INTRODUCTION
A research bullet journal or an academic bullet journal can make life as a grad student so much easier! Bullet journaling combines the utilities of a planner, diary, and to-do list. It’s a powerful organizational tool, especially beneficial for grad students who need to keep everything in one place.
Despite countless resources on bullet journaling, there’s a lack of guides tailored specifically for grad students. This post aims to fill that gap, offering useful spreads, tips, and tricks to create the perfect academic/PhD bullet journal. Continue reading for detailed insights!
You can also check out the post about different bullet journal ideas for college students bullet journal ideas for college students here..
WHAT IS BULLET JOURNALING
A bullet journal is an all-in-one book designed to help you stay organized and productive. Developed by Ryder Carroll, this system consolidates scheduling, reminders, to-do lists, brainstorming, and other tasks into a single notebook. The technique known as rapid logging is ideal for busy grad students, allowing quick, efficient note-taking without the need to detail every aspect of your day.
Here are some really useful spreads you can incorporate in your bullet journal. I’ve used most of them and found them to be super helpful, and hopefully, you will too!
If you want to see some great bullet journal spreads for college students, you can find them here.
LIST OF BULLET JOURNAL SPREADS FOR GRAD STUDENTS
1. list of goals
Setting goals is crucial for your success as a grad student. Create both short-term and long-term goal lists. After listing your goals, break them down into smaller, actionable steps to make them more manageable. Simply writing down “Write a book” as your goal won’t suffice. Over time, motivation wanes. Instead, break it into smaller tasks that you can complete within a day, week, or month.
My Experience: For example, instead of just writing “write a book,” I set daily tasks like “write 500 words.” This approach prevents feeling overwhelmed and keeps me motivated. Achieving these small tasks consistently has led me to complete significant projects without feeling too daunted by the overall workload. Remember, small consistent efforts lead to significant progress.
Check out this post: 24 must-have bullet journal page ideas for college students you need in 2024
2. reading list
A reading list is invaluable for grad or PhD students who need to manage a heavy reading load. Staying current with your readings is crucial because if you lag behind, you’ll face a huge backlog by semester’s end. Keeping an organized reading list in your bullet journal helps prevent this. It includes the books you need to read, deadlines, and completion dates.
My Experience: My bullet journal reading list helps me stay organized. By listing books with deadlines and actual completion dates, I ensure I keep up with my reading schedule. This habit has saved me from the last-minute rush of catching up on a huge stack of books before the semester ends.
3. Gantt Chart
A Gantt chart is an excellent tool for scheduling projects and tracking progress. In this chart, each task is represented by a horizontal bar, where the length indicates the time required and the position shows the start date.
How to use a Gantt chart: Write down specific tasks on the vertical axis and dates on the horizontal axis. Draw a horizontal line to indicate the duration of each task. For example, mark from April 1 to July 15 for a particular task. This visual representation helps you manage multiple tasks and ensure you don’t overcommit.
When planning in your bullet journal, make sure to write down specific tasks rather than full projects. For example, instead of writing “publish paper XYZ,” break it down into smaller tasks like “literature review for article” and “text analysis.” A Gantt chart in your bullet journal ensures you don’t overcommit at any point.
My Experience: Gantt charts are my go-to for project scheduling. I love using this spread because it helps you see how many things you have going on at once. For my thesis, I broke down tasks like literature review and data analysis into manageable chunks. Seeing the entire timeline and my progress visually was incredibly satisfying and helped me manage overlapping deadlines efficiently.
4. Research project task list
In this section, dive deeper into your projects. Use your Gantt chart to identify basic tasks—what you need to do and when. Track different stages of your research work here.
Here’s a basic outline you can use:
- Idea
- Data Collection
- Proposal
- First Draft
- Second Draft
- Additional Drafts (as needed)
- Final Draft
- Review
Check out this post: The Pomodoro Technique For Studying: The Ultimate Guide For Students
Once you complete a stage, mark it as complete. Write tentative dates next to each stage to ensure you stay on track. Include a notes section for important details or comments. This bullet journal spread is excellent for tracking research work or various projects.
My Experience: For detailed project management, I use a research project task list. During my last project, having clear stages and deadlines in my bullet journal ensured I met all my targets without last-minute stress. Each stage was clearly outlined, helping me stay organized and focused.
5. research Ideas List
This spread is used for brainstorming new research ideas. It can include basic project details like data and methodology. Jotting them down ensures you don’t have to brainstorm again later.
My Experience: I’ve often found that new ideas often pop up unexpectedly. My research ideas list is where I jot down initial thoughts and basic project details. This habit prevents me from forgetting potentially valuable ideas. If I decide to pursue a project, I move it to the project task list. Revisiting this list has led to many interesting and successful projects.
6. Research paper reading
Keeping track of research papers read is essential. When reading research papers, note specific chapters, whether you’ve read them, and if you need to refer back. This saves time and effort later. Note the research paper title, author(s), and publication year for future reference or citations.
My Experience: Keeping track of research papers has saved me a lot of time. I note specific chapters, read status, and references in my bullet journal. This method saves time, especially when I need to quickly find a particular detail. During my comprehensive exams, this spread was a lifesaver, preventing hours of unnecessary re-reading.
7. trackers
Trackers help you monitor progress on various tasks. Include trackers in your bullet journal for:
- Words written
- Pages edited
- Hours spent on your thesis
My Experience: I find that trackers are incredibly motivating. Seeing my progress visually keeps me focused and driven. For example, knowing I needed to write 333 words daily to meet my 10k word goal made the task seem much more achievable. But quality is crucial, so I ensure my writing is useful and suitable for the final draft.
8. reading log
Avoid the frustration of hunting for references by maintaining a reading log. It records reference names and key pages, making citation easy. Document the names of books and articles read, important key pages and notes to streamline your citation process.
My Experience: A reading log simplifies managing references. This spread has been invaluable during the final stages of my projects, ensuring I don’t miss any critical references.
9. library records
This optional spread is useful for tracking borrowed books and their due dates. Avoid fines by recording book names and renewal dates in your bullet journal.
My Experience: I tend to forget borrowed books and renewal dates. This spread tracks borrowed books and due dates, preventing fines. It’s a small addition in the bullet journal but has been very helpful, especially during busy semesters.
CONCLUSION
I hope this post has been incredibly useful for all graduate and PhD students, or anyone engaged in research. If you haven’t tried bullet journaling yet, I highly recommend giving it a go. It’s an excellent tool for keeping your academic life organized and planning your research tasks more effectively.
Among all the bullet journal spreads, the Gantt chart and trackers are, in my experience, the most beneficial. The Gantt chart allows me to visualize my research goals and commitments effortlessly, while the trackers help me stay on course to achieve those goals.
That’s not to say that the other spreads aren’t useful. Once you start using them, you’ll likely find it difficult to stop—they truly simplify your life. So, consider creating a bullet journal for grad students using some of the spreads discussed in this post.
That’s not to say that the other spreads aren’t useful. Once you start using them, you’ll likely find it difficult to stop—they truly simplify your life. So, consider creating a bullet journal for grad students using some of the spreads discussed in this post.
Have you ever tried bullet journaling for your academic pursuits? What has been your experience with keeping a research journal or an academic journal? If not, do you now think you should start one? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
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I haven’t seen posts related to this topic! Thanks for covering it. I found it very helpful! Also love your site layout 😊
Hi Martina! Thanks for stopping by and for commenting; I appreciate it. Glad to know you liked it! Have a great day, and if you have any suggestions for topics, do let me know 🙂