Freshers

Kick Down a False Sense of Security

Your first year of university is very different to your following years.

In most instances, first year modules don’t account for much – if any – of your degree award. So long as you pass everything, you get through.

From the second year onwards, I heard a lot of people saying that they were going to need to take a proper reign of their work from now on, as the marks ‘mean something now’.

This is a shallow view, but it’s not really the student’s fault in seeing things this way. If all you need to do is pass something, where’s the incentive to try harder? It sounds like a good get-out, it sounds unimportant, and the first year of university is clearly about experiencing so much that it sounds great to ignore the work aspect as much as possible.

But rather than setting you up perfectly for the rest of your years at uni, the false sense of security can, in many cases, cause problems further down the line.

False sense of security

On this blog, I’ve always been an advocate of making the most of your time and looking at the bigger picture. In this respect, it’s a false economy to treat your study less seriously in your Fresher year than in your following years.

Even if you think it’s going to be easy to put more effort in from Year 2, the reality will soon bite you on the bum. It’s likely you’ll anticipate a sudden increase in workload, but you’ll be shocked at how much more reading you’ll have. And essays. And practical work. And presentations.

I treated my first year as an experiment. For instance, it was great to write essays quickly, ask tutors if I was working along the right lines, and amend the essays accordingly. It gave me a taste of what an academic essay needed to look like. The extra input did take up a bit more time to go over, but not much. It was more than worth it in rewards.

Regardless, because I made sure to get up around 6-7am most days, I got most work out of the way before anyone else was up. It looked like I was doing less work than everyone else!

So treat the year as a time to experiment and understand how to get the good grades next year. See where it takes you and don’t be afraid to occasionally go out on a limb. If you’re not being seriously marked, it’s much better to treat the work with a sense of fun, rather than not bother with it at all.

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A false sense of security can also lead to wasted time. If there are so many weeks before an essay is due in, it’s easy to sit back and chill. But with the prospect of an essay on your mind over those weeks, all enthusiasm and drive can fall away. Procrastination will only end up giving you more tasks to think about, so you’ll be less inclined to push yourself and do much with your time at all.

So in my first year, I learned to use hidden time as carefully as possible. For instance, my timetable generally consisted of an hour lecture, followed by an hour break, followed by an accompanying seminar.

The hour-long break was spent by many people doing one of three things:

  1. Sitting in the cafe, bar, or student union, having a laugh and a quick drink;
  2. Doing the work that was scheduled to be done in time for the seminar (leaving no time to address problems, confusion, quality, etc.);
  3. Using the computers on campus to surf the net until the hour had passed by.

My thought was to spend time on other study work, even if it was just to read quietly. Whatever study I was considering, it was another hour of work that nobody even noticed me working in.

No wonder people thought I did no work. But it was just an illusion.

It might sound like I just enjoy the studious side of university life. But in utilising my time well, I had more time to be social and enjoy myself too.

You have the same 24 hours that everyone else has each day.

So if I’m asked how I was able to manage so much with my time at uni, I answer, “How could I not have managed it?”

The truth is, I was often disappointed with myself that I didn’t achieve even more with my time. That false sense of security often bit me on the bum too!

But remember, we’re all able to improve exponentially. Don’t let anyone persuade you otherwise.

Getting Involved – Upcoming Student Events & Activities

Certain events may be approaching quickly for students.  Don’t ignore them, get involved!

These are going to take place at slightly different times, dependent on which uni you’re at, but several activities and events take place around now that are well worth being a part of:

Refreshers Week

If you were overwhelmed by everything on offer in Fresher’s Week, here’s another chance to join up to the societies and groups available at uni.  Even if you already did all you wanted at the Fresher’s Fair, it’s worth revisiting this time to see how things take you now.  A lot can happen in a few months…you’ll be seeing things from a different light now.

“It’s better to be a pirate than to join the Navy.”  –  Steve Jobs

RAG Week

It’s time to make some money for charity.  Watch fellow students do mental and weird stuff, then give generously!  Better still, get involved yourself.  Try to break a strange world record, do a strange stunt, go crazy around the campus, arrange a charity pub crawl, involve your society with RAG…there are so many possibilities.  And it’s all for a good cause.

“A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog.”  –  Jack London

Elections

No sooner does one year start, the preparations are underway to find next year’s sabbatical officers and student reps.  Do you have good ideas to help your fellow students and your university?  Would you like your voice, as well as everyone else’s, to be heard?  Are you passionate about the future and what can be done to take things further?  If so, you need to get involved in the elections fast!

