How I Created a Daily Follow-Up System to Dominate My Master’s Degree Assignments

Balancing coursework, life, health, and long-term goals can feel like running a marathon with no finish line.

To stay ahead of everything and avoid last-minute surprises, I built a daily follow-up system that keeps me locked in, productive, and on top of my deadlines.

Here’s how I’m crushing my Master’s in Software Engineering & Artificial Intelligence with structure, not stress.

The Setup

Course: Master’s in SWE + AI @ Torrens University Australia
Duration: 12-week trimesters, fully asynchronous
Commitment: ~10 hours per subject, per week
Goal: Build a repeatable system to avoid falling behind
Tools: Google Docs, ChatGPT, Notebooks, Notion (light), GitHub

1. Why I Needed a System

I’m a project manager at heart, and I function best when there’s structure.

The Torrens program gives you access to all course content from Day 1. That’s great — until you realize how easy it is to procrastinate.

Instead of reacting to due dates, I flipped the game: I’d treat it like a dev sprint.

2. Structuring the Workspace

I started by setting up a clean, pragmatic folder structure on Google Drive:

/Course
  /Modules
    /Module 1
    /Module 2
    /Module_Controller.docx
  /Notes
  /Projects

Inside Module_Controller.docx, I track every task with a table that looks like this:

Task	Module	Type	Status	Date	Link
Read Chapter 1 of Project Manager’s Guide to Mastering Agile	1	Reference Read	done	07/june	URL of my notes at Docx

This is my study command center.

3. The Daily Follow-Up Flow

This is what I follow every day, without exception:

Morning Check-In: Review deadlines, modules, and personal progress. Update my controller file.
Micro-Goals: Break tasks into 30–45 minute deep-focus sessions. (One reading, one quiz, one doc summary).
Evening Wrap-Up: Mark what’s done, write 1–2 lines summarizing the day. Reprioritize for tomorrow.
Weekly Retro (Sunday Night): Look back at what’s working, what’s slipping, and adjust plans.

4. Tools I Use

Google Docs → My daily controller + notes
ChatGPT → Draft support for assignments, ideas, and questions
Notebook (yep, paper) → Class notes, diagrams, condensed summaries
GitHub → I’m logging all my Masters-related code and notes here:
👉 github.com/lfariabr/masters-swe-ai

5. What Changed for Me

I feel ahead and not just caught up.

That “I already reviewed this in detail” feeling before each class is powerful. It gives me the confidence to dig deeper, ask better questions, and build stronger projects.

6. Tips to Make It Yours

Keep it light, but consistent. Show up daily. Even 10 minutes matters.
Use your best focus window. I found my sweet spot: early mornings with coffee = 2h of magic.
Don’t overthink it. You don’t need perfect tools. You need momentum.

Key Takeaways

Self-paced learning can crush you or unlock your flow. It’s up to you.
Treat your studies like a dev project. Think: tasks, sprints, retros.
Paper + digital tools = superpower. Don’t ditch the notebook.

The Result

I’m now in full control of my academic load, and it actually feels fun.

This isn’t a magic bullet, but it’s a system that makes me show up every single day with clarity and purpose.

If you’re also pursuing a degree or juggling remote work and learning, feel free to fork my system or ping me. I’d love to share what’s working and what failed.