University is
pretty much organized around a "hurry up and wait"
timetable. The first few weeks will be very slow, and then
all of a sudden you will be very busy. Your labs will start
and you will start to hand in assignments and essays. Of
course, try to get things started as far in advance as
possible, but sometimes it's simply not possible. You can't
write up a lab until you've done it, and you can't write an
essay until you know what you're writing on. This can be very
frustrating. If you like to take a long time to write a
paper, choose the topics that you teacher will cover first.
One of my teachers coverd an essay topic two days before the
essay was due.
Sometimes you will
have to hand in labs and assignments about a certain topic
before the professor has covered it. Although this is very
frustrating, there isn't much you can do to change it since
the professor has to hand the assgnments in toa different
marker who has a schedule of his/her own. If you feel that it
is really unfair, talk to your teacher. Otherwise, go to help
sessions and see TAs.
Although you may
not be able to write your essay for a while, keep thinking
about topics and be absolutely clear on what the teacher
wants. This will help you one you do start writing,
especially if you don't have a lot of time.
Keep up with your
lecture notes so you can pick up on ideas/topics that appeal
to you for essay topics. Discuss your ideas with the
teacher/TA.
If you miss a
test/lab/assignment deadline, you must have a valid excuse.
This usually means a certified letter from the university
health services. If you are very ill or there are family
disruptions, decide ahead of time whether you are going to
write the test or not and see the doctor. If you write a test
and fail becasue of stress, there is nothing your professor
can do.
Do not leave all
your studying until the night/morning before the test. If you
are limited for time, study small chunks of the material over
several days and review it all before the test.
Prioritize. If
you're hungry, make something to eat before you try to study.
Decide what needs to be done first and deal with it. If you
don't get everything on your list done, you will have done
the most important things first.
You midterms and
final exams will determine most of your mark. Although this
seems unfair, there is not very much you can do about it.
Make sure you focus on studying for these tests above all
else.
Every semester the
locations and times of final exams will be posted at numerous
places in the university. A preliminary list will be posted
and you must make sure that there are no exam conflicts. Once
the university deals with problems, it will post a final
schedule. This determines the place and time of your exam so
double check it to be sure.
