Of course, you need to know how to manage your time. You have to develop certain set times each week that you devote to your studies. Preferably you should write these into a calendar, setting aside a few free sessions to cope with the inevitable emergencies. Include: Date, Time, Location (if you are using off-line resources) and material to be covered.

If you were taking a course on campus you would be expected to attend 3 times a week for the semester - approximately 15 - 16 weeks. You would also be expected to spend two hours studying for every for every hour in class. In addition you need more time to study for exams or to write a term paper. This works out to about 135 to 150 hours per 3-unit course. It shouldn't take you any longer when you study on your own.

You can, in fact, utilize your time more efficiently --- you eliminate commuting, and it take less time to read a lecture than it does to listen to one (you probably read from 300-700 words a minute, while a lecturer speaks at the rate of around 100 words a minute, and the 50-minute lecture hour frequently includes some housekeeping tasks -- assignments, handing in papers, announcements, etc.)

Generally speaking, for a one semester course (3 units) you should start out by budgeting 125 hours for the course. This would be divided into:

• Getting started - 5 hours. Review text and course outlines, explore quiz sites, use dictionary and encyclopedia.

• Follow our on-line Study Guide (or the one you have developed if we don't have one) - 100 hours. We provide percentage breakdowns of the exam by subject area in the guide. For example, a subject with 15% would translate to 15 hours; that with 25% to 25 hours. If you are taking a course not covered by one of our outlines try to find a syllabus online and use that as a reference. If that doesn't work, locate a textbook and use the main chapter headings as a guide

• Review, take on-line tests (when available) and sample CLEP tests - 20 hours

Remember to set aside a few minutes at the end of each study session to record what you have done in your diary.

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