Three subjects, two deadlines, an exam in four weeks, and a part-time job on top. "I'll study when I get a moment" can easily end up meaning the night before. A study schedule turns that into set times on set days, around everything else you have on. This guide covers how to work out what goes on it, then how to make one with Planner Cat, our day planner for iPhone and iPad.
Start with what's fixed
Before you plan any studying, put down the things you can't move:
- Classes and lectures, with their days and times.
- Work shifts, practice, and anything else on a timetable.
- Travel time to and from them.
- Meals and sleep. They take time too, so give them their place.
What's left between them is the time you actually have for studying.
List what you need to study
Write down every subject, then what's coming up in each one:
- Due dates for essays, projects and problem sets.
- Exam dates, with what each exam covers.
- Regular work, like weekly reading or going over lecture notes.
Break big jobs into pieces you can finish in one sitting. "Essay" can be hard to start. "Find three sources" or "Write the introduction" is a clearer first step.
Decide when and for how long
- Give each subject regular slots, like Biology on Monday and Thursday evenings, so it isn't only studied when something is due.
- Pick lengths you'll actually keep to. You can always make a session longer later.
- Plan breaks as blocks too, so they have a start and an end.
- Leave some time free. Things run over, and a full week has no room to catch up.
- Count back from each exam, and add more sessions for that subject in the weeks before it.
Put the fixed things in first
- Open Planner Cat and tap a time on the day page, or tap +.
- Under What's the block?, type a name, like "Chemistry lecture".
- Set Starts and pick a Length, from 15 minutes to 4 hours.
- Pick a Repeat: Every day, Weekdays, On days of the week (then tap the day letters you want; the day you're adding on starts picked, so tap it off if you don't want it) or Every few days (every 2 to 30 days).
- Tap Add.
A repeating block starts on the day you add it on, and repeats are free, with no limit on how many. Do the same for shifts and anything else that comes back each week.
Add your study sessions
Add each study session as a block of its own, the same way. Name it for the subject, like "Biology: study", and pick On days of the week for the days you chose.
Use Note for what to cover, like "Chapter 4 problems". A new note on a repeating block applies to all repeats, so keep the note to what stays the same, like the subject's reading list, and put one-off tasks in a one-off block. The note shows when you open the block; it isn't printed on the pages.
For anything that happens once, like an extra session before an exam, leave Repeat on Never. Go to its day first with the arrows on the day page, then tap a time to add it.
Two things at the same time? Planner Cat puts them side by side, so a clash is easy to spot.
Set a reminder
Under Remind me, pick At the start, or 5, 10, 15 or 30 minutes or 1 hour before. The reminder is a plain notification with the block's title and time, like "Biology: study at 7:00 PM", on every repeat. Your iPhone keeps up to 64 reminders at a time; if they're all in use, the block's sheet says its reminder is set once there's room. Planner Cat asks for permission once you've added your first block with a reminder, not when you first open it.
Change one week without changing them all
When you move, stretch, rename or change the time of a repeating block, Planner Cat asks: This one only or All repeats.
- This one only changes that day and leaves the other repeats as they were. Use it when a session moves for one week.
- All repeats changes every day it comes back, and puts back in line any day you'd changed on its own (skipped days stay skipped). Use it when your timetable changes for good.
A new repeat rule, reminder or note always applies to all repeats, without asking.
To move a block, hold it and drag it. Hold the handle in its bottom corner and drag to make it longer or shorter. Both snap to 5 minutes.
Tick sessions off
On the day page, tap the circle on a block to tick it done. Each day of a repeat is ticked on its own, so this week's ticks don't carry over to next week. In the week view, the line under the title shows how many blocks are done, like "3 of 18 done".
Print your study schedule
Tap the printer button at the top.
- Print week page gives you the week on one landscape page: seven columns, every block to scale with its title and a tick box. It's the one to pin above your desk.
- Print day page gives you one day, portrait, with the hour rail, each block's title and time, a tick box, and a column of lines for notes.
Print opens the print panel, where you choose your printer. Share week as PDF and Share day as PDF save or send the same page. Pages are on Letter or A4 to suit your region, free and with no watermark. A block you've ticked in the app prints with its box filled.
What it costs
Planner Cat is free for as many blocks and repeats as you like, every repeat rule, reminders, the day and week views, and the day and week pages to print or share. There's no account and no ads. Your plan is kept on your iPhone or iPad and in your own backups, and leaves only when you print, share or export it.
Planner Cat Pro is an optional one-time purchase. It adds day templates (save a typical study day, then lay it onto another day), your calendar's events beside your blocks (read-only), colours and icons for blocks, the week as a list and the month at a glance to print, and export to CSV. More on the Planner Cat page.
For more on repeats and the week view, see how to make a weekly schedule.
Quick answers
How do I set a study session on Tuesdays and Thursdays?
Add the block, pick On days of the week under Repeat, and tap Tuesday's and Thursday's letters. The day you're adding on starts picked, so tap it off if it isn't one of them.
Can I move one session without changing the others?
Yes. Drag it, and pick This one only when Planner Cat asks.
Can I print a blank study timetable?
Yes. Go to a week with nothing planned and tap Print week page. You get the seven columns and the hour rail, ready to fill in by hand.
Is it free?
Yes. Blocks, repeats, reminders and the day and week pages are all free.
Try Planner Cat
Try Planner Cat: free, no ads, no sign-up → iyio.com/apps/planner-cat