How I Used Notion to Plan My Entire Semester (With Real Templates)

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Planning a full semester used to feel overwhelming—until I started using Notion.

Unlike paper planners or calendar apps, Notion let me create a fully customized system that matched my study style.

In this post, I’ll show you exactly how I used Notion to organize my college life, including the templates I used, how I updated them, and what actually worked (and what didn’t).

Why I Chose Notion Over Other Tools

I had tried apps like Trello, Google Calendar, and physical planners. They were great for specific tasks, but I wanted something all-in-one—
a place for lecture notes, assignment deadlines, exam dates, to-do lists, and study goals.

Notion did all of that, and more.

My Semester Setup (Step-by-Step)

Here’s how I set up my Notion workspace at the start of each semester:

1. Semester Dashboard
I created a main page titled “Fall 2025 Semester” with sub-links to each course.

It included:

  • A weekly overview

  • Upcoming assignment list

  • Quick links to syllabus PDFs

  • Personal goals for the semester

2. Subject Pages
Each subject had its own page. Inside, I organized:

  • Lecture notes (embedded with toggle lists)

  • Key formulas or concepts

  • Past exam questions

  • A progress tracker for chapters covered

3. Assignment Tracker (Table View)
This was a game-changer. I used a database with columns for:

  • Task Name

  • Course

  • Due Date

  • Status (Not Started / In Progress / Done)

I filtered it by “This Week” and used colored tags to stay on top of deadlines.

4. Exam Planner
Two weeks before finals, I added a timeline view showing study sessions for each subject.
I color-coded by priority level and included a checklist of key topics to review.

Pros of Using Notion for Semester Planning

  • Completely customizable: I could make it match exactly how I think and study

  • Everything in one place: No more jumping between apps

  • Motivating to use: The clean layout actually made me want to open it daily

  • Cloud-based: Accessed from my phone, tablet, or laptop anytime

Cons (What Didn’t Work So Well)

  • Takes time to set up: It’s not ready “out of the box”

  • Too much freedom: Sometimes I spent more time designing than studying

  • No offline editing: If my internet was down, I had to wait

Bonus: Templates I Used (And Recommend)

You don’t have to start from scratch. Here are a few free Notion templates I used or adapted:

  • Thomas Frank’s Student Dashboard (Search “Thomas Frank Notion template”)

  • Notion's own Study Hub Template

  • Reddit’s NotionStudent community for real student-made templates

I tweaked each one to fit my semester.
Sometimes I only used parts—like the assignment tracker or exam prep sections.

Final Thoughts

If you’re serious about staying organized during college, Notion is worth the learning curve.
It’s not just another app—it becomes a personal command center for your entire student life.

Start simple: create a dashboard, link your subjects, and build from there.
You’ll be surprised how much mental stress it relieves.

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