9 Examples Of Smart Goals For Students Who Want An Edge

Examples of SMART goals for students.

Are you at the point where you finally want an edge?

Doing what everyone else is doing is not the way to see outstanding results, in school, your career or life. 

So whether you’re in college, highschool, or taking online courses, here are some examples of smart goals for students you can use to align with the “edge” you want to not only succeed, but stand out for your peers.

Examples of SMART Goals for Students

When we set SMART goals we create a specific goal to eliminate confusion, measure the goal so we know the starting and beginning points, make sure the goal is achievable so we’re not wasting time or delusional, ask whether the goal is relevant (making sure this goal achieves our desired result), and give ourselves an appropriate time limit.

Getting the grades you want

Main desire: 

• to finish the semester with the best grades I can

Specific: 

• I will finish this semester with an average that will keep my parents off my case!

Measurable: 

• my average for all my grades will be 90

Achievable:

• My average homework score will be at least 90
• My average test score will be at least 90
• My attendance ratio will be 

Relevant:

• It will make my parents happy, which is good for me
• It will take away stress i have about not performing well in school
• It will make me better suited for awards programs that look good on my school “resume”
• It will allow me to focus more on my studies, which ive been wanting to do

Time-bound:

• I will start this goal immediately
• The goal will be finished by the end of the semester
• I will finish homework on time
• I will study for tests one week in advance
• I will wake up 30 minutes before class so I am ontime

Having enough time for yourself

Main desire: (examples of smart goals for students)

• To have time to unwind and do things that are fun

Specific: 

• I want more time on the weekends to watch my shows

Measurable:

• I will have 3 hours on Saturday and 3 hours on Sunday to watch my netflix.

Achievable:

• I will wake up earlier and get my saturday work done more quickly
• I’ll cut the phone conversation I usually have with [insert name] short
• I won’t waste time sitting at the dining hall on instagram like I do now

Relevant:

• Eliminating all my wasted time will give me plenty of time to myself each weekend

Time-bound:

• By the end of the month, I will have one season of my favorite show finished
• I will also have spent 24 hours relaxing 

Getting better at a particular subject

Main desire: I want to strengthen my weaker subjects

Specific: 

• I will raise my grade in biology

Measurable: 

• My biology grade will raise my 10 points

Achievable:

• I will take my grade currently and understand what assignments are left and calculate the grades I need on all work until the term is over.

Relevant:

• I want to qualify for a grant that requires a certain grade

Time-bound:

• The grant application takes my latest grades and decides if I qualify, this is the last term to get my biology grade where it needs to be.

Increasing your work productivity

Main desire: (examples of smart goals for students)

• I’m tired of spending so much time on my work. 

Specific:

• I will increase my productivity so that I am not wasting time during the time I am supposed to getting results for school

Measurable:

• I will decrease the amount of hours I spend on school work by 14 hours.

Achievable:

• I will take a free course on productivity
• I will go to the library and read 3 books on wasting time and working smarter

Relevant:

• This is interfering with my life
• My social life is non existent
• I need a way to not spend 49 hours a week on school work

Time-bound:

• I will have the books read and course taken by the end of this (insert term, semester etc..) and I will have achieved this goal (49 hours down to 25 by the end of this school year)

Limiting your time wasters

Main desire: (examples of smart goals for students)

• to get things out of my life that steal time from more important things

Specific:

• I will figure out what is wasting my time, understand why I do those things, find one thing I can do to satisfy all those needs, and designate a certain amount of time & time of day to do it

Measurable:

• I’m going to isolate 10 things that I waste time on being distracted by each day, and find one thing to replace all 10 of them with

Achievable:

• I will record each time I get distracted
• I will get an app on my phone and my computer to see how my internet time is really spent

Relevant:

• I want to have more time to work on my school work and not feel like I’m always behind on things

Time-bound:

• I am giving myself 2 weeks to analyze my time wasters and to come up with an alternative that I can manage.

Getting involved in extracurricular activities

Main desire: to have more to do, and more on my “school resume” than just going to class

Specific:

• Getting involved with something that will look good for colleges or jobs after school (science jobs)

Measurable:

• I will add one extra curricular activity to my schedule

Achievable:

• I will make a list of all the science related groups at my school and see what extra activities they do
• I will decide which of them will look better on my resume or college application and then choose one

Relevant:

• I want to show those who will be looking at my (resume/application) that I am well rounded and have experience

Time-bound:

• I have 3 weeks to join a group before rosters are finalized

Understanding the direction you want to take!

Main desire: (examples of smart goals for students)

• to know what I want to do after school so I can understand what I should do in school

Specific:

• I want to create a life plan for myself so I know what I will do after school, and what to major in/study!

Measurable:

• I’ll find 3 majors that most agree with my plant for my life after school

Achievable:

• I will look up how to create a life plan, personal mission statement, and life’s vision
• Then I will match those values, ideals and goals to a career
• Then i will see what majors help me transition into those careers

Relevant:

• I don’t want to be someone who is stuck at a job they hate, like half the world is

Time-bound:

• I need to choose my major in 6 months. I will have my life plan created in 1 month, and do the rest of the research and decision making in the following 4 months. This will give me one month to get in early on the major.

Getting better at sports

Main desire: To be respected at my school as a successful athlete!

Specific:

• I want to become the highest winning person on the wrestling team (or any other team)

Measurable:

• I will set the record for most wins in a single season (45)

Achievable:

• I am going to get as lean as I can (6% body fat) so that all my weight is muscle and I can wrestle the lowest weight possible
• I am going to stay 1 hour after practice and continue practicing, and arrive at practice 30 minutes earlier
• I will lift weights 3 nights a week to get stronger
• I am going to watch tapes of the best wrestlers in the country and study what they do
• I will practice a few moves I like so that I do them better than anyone

Relevant:

• I want to get into college on a wrestling scholarship

Time-bound:

• I will start my regimen this summer after school
• Then i will continue to win throughout the school year

What are SMART Goals?

Smart goals are a goal setting system that allow you to take a specific desire and turn it into tangible results.

Smart goals were created to allow companies and organizations to “chug” along like the machines they are, and take appropriate, achievable steps to the success they want.

I’ve also found the SMART goal setting system to be good for “numbers people”. If you like to quantify things, or naturally think in lists, data etc…setting your goals in this way might be the preferred method

Does Setting Goals really Work?

A person who has no plan and no roadmap always loses to the person who does!

Read these next!

• 9 examples of SMART Goals (stop praying for results!)
• How to achieve your Goals Successfully Everytime
• Goals: What are they and how to do them well

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What SMART goal are you thinking about setting first?

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