First Year of Undergraduate Study: Lessons Learned
1) Notebooks wonāt work for your year- long modules. They just donāt- youāll find by the time your first semester has ended, youāve already got three per module, and theyāre all over the place. Unlike a binder, you canāt just clip in and reorder: missed readings completed later, seminars with additional notes emailed to you after class, will become random pages of notes in an (often indecipherable) spiderās web of in- class note taking, jotted information from readings, scraps of essay planning, that will take too much time to unravel. Do yourself a favour, and use folders- whether digital or physical- that you can divide up into weeks, or document types, and reference with ease when it comes to the exam crunch. Plus, youāll save luggage space, something Iāve stressed, and will continue to stress time and again, will do your back and shoulders so much good as a commuter or big city student.
2) Talk to fellow students in all your classes. Talk to the people around you, for your own sake and theirs. They are just as dithering and clueless as you are- the kids you think are lofty and intimidating are often the friendliest. Making friends in your classes will make the awkward interim between reaching your lecture hall and taking your seat so much less daunting. It will also boost your confidence academically- being surrounded by people in the same boat as you is such a lovely thing, and when it comes to exam and deadline season, youāll have shoulders to cry on, and like minds to share your ideas with.
3) Come up with your own, personal, deadline- hitting strategy. From the moment you choose your essay title, to the last hurrah of the final read- through, devise a loose method that works for you. Whether thatās starting weeks ahead with a detailed plan, or making brief summaries of readings to incorporate in the lead up to that final deadline, it will be so helpful to you in the long run to understand how you work in this respect. For many of us, itās a totally new departure! Certainly with my a levels, I was so exam- minded from the get- go that I treated my coursework as secondary, an addition I took upon myself to nail and then pushed to the sidelines upon completion. Having a good, loose but solid method is integral.
4) Invest in a durable, lightweight planner. Even laptop users should have a paper planner- perfect for planning in advance, squeezing in your readings and research, scribbling email addressed, and jotting down room and time changes as they are mentioned. I discovered the Moleskine Weeks in January of last year, and I highly recommend it- itās so slim and portable (did I mention Iām a commuter student???!!), and gives you your weekly overview on one side and an entire notes page on the other, as well as calendars at the front for the entire year.Ā
5) Know when to give yourself a break. When youāre tired, sick or burnt out, do not fret over missing a day of lectures- befriend your seminar leader, and like- minded students, and ask them to catch you up. Seminar leaders are so approachable, and willing to send off any missed information. Become familiar with your universityās online database- often, lecturers will post lecture plan documents, and the slides of their presentation.
6) Check yourself when you start skipping regularly. Soon, the realisation that there are no immediate consequences for skipping class will hit. Make sure youāre going more often than youāre skipping: aim for an 80:20 ratio as a means of maintaining academic discipline.
7) Know where, when, and how, you work best. I mentioned in a previous post that now is the time to find your āthingā- your particular method of learning that Makes Things Stick. For me, itās watching, and taking notes on, content (Crash Course World History being a long- standing favourite), alongside my readings and lecture notes. Not only should you try to come to know how you learn, but also when, and where, you learn best. I know plenty of people who can work for hours, in silence, in the university library- I personally cannot bear the absence of noise. Iāve found that I work best in two hour stints in coffee shops, and at home with some music in the background (Death Cab for Cutie have tonnes of gentle background music perfect for soft indie lovers). When is also a vital factor in your learning: whilst you donāt always have the luxury of determining when you study, itās great to know when you work most efficiently when the day is all yours. As a self- professed āevening personā, I work the most efficiently between 4 and 10 p.m.- as a first year, I would often try and cram huge chunks of reading at 6 a.m. ahead of my morning lecture, and would suffer for it. This will help you immensely in the long run, and come exam season you will know what, when and where works for you.
8) Maintain your notes. In reading for, and taking notes during, lectures, you are creating a body of content to refer back to later. Treat it as such- read as broadly as you feel necessary, take notes in all of your classes, and do the work to catch up after skipped classes.
9) Enjoy learning, and exploring, your specialist subject. This slew of teaching and learning is the perfect time to enjoy the privilege of immersion- youāve got tonnes of resources at your fingertips, professors who are absolutely infatuated with their fields, and time is on your side. Enjoy learning unabashedly! This first year of study is an incredible opportunity to find your niche.
