There are few things that seem more unproductive than one-hour class gaps, but if you’re like any other student here, you’ve probably had to endure quite a few of them. Too short to get substantial amount of work done and too long to not do anything, the one-hour void between classes can sometimes seem like an enormous waste of time. Due to my unfortunate course enrollment times, my schedules have always been full of these pesky breaks. However, many, many hour-long class gaps later, I think I have finally figured out some productive ways to spend this seemingly useless time.
In my first year especially, it felt like I was meeting so many new people in such a short period of time, and there weren’t enough hours in the day to become close with some really cool people. It was pretty hard to find substantial blocks of time to spend with every new person I met, so in order to maintain these friendships I’d ask them to hang out a little over my one-hour breaks. This one-hour gap is the perfect time to catch up with an old friend, or someone you simply don’t get to see as often as you’d like. There are many convenient cafes around Grounds — Starbucks in Nau Hall, Rising Roll, Alderman Café, etc. — to meet up with someone and relax a little bit before your next class.
Of course, most of us end up in the library during these little breaks. Though it is hard to get a huge amount of work and studying out of the way in less than an hour, there are definitely a lot of small things I try to work on while I wait to get to my next class.
During my first couple of weeks of classes this semester, I constantly found myself making my way to Clark to find a spot to sit, only to continue wondering what to do with my time. After I realized this was not the most efficient solution, I started to plan. Eventually, these one-hour class gaps became a time for me to break out my planner and make a to-do list of tasks so I could stay on top of my work. Afterwards, it seemed easier to jump into small tasks like editing papers, printing out resources, or last-minute studying before exams. This system works pretty well for me, and I am grateful for these little breaks as a chance to gather myself and get caught up on the little things.
For people as busy and anxious about maximizing productivity as most students at the University are, there are so many more ways to make the best use of this time. Going to office hours, carving out time to eat breakfast or lunch, buying textbooks and other school supplies and calling your mom are also a few ways to be efficient during this short time period. Think about all those little things you never get around to doing in your day-to-day routine — this time is the perfect opportunity to get them done.
Though it doesn’t seem like it, a lot can happen during those one-hour class gaps. Many people think it’s hard to get much accomplished during this time, but in one hour-long break between my Spanish and Sociology classes, I mailed a package to my friend at home, ate breakfast at Einstein’s, bought textbooks and face tattoos for game day in one single stop, and still had time to go to Clark and print out an essay. If you think of this one-hour time gap as a productive time to get ahead rather than a useless void, it really can be used to your advantage.
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