“One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.”  –  Plato

It’s getting involved and participating in stuff like this that gives you scope to build upon your CV too.  Just think, having fun to improve your future opportunities and success.  How good is that!?

10 Reasons Why the Benefits of University Can Lead to Downfall

With so much freedom and a total change of lifestyle, university offers a student a mindblowing array of benefits. You can shape everything to suit yourself.

Of course, there’s a huge danger in that. The gifts are only positive if you’re able to use them to your advantage. Abuse your gifts and you risk taking a step backwards. Be aware of the following 10 gifts and what to be aware of when handling them:

Elsewhere Life - photo by Ezu

1. You can choose when you want to do your work

BUT…You risk never doing it.  And if you do get on with it, you may not have a focus on how much work is needed.

SO…Start as early as you can and get writing your todo lists.  It’s no good giving 24 hours to random work.  Have a plan that focuses your mind and break it down so you don’t have to do everything in one go.

2. You can choose how much time to spend on a project

BUT…You may try to rush it, or underestimate the amount of time needed to complete the task.

SO…Use some of your free time to keep things ticking over.  And take account of any wasted time in between lectures and seminars…it’s perfect for getting another bit of that task completed.  Always make the most of your entire day.

3. You aren’t fixed to a particular study area like your were in school

BUT…You could end up having no study area to speak of.  Instead of sitting down somewhere and starting on something, you risk having no sense of working surroundings.

SO…Highlight certain places that you consider possible study areas.  For instance, if you use a part of the library as a recreation/leisure area, seek out a different part of the library that can act as your study area.

4. You aren’t pushed by tutors in the same way teachers pushed you

BUT…It’s what many of us are used to.  When the pushing stops, it no longer feels important.  It’s like a switch has turned off.  You either don’t know how to crack on, or you can’t be bothered to try so hard.

SO…Look forward to adapting.  You probably didn’t like having a teacher breathing down your neck…so now you don’t have it, why be unhappy? Imagine your favourite teacher giving you that moral support and guiding you to where you need to be.  Keep an eye on yourself for procrastination and don’t be afraid to see your tutors when you do need some help and advice.  Finally, remember to set effective goals to help you focus.

5. You can concentrate on what interests you

BUT…It might be to the detriment of some of the less savoury topics/modules that you’re required to complete.

SO…By all means enjoy yourself, but give a thought to the overall effect and importance of the work.  You’ll be far from happy if your grades don’t reflect how much fun you had.  Take the rough with the smooth…explore the less interesting avenues and you might just find yourself developing a liking.  Some topics may simply be an acquired taste.  Think about Point 4 above and push yourself.

6. You have the freedom to have as much fun as you want

BUT…Taking it for granted is too easy.  Fun may be ALL you end up having.  When things go wrong further down the line, you’ll be having no fun at all.

SO…Do you studying and reward yourself later.  Don’t spend weeks dreading the start of that essay…as soon as you’re given the task, give 20-30 minutes of your time each day to building up a fantastic start.  Later down the line, you’ll have less to dread, and more time for fun.  This article in Zen Habits will help you make the most of work and play at the same time for 2008.

7. You have the scope to develop through clubs, societies, campaigning, sports, the list goes on

BUT…Too many hobbies and you risk losing focus on your main interests.  And too much extra-curricular involvement could impact upon your study.

SO…Keep it to a manageable level.  Fresher’s Fair is designed to get you joining up to all sorts of weird and wonderful societies.  You may think it’s good to join half of them, but it’s a wasted economy and it dilutes your time until you have no more time at all.  Keep it under control and stay dedicated to a select few interests.  Make a timetable of what you’re doing and keep track of how much time is needed for everything you do.

8. You’re given the tools for independent thought and encouraged to let those ideas flow

BUT…You may prefer to be told what to do.  You may be expecting to be given the answers.  Unless you have the passion and interest, you may begrudge the independent thought.

SO…It’s time to realise that university doesn’t work that way.  It’s up to you to do the research and it’s up to you to decide how you feel about your subject.  Both arts and sciences require you to use what’s there and make something wonderful from it.  The power is yours.  Grasp it in both hands and enjoy the freedom!

9. You have enormous scope to network

BUT…If you network too much, you’ll soon be weighed down with hundreds of social webs, thousands of invitations and millions of e-mails.  And not always from people you even know.

