometimes, you have to let the rough end drag, as my grandfather would say.
So, if you absolutely have to pull an all-nighter (which I have done many times in my college career), here are my suggestions.
First, determine if an all-nighter is REALLY necessary.
If you have a huge paper due TOMORROW and you haven't even started reading the book the paper is supposed to be about, then you need to pull an all-nighter. If you have a big test tomorrow and have been in class for most of the meetings and have taken decent notes, DO NOT stay up all night cramming. That is the worst thing you can do for yourself. You'll be stressed and ill when you go to take the exam, and cramming rarely helps your grade. The best thing you can do in that situation is read over your notes a few times, make a few note cards or a "cheat-sheet" to study the next day between your other classes, and make sure to get a good night's sleep. Trust me, you will do much better on a few hours of studying and 6 to 8 hours of sleep than 6 to 8 hours of studying and no sleep.
IF an all-nighter is necessary (because you put off a paper until the last minute and you HAVE to turn it in TOMORROW), then make sure that you get the most out of your time by remembering a few simple tips:
Find a quiet and comfortable place to work.
You need a few hours of intense focus, so you need to be somewhere quiet. You're going to be there for awhile, so you need to be comfortable (but not TOO comfortable! You don't want to fall asleep!). I have pulled most of my all-nighters at the kitchen table after my family has gone to bed. Just make sure that you are in a place where you can work without being disturbed or disturbing others (so if you live in a dorm and your roommate is not joining you for an all night study session, don't keep him or her awake).
Avoid trying to pull an all-nighter in your bed. Sitting there with your laptop might be okay for studying or doing homework sometimes, but for something like this, the temptation to just take a quick nap will be too strong and you'll probably end up falling asleep and not getting your work done.
Make sure you have enough space to spread out the materials you will need.
Sometimes all you need is a little cubicle and your laptop. Other times, you might be doing a lot of research and need a whole tabletop to spread out your stuff. Make sure you have the room that you need. My space in the kitchen often looks something like this:
Make sure you have the right materials before you get started.
There is nothing worse than sitting down and getting settled in and realizing that you forgot a book that you need. Or worse than that, getting done with your paper at three in the morning and finding out that you don't have any paper or ink for the printer. During my freshman year, I was pulling one of my first all-nighters when I realized that I didn't have any ink for my printer. The only place that I could go in the middle of the night to get some was WalMart. Visiting WalMart at 2:00 am is not pleasant (I was afraid for my life multiple times during that trip to get ink). So take the time to prepare and gather the materials that you know you will need in advance. It will save you a lot of time and stress.
Have some snacks on hand.
You can see my snacks (Skittles and sweet tea) in my photo above. I almost always have something when I'm going to be studying for long periods of time to help keep my energy up. When I study late at night, I usually have a Diet Coke or Dr. Pepper nearby for the caffeine (I don't do coffee). I know it isn't the most healthy thing, but this is something you should really only be doing a couple times a semester anyway. And if you're really concerned about calories, you can nosh on baby carrots or fruit instead of candy and chips. If you're working at a library on campus, you might not be allowed to bring food and drinks inside, but make sure you have something on hand just in case you get hungry. You can always step outside for a quick break and that will be better than having to walk all over campus to find a store or snack machine that's working late at night.
Start as early as possible.
This is just common sense. If you can start studying at 8 instead of waiting until midnight, you might actually get finished and be able to get some sleep before your class in the morning. I'm bad about waiting until my family all goes to bed, and you may want to do that if you live at home or with roommates who are going to be using the area where you study, but the earlier you start, the earlier you can finish.
Take advantage of all your resources.
I am an English major and a future educator, so many of my colleagues will balk at what I am about to say, but SOMETIMES it is okay to rely on SparkNotes and short-cuts if you have to. You're busy. Trust me, I know that sometimes you just don't have time to sit down and read 20 pages of The Canterbury Tales without being interrupted. So take advantage of resources. There are all sorts of websites (many available through universities) that offer tutoring or have information on different topics. You can find videos of people talking about different topics that will help you if you need to skip on some reading for time's sake. Sometimes, you can even find audio files of your textbooks so that you can listen to the chapters while you're working out or commuting to and from school. Also, make sure to pay attention when your professor posts something online or gives out a link for you to check out. Those usually have great study guides and can help you focus on the material that is really important.
Take breaks as you need them.
This is not permission to surf Facebook for 15 minutes every hour. You really should log out of Facebook and Twitter and stay logged out of them until you are done. I'm talking about getting up and walking around or taking a few minutes to stretch and get something to eat or drink or just close your eyes and breathe for a few minutes. It will help keep you as relaxed as possible and improve your focus.
Like I said, all-nighters are not something you should do all the time. They should be used in emergencies only (and yes, getting last minute tickets to the football game on Saturday and cancelling your plans to go study at the library is an emergency and does constitute an all-nighter on Sunday to get that paper turned in on Monday morning). College is about learning to prioritize and manage your time. Sometimes you will feel like you're doing a great job with that. Other times, you'll be completely overwhelmed. Just remember that YOU CAN DO IT! Don't get discouraged. We all have to take classes that are extremely hard (Hello? Spanish 3 and 4? I'm an ENGLISH major!), but you will get through it!
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