A Guide to Finding Study Spots in University
It’s that time of the year again for university students — Instagram and LinkedIn are flooded with bittersweet posts by friends and classmates about another school year that has come to a close. For Canadian high school seniors, it can be a time of great stress with the looming countdown towards graduation and the end of a chapter. But amongst all of this, there is one topic that always brings me joy: discovering new favourite study spots.
Some may find it silly, but studying in different interesting environments — whether that be a library, cafe, outdoor space, or anywhere else — can be very motivating. During my first year of university, I discovered this first hand.
Why Environment Matters
What if you had an assignment due the next day that you’ve barely started? The cursor blinks as you and the wide expanse of your Word document threatens to swallow you whole. Not counting time spent in lecture or eating and sleeping, you have eight hours of work ahead of you. Now, would you like to do some library and cafe hopping or stick to one place?
For me — and, I suspect, many other students — this sadly isn’t just a “what if” scenario. And hopping around has saved me from what can sometimes become monotonous studying or writing. While I wasn’t able to find much research on switching up your environment, researchers suggest there are several ways where you study can impact your learning.
Several factors such as coherence (”the ease with which a setting can be organized cognitively”), legibility (”perceived ease of use”) and enchantment (being drawn in by a location’s allure) have been suggested to impact studying or learning. A beautiful library, for instance, is coherent in that we know and expect it to be a place of study, is legible in that we know how the space can be used, and — if beautiful enough — can be enchanting and captivating. The same can apply to a nice cafe.
The environment you choose also strongly depends on the work you plan to do. It’s easy to perform administrative tasks, like sending emails or making a schedule, in a busy cafe. In fact, it can be more exciting and motivating than a quiet library. But a cafe may not be the best location for deep studying or memorizing flashcards.
Advice for Discovering New Spots
But where to find exciting and interesting places to study? It, of course, depends on where your university is located. But, from what I’ve seen, most cities that are home to major colleges or universities have many fun spots to study both on and off campus.
University forums (or subreddits) might be a good place to start. A simple search for “favourite cafe” or “favourite library” will likely bring up both popular and lesser known areas. You could also take a look at a previous OYMS blog where we looked at some OYMS team members’ favourite study spots from various universities across Ontario.
Talking to upper year students is another great way to discover hidden gems that you would never hear about otherwise. Somewhat less conventional: Take a look at your school newspaper to see if they have good stories highlighting good locations. For students at the University of Toronto, for example, The Varsity (the university’s student newspaper) recently published a story about student-run cafes — which can make great study spots — and has published several other stories about libraries on campus.
But perhaps my favourite way to find new spots is to train my Instagram algorithm to show me aesthetic Reels about study spots around Toronto (where I go to university). It might take a bit of time, but soon enough, you’ll be getting lots of new inspiration.
For University of Toronto Students
I unfortunately don’t know about study spots at different universities, but for any University of Toronto students who will be coming here this coming year or are just looking to switch things up, here are a few suggestions!
First off, U of T is home to 40 libraries so they’re a great place to start. Here’s a lightly edited list of all of the libraries on the St. George campus. My personal recommendations include Graham Library and Gerstein Library.
As for cafes, my favourite is 10 DEAN with a great atmosphere, lots of seating, and incredibly friendly staff. Other students also frequently recommend Neo Coffee and Balzac’s Coffee. Another common suggestion — which I can attest to — is the Toronto Reference Library. This is an absolutely gorgeous public library. Though you’ll need to take the subway from campus to get there, it’s located just a two-minute walk away from Bloor-Yonge station, making it fairly accessible.
Regardless of where you’re going to school, I recommend switching things up frequently and having fun with where you’re studying!
Parmin Sedigh is a stem cell and science communications enthusiast. She’s also a first-year student at the University of Toronto, studying life sciences. You can usually find her on her computer following her curiosity. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
