4 Tips for Keeping Up With School During the Big Meet

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By Caitlin Daday, Swimming World College Intern.

Big meets come with a lot of baggage. While taper is glorified as making swimming “easier”, there are still a lot of things we end up having to deal with in the other areas of our lives. Of all these other things we have to worry about, school is always one of the top priorities.

Taper meets require you to get out of school for nearly a week and do nothing but swim. On one hand, not dealing with school can be nice, but on the other, missing class can put a lot of pressure on you. Even as you get older, dealing with missing significant amounts of school is always difficult. So, here are four tips to help you keep up with your schoolwork over a big meet:

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1. Be upfront with your professors.

At the end of the first day of each of my classes every spring semester, I make sure to tell all my professors that I am on the swim team. Straight from the beginning I mention that I will be missing about a week of school for the conference meet. Trust me, professors appreciate the warning. To them, it shows that you care and are on top of your schoolwork in addition to athletics. Furthermore, it may make them more willing to help you out when it comes time.

Telling your professors about swimming straight away also help them to know you a little bit better. Once they know you are an athlete, they will realize all that you have on your plate. If you have given them a warning at the start, they will be much more prepared to work with you when you have to miss class.

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2. Work ahead.

Working ahead is probably the best way to prepare for missing class. Taking advantage of the spare moments of time to get some work done early is key. If you get a substantial amount of work done before the big meet, you minimize the potential stress during the meet and the definite stress after. During taper season especially your weekends begin to free up as dual meets wind down and the rest increases. The weekends then can be used for getting ahead on more of your work for the next week.

Getting work done early also can help you to think about something else other than swimming during taper time. Getting caught up in how you feel and how you are going to swim is easy, and schoolwork can provide a little bit of a distraction from that. Then, when it does come time to fully focus on swimming, your mind will not be drifting to school either.

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3. Don’t be afraid to ask for extensions.

Many times professors seem strict on deadlines. You have a paper due the day you get back, and either you turn it in then or get significant points deducted. However, many professors will be willing to work with you if you just ask. Often, if you show that you are conscious of what work you have coming up, your professors may be understanding and give you some extra time. The benefit of asking is that they may say yes, and if they do not, you at least know you did not miss an opportunity to give yourself a bit longer.

In my experience most professors respect what we do and are willing to make accommodations. They want to see your best work and want you to succeed. They typically understand that your asking for an extension is not because you have been messing around but because you want to submit your best.

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4. Minimize the stress.

Stress is inhibiting. If you stress too much about the work you have to get done during your meet, it will inevitably take a toll on both your swimming and your schoolwork. The best way to get everything done is to sit down and do it. Thinking about all the things you have to do is not going to get anything done.

Sometimes no matter how hard you try to stay ahead, the work can still catch up to you. If you let it, the stress will get to you and make everything worse. Not letting the stress take over can often be one of the hardest parts, but if you can manage to keep your head on straight, the work load will be much easier to manage.

All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.

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Patrik Portmann
7 years ago

Tip 1- don’t
Tip 2- don’t
Tip 3- don’t
Tip 4- don’t

Deirdre Sheehan Cunningham

Ally Cunningham

Melody Tosi
7 years ago

Cheyenne Nightingale

Julie Bryan
7 years ago

Connor Bryan ?

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