Hi everyone!
I hope you have all enjoyed freshers week and created some amazing memories!
With lectures about to start, my advice to all university students, whether first year or third year, is to get organised early. By doing this it sets you up well for the rest of the year and will make things easier and less stressful.
There are loads of things I like to do to get organised for before lectures begin. Here are a few of the most important:
- Set out an area to study – By doing this now, it will save you time when it comes to assignments as you will already have a dedicated space to use. I don’t know about any of you, but I like to work in a tidy area that looks aesthetically pleasing as it motivates me to study. So, by getting this sorted as early as possible it will save you time when it comes to getting on with work.
- Stock up on stationary – I’m always running out of pens and paper when I am doing my work. To save the panic of not having anything to write with or on when you’re halfway through an important essay, I recommend you stock up on stationary right now.
- Academic diary – I would strongly recommend all students get one of these as they’re very useful when it comes to noting important dates and appointments.
- To do list – I have many of these all over my room reminding me of different things as I always seem to forget something. By having these and starting to get into the habit of using them them early on, it will really help you in the future.
There are also some things I recommend doing once lectures have started to get organised now and help you throughout the year:
- Note any due dates: Taking note and putting alerts on your phone about assignment deadlines or exam dates is a massive help, especially when those dreaded dates are fast approaching.
- Write up lecture notes ASAP: I like to use a laptop at university as I find I can type faster than I write. However, a mistake I made during first year was not writing my laptop notes onto the handouts straight away. Instead I left this to the end of the year when trying to study and I found this took time away from what I really needed to be doing. So don’t do what I did – write lecture notes up as soon as possible and save valuable time later.
- Start reading NOW: You will hear your lecturers say this to you in many classes and I strongly suggest you listen to them. The more you read early on, the easier it will be to find references to use in your assignments later.
- See academic support: During my first year, I found academic support services very helpful when it came to helping me understand my assignment briefs and how to reference. They are situated on the 5th floor of Summer Row in the library and are always happy to help.
I hope you have found this blog helpful and are excited to start university soon. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.
Jessica x