Through their undergraduate journey, many will fall prey. Prey to lack of readiness, working late hours, too demanding Programmemes, wrong Programmeme selection, early unexpected pregnancy, sickness, too many partying, family problems etc. Yet, for some reasons, none has plans to fail. The culture masterminds is a finishing strong mentality that allows you to learn from your mistakes, friends, and plot your undergraduate experience appropriately.
For a fact, the university does not encompass the best years of your life especially since there’s so much living, youth to reveal, maturing and self-discovery that will happen through the Programmemes. Yet, the start of the semester is an exciting time – new students are arriving on campus, full of enthusiasm, hope, and questions. Here are five tips for incoming and in-course students, and perhaps some of these will help you finish strong.
MEET YOUR ACADEMIC ADVISOR
Academic advisors sometimes called Student Service officers or University councillors are one of the greatest resources for university students because they can help with your entire university career—from classes to Programmes, to career preparation. The best way to help you is by having them know you. So when you meet with them for the first time, tell them about yourself. Tell them your passions, your career aspirations, what you’re interested in becoming. The more they know about you, the better equipped they will be to help you.
WORK HARD & STAY MOTIVATED
A focus on your academics with the right diet and exercise can be very instrumental in helping you finish strong. While there is no rule book on how to get there, an important starting point is to have the self-awareness, confidence and a healthy mind. If you are studying for the semester exam or any professional exams, you could use a little motivation from time to time. When you put in long hours studying, each week can be enough to make you want to quit pursuing your dreams of passing the exams.
PLAN YOUR TIME & USE IT
Time management for imminent graduates is very important. Plan and write down every single thing you need; assignments, projects, outings, free time etc. and review the list daily to ensure that you are working on the most important task at any time. This will help you to stay focus and use your time well.
GO TO LECTURES & KEEP UP
It’s true that some of the things you get from lectures, you can get online or with textbooks but attending lectures will help you draw connections between different content/data and/or provide valuable context to the material that might be in the textbooks or internet. This is why a Professor would take his time to make his lecture engaging and interesting. Lectures in university sometimes tend to sneak up on you especially with impromptu lecture notifications or postponement.
ASK QUESTIONS & GET HELP WHERE YOU ARE STRUGGLING
Most lecturers welcome questions at any time but it’s a good idea to check with your lecturer first, they may prefer that you wait until a certain point in the lecture where they stop for questions or until the end of the lecture. If you are not sure, wait until the end of the lecture and ask your questions. The University system is a compassionate and collegial environment and it’s a place with a lot of wonderful resources to help you when you are struggling. Don’t hesitate to seek help when you need it – visit health services when you are sick, or talk to your academic advisor if you are having difficulties with your Programmeme. Most importantly: know what services are available ahead of time.