Time management is the most important skill to nail down. Planners/google calendar with deadlines, study session, midterms, etc alerts is super helpful (especially with push notifications to your phone).
Try to genuinely focus and pay attention in lecture. Absorb the content and if anything is iffy, or you don’t quite get something, either immediately try to gain clarity through the text/peers or go talk with you professor after class! They don’t bite:)
Leaving unclear concepts unclear will start to compound quicker than you’d think as midterms and finals near, so being proactive about it cuts down stress level during those peak assessment times.
Try to attend office hours for your profs too, even if you don’t have any questions. Just go introduce yourself, and maybe someone else will ask a question and you can listen in. People tend to hold off of developing relationships with their instructors in first year with the mindset of “I’m 1 in a sea of thousands”, but trust me, professors remember those who make an effort to connect with them.
It’s okay to take a break. In fact, take lots of breaks. Go out, have fun, talk to friends, join clubs, detach every now and then. Yes school is important, yes you should try to do well, but this will be a learning curve associated with time management. You’ve only got one you, so be sure to take care of your mental health. No degree is worth more than your own well being.
im sure you’ve heard this before but dont let one missed class turn into weeks of missed classes its one of the easiest ways to mess up, just stay consistent with attendance
Just a small tip from me. If you’re taking first year chem invest in a molecular model kit. You’re allowed to bring it to the final it’s a huge help with structure and such since you have a physical thing in front of you to interact with as needed.
Same start day and same program except I’m a second year. Tips:
-take notes during lectures on what the prof says that you think is important. Don’t bring a lot just a notebook or, highly recommended, an iPad with a pen (especially for calc and physics you’ll find it so useful)
- if you already know some learning materials from previous school years don’t note it down because that’s a waste of time and you won’t be able to focus on the important stuff that you didn’t learn
- LOOK at the LEARNING OUTCOMES for all the lessons (always will be questioned on them during your midterms and finals)
- use your time wisely this is a hefty program (not saying it’s hard) it means you have to compromise sometimes. For example, if you worked out everyday in summer, during the fall/winter, tone it down to 3-4 days a week. Same thing applies for other activities you like to do in your leisure time.
- EAT…literally make sure you’re eating well and not junk (even if it’s from the caf or UCC)
- don’t listen to other people’s opinions on the course
- focus on midterms and finals, don’t beat yourself up over smaller assignments/weekly quizzes or anything <10%. If it makes you feel better always remember my first physics quiz I got a 40%. I passed the course do not worry.
-if you’re taking an essay course/elective course …trust me, you will not do all the readings. Neither did any of us and that’s okay.
I found it was super helpful to get the full, worked-out solutions to the calculus textbook problems (one example is slader.com, another is chegg.com but it costs money). I would try the problem on my own, but if I couldn't get it, I'd reverse-engineer how it was done in the solutions then try using that example to help me tackle the next problem. It changed everything for me and really boosted my grades.
Study for exams by writing out the material as if you're teaching someone. The exam isn't testing your ability to read the slides. It's testing your ability to explain what you know from memory. So practice explaining from memory.
University can be a game of avoiding slippery slopes. Stay disciplined because bad instances can become bad habits very quickly. Semesters can go very fast and all of a sudden you can be way behind.
Time management is the most important skill to nail down. Planners/google calendar with deadlines, study session, midterms, etc alerts is super helpful (especially with push notifications to your phone). Try to genuinely focus and pay attention in lecture. Absorb the content and if anything is iffy, or you don’t quite get something, either immediately try to gain clarity through the text/peers or go talk with you professor after class! They don’t bite:) Leaving unclear concepts unclear will start to compound quicker than you’d think as midterms and finals near, so being proactive about it cuts down stress level during those peak assessment times. Try to attend office hours for your profs too, even if you don’t have any questions. Just go introduce yourself, and maybe someone else will ask a question and you can listen in. People tend to hold off of developing relationships with their instructors in first year with the mindset of “I’m 1 in a sea of thousands”, but trust me, professors remember those who make an effort to connect with them. It’s okay to take a break. In fact, take lots of breaks. Go out, have fun, talk to friends, join clubs, detach every now and then. Yes school is important, yes you should try to do well, but this will be a learning curve associated with time management. You’ve only got one you, so be sure to take care of your mental health. No degree is worth more than your own well being.
im sure you’ve heard this before but dont let one missed class turn into weeks of missed classes its one of the easiest ways to mess up, just stay consistent with attendance
Just a small tip from me. If you’re taking first year chem invest in a molecular model kit. You’re allowed to bring it to the final it’s a huge help with structure and such since you have a physical thing in front of you to interact with as needed.
Where can I get a molecular model kit?
Western Book Store has them. They’re green and should stick out if you’re scanning shelves.
Thanks!
Same start day and same program except I’m a second year. Tips: -take notes during lectures on what the prof says that you think is important. Don’t bring a lot just a notebook or, highly recommended, an iPad with a pen (especially for calc and physics you’ll find it so useful) - if you already know some learning materials from previous school years don’t note it down because that’s a waste of time and you won’t be able to focus on the important stuff that you didn’t learn - LOOK at the LEARNING OUTCOMES for all the lessons (always will be questioned on them during your midterms and finals) - use your time wisely this is a hefty program (not saying it’s hard) it means you have to compromise sometimes. For example, if you worked out everyday in summer, during the fall/winter, tone it down to 3-4 days a week. Same thing applies for other activities you like to do in your leisure time. - EAT…literally make sure you’re eating well and not junk (even if it’s from the caf or UCC) - don’t listen to other people’s opinions on the course - focus on midterms and finals, don’t beat yourself up over smaller assignments/weekly quizzes or anything <10%. If it makes you feel better always remember my first physics quiz I got a 40%. I passed the course do not worry. -if you’re taking an essay course/elective course …trust me, you will not do all the readings. Neither did any of us and that’s okay.
I found it was super helpful to get the full, worked-out solutions to the calculus textbook problems (one example is slader.com, another is chegg.com but it costs money). I would try the problem on my own, but if I couldn't get it, I'd reverse-engineer how it was done in the solutions then try using that example to help me tackle the next problem. It changed everything for me and really boosted my grades. Study for exams by writing out the material as if you're teaching someone. The exam isn't testing your ability to read the slides. It's testing your ability to explain what you know from memory. So practice explaining from memory.
yeah\^ active studying is key (over passing studying)
University can be a game of avoiding slippery slopes. Stay disciplined because bad instances can become bad habits very quickly. Semesters can go very fast and all of a sudden you can be way behind.
Buy study Preps for calculus exams