Time management among undergraduate medical students: A study from a tertiary health-care teaching institution in Puducherry

Background: Time is a nonrenewable resource and effective time management is the key to better academic performance. Objective: To assess the time management skills of undergraduate medical students of a tertiary care health instituMethodology: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 243 undergraduate medical students of a tertiary healthcare institution in Puducherry. The time management skill was assessed using a time management questionnaire (TMQ) which has 18 items in 5-point Likert scales. A score of ≥58 on TMQ was considered as good time management skill. Results: The mean (standard deviation) of the TMQ score was 52.7 (9.8) overall, and 18.2 (5.8), 19.4, (3.5) and 15.1 (3.4), respectively in short-range planning, time attitude, and long-range planning domains. More than two-third of the students were found to have poor to average time management skills. Students with high readiness for self-directed learning were found to have significantly higher TMQ score [55.7(9.9) Vs 50.1 (8.9), P=0.000]. Conclusion: Majority of the students possess poor to average time management skills. Further study relating time management with academic performance may be conducted and counseling/workshops should be organized for students to improve their time management skills.