Happy New Year and welcome back! We hope you are feeling refreshed and are raring to go for the new term ahead. Our #NewYearNewUniSkills campaign is running all this week to support you to get back in to study mode, and this is the perfect time to set yourself some academic study resolutions. If you need some inspiration, then check out our fabulous team of Student Advisors who have shared their academic resolutions with you.
Thomas
My academic study resolution is to make my organisation better within my studies. Preparing for assignments and coming back into university life can be difficult just after the Christmas break. It is important to allow yourself the time to come back into study mode and not to become complacent with studying and/or revising for your exams. I will have a look at what needs to be done and follow the ‘Eisenhower Matrix’ to decide the urgency of my tasks. Watching YouTube videos or courses on LinkedIn Learning can also be a useful tool to improve time-management. In addition to these resources, the UniSkills team provides sessions on time management and organisation, so be sure to have a look on the UniSkills workshops page to book onto those.
Elizabeth
My New Year New You Academic Study Resolution is to write up my PhD thesis! So far, I have bits of chapters and writings, but this will be the first time I have dedicated time to purely write up my PhD! To do this, I will need a good routine, motivation, a good study space and lots of coffee! My aim is to conduct a writing timetable which will plan my dedicated time to writing up my thesis. The timetable will contain soft and hard deadlines, time to work out, work, socialise and take breaks! I hope to work on my thesis Mon – Fri and treat it like a full-time job!
My ideal and most motivational study space is Catalyst. I often work in the Loft where I can use two screens to read information on one screen and write up on the other. I will also set myself small writing goals each day – tackling it bit by bit! Writing an assignment or even a thesis can feel like an overwhelming and gigantic task, but breaking it down helps get the job done! All this will hopefully help with my motivation, achievements in reaching my small but attainable goals and hopefully, achieving the BIG goal of having a full first draft of my 80,000-word PhD by Summer 2023! Why don’t you try some of my tips and methods with your own academic study?
Sam
To make the most out of my degree by attending additional sessions ran by lecturers and having plenty of meetings with my dissertation tutor!
Michelle
My ‘New Year New UniSkills’ Academic Study Resolution is to keep my study workspace clear of clutter and only have to hand the resources I need for the task I am working on. I am a well-organised person and great at multi-tasking but working on multiple pieces at once often results in me having four or five piles of different module work around me as I study. I also plan on completing my Gold Extra Edge Award by Easter; I am really motivated when I have a goal to aim towards. I hope my resolutions will push me to focus and develop my prioritisation skills, which are transferrable skills I will be able to apply to future jobs.
Paula
This year, my resolution for studying is to stay focused. When researching for an assessment I tend to get pulled down rabbit holes and end up a million miles away from the subject I should be researching. To help keep me focused I have used a post it notes app on all my devices. I’ve written the name of the assessment in bold bright letters on the post it note and keep it up front on whatever screen I’m working on at the time. Then, if I find myself diverted away from topic a glance at the note is enough to remind me and put me back on track.
We hope you enjoyed reading our Student Advisor’s academic resolutions and that they have have inspired you to make your own!
Good luck with your exams and assessments!