SO…Be selective; there’s plenty time for branching out further when you know where things are going.  Before that, do your research.  Network with a purpose, not just so you’ve got the most ‘friends’ (I use the term loosely in this respect, because nobody has more than a select group of very close friends).  Unless you’re looking to win a high-profile Student Union election, it’s not worth trying to be all things to all people.  If you are trying to win that election, you can try to be all things, so long as you remember you aren’t really that!

10. You are given full independence from Day One

BUT…That means you’re entirely responsible for your mistakes!  There isn’t as much scope to find other things to blame.  Surely that’s not fair!?

SO…Be wise in your independence.  You don’t need telling twice that you’re an adult now.  In fact, you don’t need telling once.  While the temptation may be there to use your independence as a chance of total liberation, don’t go too mad.  There’s a good kid…erm, I mean adult!  😉

Independence is about responsibility.  If you’re not responsible, you’ll soon be more dependent than you ever were.

5 Ways to Embrace the Academic Meaning of Christmas

Christmas has a different meaning for different people:

  • A great religious event.
  • An excuse for partying.
  • A time for prezzies.
  • The time of the year for family gatherings.
  • An opportunity to let go and eat/drink all you want for once (stuff the turkey and stuff the diet).

What meaning does it have for students?

If you take a sensible view, Christmas is a time for students to do the following:

  • Take stock
  • Relax
  • Revise
  • Plan
  • Tidy Up

twinkle (photo by katiew)

1 – TAKE STOCK

Whatever year you’re in, the Christmas break is a very good time to look at the time spent so far. You won’t be in the thick of things. Even if you remain on campus during the hols, most others won’t be, so you have a great opportunity to ask yourself some questions and get an understanding of where you’re at.

Freshers/1st Year/Level 1 – How has the new life changed the way you think, the way you live, the way you view the world, the way you want to be? Have you felt a good balance between your work and your social time? Do you have any wishes, any regrets, any need to improve?

2nd Year/Level 2 – Pretty much halfway through your degree now. Do you feel stable? Are you ready for more? Do you have the control to push yourself further as the degree gets deeper and more focused? Have you given the work your full attention, or do you need to knuckle down from now on?

3rd Year/Level 3 – How is your Final Year Project going? Is your research totally focused now? Do you have specific goals based on your previous two years of study? What else do you want to achieve before your time at uni has ended? Do you want to continue your academic study at Postgrad level, or are you planning various career moves?

2 – PLAN

Once you’ve taken stock, as suggested above, there’s no point in leaving it at that alone.  Bring all your thoughts together and note down what you want to do for the rest of the year and beyond.

If you’ve got goals, you’ll get a lot further if you have a plan of getting from A to B…

3 – RELAX

As school children, Christmas was a big celebration. In the world of work, Christmas is a couple of extra days holiday. For anyone at university, Christmas is a strange situation.

There’s no denying that university equals a lot more than just doing work. Of course, this blog has a lot of study tips, but the secret to a successful time at uni is to use it with every possible part of your life.

So when Christmas comes along, you no longer have the nightly events, the parties, the tens/hundreds/thousands of friends on hand to do something at the last minute, or the fun community spirit that shouts “holiday camp” as opposed to “study area”.

At a time like this, I would suggest a period of relaxation. You’ve been granted a few weeks to recharge your batteries, so get recharging! Then you’ll be more than ready to burst back onto the scene in January.

Don’t…Panic just Relax - photo by Tiago Daniel

4 – REVISE

Relaxing doesn’t mean you stop revising…

You’ll probably have exams looming when you return to uni. Obviously you’ll be spending some of your break on revision, but many students are fooled into ignoring the revision until they get back. You may have a week back at university where you’re meant to be back from Christmas and working toward the impending exams/essays that are due.

Rather than wait for the allotted uni-time for revision, make a point of spending very short bursts of time during the hols on getting up to speed. It’ll boost your confidence. It’ll also give you the chance to find out what you already know and let you focus later on what’s important.

5 – TIDY UP

You’ve suddenly been given some time away from the (by now) norm. That means it’s the best time to sort out what you’ve got and get rid of all the crap.

I mean it. Spring clean like it’s, erm…Spring! You may have started uni with a million items, of which you’ve used less than half of the stuff.

If you’ve had lots of junk gathering dust, make a decision about what you’re going to do with it. Throwing it away, selling it, leaving it at home…it doesn’t really matter; just do something with the junk.

The same goes for your notes, photocopies and degree materials. It’s now your chance to get everything into a nice order, get rid of the unneccessary overspill, tidy up any important notes you’ve made, and take control of what you’ve got.

Tidying Room - photo by Andy H McDowall