Hi, as someone who is going to be in their first year of college this fall, I'm curious about the note taking part
Is physical or digital note taking easier?
Is spending money on a laptop nessesary?
What is something you wish you would've done differently during your first year?
Do you have any advice?
If by any chance you see this, your blog and your aesthetic are amazing!
I'm wishing you a wonderful day/night.
If you do decide to reply, thank you in advance <3
helloo! sorry for the late reply & thank u for the ask! :)
ive tried both and i think i prefer handwritten notes, however they both have their pros and cons:
handwritten pros
proven to be better for retaining information
can't get distracted by other tabs
lighter to carry
costs less than a laptop
i've had some classes where we weren't allowed to use laptops so it's good to already be used to taking notes this way
cons:
much slower. sometimes i find im missing stuff and i have to go back to it at the end
have to print out diagrams etc if u want to include them
could possibly lose them, spill something etc
not enough space on desk for both laptop and notebook so u can't get slides up or google something
digital pros:
much quicker
easier to organise & pull up different notes at any time - u don't need to carry around or find older notebooks to be able to study or refer back to past classes
some people make notes directly onto the slides which u would have to print out if u wanted to do by hand
can also use for research and writing essays which u will need a computer for at some point so might as well do everything in one place
cons:
expensive
more stressful if u lose or break it
if u forget to charge it and u don't have paper .......
this upcoming year, im using a combination. most of the time i'll handwrite my notes, but for classes where they talk too quickly i'll type them (it's not worth the stress & extra time having to go back to recordings after). my notes for readings will be annotated straight onto the pdf. i'll be taking pictures of notes to put them all together.
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unfortunately, i think it is because you'll need computer access to research and write ur essays, as well as to find course information etc. HOWEVER some universities (most?) have laptops that u can borrow and computers in the library, so if u know that you'll be motivated enough to get up and do all of ur work on campus, you could save this cost - bare in mind when u move off campus after first year it might be even harder. definitely look into this if cost is an issue for you! it doesn't need to be a fancy one if u do buy a laptop though, just remember u'll be carrying it around so don't get a super heavy one!
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as for something i wish i'd done differently: as a sociology student, none of my classes have exams where i have to memorise things, instead it's all essay based. this led me to not 'study' i guess ??? like the stuff that i wrote my essays on, i knew like the back of my hand, but everything else i couldn't remember well. so if ur taking an essay based subject, remember that u still need to study a little & remember these things !! i was so overwhelmed tbh that i forgot about this oopsie!
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extra advice:
when people say that after u skip one class, u'll skip the rest THEY. MEAN. IT. literally try so hard not to miss class bc you will never go again if u do. my classes would start off with not enough seats for everybody and end up with just a handful of us by the end of term.....
make time for urself !! it can become all consuming, especially if u live on campus, but pls make some dedicated time away from studying !!
u will find ur friends eventually. pls remember that it won't last or be that fun if u stick with friends who u don't have that much in common with just bc they were the first u met. tell me why i was going to bars and clubs with people in first term bc that;s what they wanted to do ????? it's ok to move onto different people bc u will eventually get tired of doing these things u don't like just to be able to hang out with people !! now i go to bookstores and cafes with my new friends and i love it!! don't settle !!
I feel like the age of instant communication has killed the act of yearning.
I was looking at some old letters and notes my parents wrote to each other when they were in college and you could just tell how much they loved each other, how excited they were to see each other next, how much they longed for each each other. And I feel like that just doesn’t happen anymore, now that we can just text people and be in constant contact our communication starts to feel meaningless.
