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Greetings from another, or maybe your first, college or university start of the academic year! In order to guarantee a productive and enjoyable academic year, let’s discuss 5 stress-free strategies to begin the school year.
Get Organized
You’re starting to receive all of your semester’s syllabi during the first week of school. What do you do with them? To start with, READ them. It baffles me that students don’t truly read the curriculum and gauge the tone of the class, considering I have taught at a university and have studied there for the most of my life.
Are there additional tests and quizzes, as well as group projects? Is there a policy requiring attendance? Is there any chance I can have help or issues answered by the instructor during open office hours later in the semester? Do I genuinely enjoy the subjects covered in class?
The syllabus contains the solutions to these queries! Reading is all that is required. If you are not comfortable with the instructor’s teaching style after reading the syllabus and understanding what is required of you in the course, discontinue the class right away! Change to new courses that suit your schedule or learning/teaching style better. It is preferable to drop a class within the first week and enrol in another than to work hard the entire semester just to earn a C-.
Being organised is a skill. College and university students frequently claim that their worst weakness—or potential for growth—is also their best asset. Having a successful organisational system can mean the difference between failure and success when life gets hectic. Thus, set aside some time at the beginning of the semester to organise your schedule, life, and yourself.
Build Out Your Schedule
The academic life is very stable, am I right? The first week of the semester is structured similarly to weeks 9 and 15, which means that your classes meet every week at around the same time and day. To assist you see when and how you are spending your time and energy, create your schedule using paper or digital spreadsheets (or applications).
Mornings are when I learn the most. When it’s early in the day as opposed to the afternoon or evening, I’m more alert and willing to think critically. Thus, night classes are a disaster for me! Have I acted solely out of need? Indeed. Was it fun? Without a doubt not.
Understand who you are, how you learn best, and when you should devote different kinds of energy to different tasks. Having morning classes freed up my afternoons and evenings for leadership and community service activities while I was a student, which called for a different kind of focus and effort.
Even though I detest sitting in class till nine o’clock at night, I love working with student organisations and meeting to create programming opportunities and craft vision statements. That would keep me busy till midnight! The key is to determine your needs, strengths, and optimal performance throughout the day so that you can adjust your schedule accordingly.
Value Mental, Emotional, Physical and Spiritual Health
Each of us experiences holistic health differently. Some people find that daily gym visits help them decompress, get more in tune with their body, and reconnect with themselves. How are things going for us? What is your emotional state? What is now favourably impacting me? What doesn’t function?
For some people, daily gym visits are the stuff of nightmares! When navigating stress and anxiety, it is crucial to pay attention to your body and recognise what you need mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually to create symmetry, balance, and a stable basis for your existence.
If your entire 12-hour day consists of just 7 minutes here and there between classes, pick a mindful breathing exercise or meditation on Spotify and give it a try! Good and healthful self-care routines don’t have to involve weekly church attendance or ninety minutes at the gym. What matters is what it means to you!
Increase the frequency of your healthy activity as often as it seems comfortable for you if it brings you value and significance. Put away any habits or methods you find that aren’t helping you and switch to ones that will genuinely benefit you.
Talk With Your Professors and Instructors Early and Often
It is not appropriate to discuss a concern with your professors or class instructors for the first time. In addition to making connections on LinkedIn, introducing yourself after class, and participating in class as much as you are comfortable with are also recommended. You will feel more at ease and confident asking for assistance or guidance when you need it most if you have a relationship with the teaching figures in your life.
Having a relationship where the instructor is aware of your circumstances can help create a dialogue of compromise where you AND the instructor know what is going on and how you are working to overcome your challenges if you find it difficult to turn in assignments on time or occasionally miss class this semester.
How are teachers supposed to know you need assistance if they are unaware of your circumstances? And in WHAT way do you seek assistance? Your learning is the reason why instructors teach. Join forces with them, introduce yourself, and speak out for your demands right away.
In any case, you have acquired an excellent individual who can now attest to your academic proficiency and classroom professionalism—this is really advantageous when you need references for graduate school or your first post-college job!
Budgeting 101
Hey, money is serious business at college. There is always something you need or want, yet you never have enough of anything. I won’t sit here and advise you against getting that Starbucks cappuccino. Because Starbies time is just that—Starbies time. When will Starbies be hitting the road three times a day, seven days a week? Yes, we have a money issue. The principle for budgeting is straightforward: what goes out, must come back in. You shouldn’t (or perhaps you can’t) spend what you don’t have.
Budgeting is one of my most important financial health recommendations for leading a stress-free college or university life. Learn about yourself, your spending habits, and how you feel about your spending. You may also use your account transactions to determine your priorities. Even if all of the money you currently have in your account—47 cents—was used each week for transportation to school, rent, and food? Even with a restricted budget, you are doing the best you can manage it. Excellent work.
Learning, growing, and forming habits that benefit you for the rest of your life are the main goals of college. Growing up is challenging. Setting a budget and making difficult choices are difficult. Allow yourself to grow and learn so that you can advance on your personal journey a little bit each day, month, and year. For the majority of people, managing finances can be difficult; nevertheless, understanding who you are and what financial responsibility means to you will benefit you for the rest of your life.
Have fun !
In this post, we covered some really serious subjects. It is a constantly changing science, and to be honest, a little bit of an art, to balance the demands of college and university life (never mind if you are working a job too!). To stay grounded, safe, and to thrive on your path, get to know and trust yourself as well as those who are kind and supportive of you. Most importantly, have fun!
Scholars on campus, welcome back! Let’s get to work studying and developing!
