tealovingstudies

[tealovingstudies]

things no one told me about freshman year

you might meet your best friends in the first couple weeks… or you might not

my best college friends are the people that I met right off the bat, but it wasn’t until the second semester of my freshman year that my circle of friends really widened and I met some amazing people. So while those first few weeks are really important for meeting people (mostly because everyone is so receptive and open to making friends), you shouldn’t feel discouraged if you don’t make any great connections during those first few weeks.

please, please, please, be safe

if you’re going to party, drink, smoke, anything along these lines, PLEASE BE SAFE. especially for you freshman girls. this is the most vulnerable time of your life for any sort of sexual harassment or assault. do NOT go anywhere alone, be conscious of the people you’re interacting with, let your friends know where you are, have the number to your campus security on speed dial, carry pepper spray/a key weight, and BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS. there are upperclassmen and people outside of college who will take advantage of you so please be smart and safe.

you’re probably going to bring too much stuff

you’re going to think you need more stuff than you do. don’t bring 50 t-shirts and 10 pairs of jeans. bring what you’ll reasonably wear in 2-3 weeks (including some nicer stuff for those occasions). don’t bring 50 books. bring 5-10, read them, and then take them home and get more. if you live far away, i understand erring on the side of caution and being prepared, but if you’re closer to home, bring less than what you think you need.

get to know your RA

if you’re as lucky as I was, you’ll have an amazing RA who is super helpful during such a crazy transition. Talk to him/her about your concerns, ask them for advice, and learn from them. If they have the same major as you, BONUS. Their job is to be there for you, so definitely take advantage of that

on a similar note, get to know other upperclassmen

meet older people in your major. ask them about their experiences with professors and classes. they might have insight into your department or your school in general that you might not get elsewhere. make friends with upperclassmen, one because they’re probably awesome, and two because they might be able to help you in ways you can’t even imagine.

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO RUSH

this applies to guys and girls. under no means do you have to join a fraternity or sorority. you will be able to make friends and have a fulfilling life outside of a club. if you want to rush, do it, but if you don’t, don’t feel pressured. I rushed and I love my club, but my roommate didn’t and she’s just as happy and loves college just as much as I do. Do whatever YOU want to do.

it’s okay to hate your roommate

I am extremely lucky to have been paired with the roommate I was paired with, but some of my friends weren’t so lucky. if you’ve never lived with someone before, it’s a hard adjustment. if you and your roommate don’t gel, that’s okay. be patient, understanding, and try to focus on being the kind of person you would want to live with. if things get REALLY bad to where you just can’t live with them, let your RA know.

CALL YOUR FREAKING PARENTS

Not everyone has a great relationship with their parents, but surely you have SOME adult that loves you and wants to know how you’re doing. Call your parents or that adult and let them know how you are. It doesn’t have to be every day and you don’t have to tell them everything. (literally I called or texted with my parents every day just heading back from class and told them how my day was and what I have coming up.)

college classes are NOT like high school classes

different places (specifically in the US) have such different education systems, so many of us come from a variety of academic backgrounds. I had friends who really didn’t have to take many standardized tests because of where they grew up, while I had to take a bunch of standardized tests because I was raised in North Florida. that being said, college is not high school. you learn really quickly what you didn’t ever learn in high school and where you’ll struggle. allow yourself the time and the grace to adjust without being too hard on yourself. learn from others, and make sure to ask for help when you need it.

[tealovingstudies]

[tealovingstudies]

[tealovingstudies]

Insanely happy to have a workspace again 🙌🏻

[tealovingstudies]

a new spread !! finally. hoping for a good july filled with new feelings + experiences 💥

[tealovingstudies]

(13/30) a photo of your textbook(s)

of 30 day studyblr challenge by @hayley-studies

here’s a photo of my economics textbook (since i’m studying it right now for my exam tomorrow). this is the study method that i use when i only have a day to study - summarize each points or paragraphs in a sticky note, using your own words as much as possible. in addition, write important informations in another color to differentiate it from the rest.

good luck to any of you guys who are having exams soon! xx

[tealovingstudies]

*62/100 days of productivity*  19.3.16// yeah my desk is a mess.  Going through a lot of stuff and doing a mind map on Canetti’s main Topics. And I’m realizing that, after all, I like this fellow.

[tealovingstudies]

so, it’s almost the beginning of freshman year! what to do? here are a few things to get you started:

have you ordered your books/class materials yet? (if you haven’t- consider signing up for Amazon Prime Student! it’s free for the first six months, and obviously, everything is way cheaper there.)

what about basic supplies? (you’re going to need some basic school supplies, like always. think: backpack, binders, pens, pencils, a calculator, folders, & notebooks!)

some stationery recs by yours truly: 

five-star notebooks, esp. in graph ruled for all you science nerds out there. for anyone not majoring in science/math, the college ruled ones are perfect! 

pilot gel pens, yes, you’ve already heard of these (i’m sorry for bringing them up again) 

post-it notes, a classic! how else will you remember everything?!

your average 49-cent index cards, from literally anywhere. write that shit down! flip through them whenever you have free time! (yes, free time will, in fact, be a thing at uni, contrary to popular belief). 

have you contacted your academic advisor? (um, what are you waiting for? ask them any and all questions you have about your schedule, your program/major, or, if you’re undecided, what you should do to figure things out as quickly as possible!)

do you have your schedule printed & in your phone & pasted up on the walls everywhere to be memorised? (because you should. you need to know it inside and out. believe me, you don’t want to get confused about it)

have you tried to make friends? (whether they’re your roommate, your roommate’s friend, or another commuter you’ve met, or just some random kids from orientation, you need to start networking immediately. build your connections. no one can work alone.)

you’re all amazing & you’re all going to crush it! uni is going to be lovely.

this is just some advice for upcoming freshmen written by an upcoming freshman!

-allie

[tealovingstudies]

Flashcard Mistakes

Mistake #1: Not Making your Own Cards

The actual process of creating flashcards is important.

Your deck of flashcards should not just be “dictionary definitions.” Turning knowledge into cards is valuable for the same reasons it’s important to not take word-for-word notes: when you try to express information in your own words, you process the information. When you process it, you have to recreate the ideas in a way that makes sense to you. The process of retrieving and reorganizing the information actually strengthens the memory.

When you study flashcards which you created, you’ll remember the context in which you created them. If you’re studying a word in a foreign language, for example, you can include an example of a sentence that gives you trouble or some hint at the subtleties of the words which you’d miss by just writing a dictionary definition. In short, you can customize the card in a way that captures the exact challenges you face with that bit of information.

Mistake #2: Studying in One Big Session

If you sit down for one massive “cram session” with your cards, you’re hurting your learning.

The best way to use flashcards is as a quick impromptu study session. 15 minutes at the bus stop and 30 minutes between classes is better than hours and hours of continuous study at the end of the day, thanks to the rules of perfect practice. If you graph your progress, like I love to do, you’ll quickly discover that most of your progress seem to happen in between study sessions.

Here’s a surprising truth:

The goal of flashcards isn’t to get them right.

It’s to remind yourself of knowledge you’ve forgotten.

Researchers who have studied memorization developed a technique called “spaced repetition” for this reason. The major insight that they had, as a result of analyzing thousands of hours of study, is that you want to prompt recall just as something is about to be forgotten.

Mistake #3: Practicing Mindlessly

Do you know every fact in your deck equally well?

Certainly not. So you shouldn’t be lumping them all together into one big pile.

If you’re “zoning out” or going into a “robotic” mode when you use your flashcards, you’re wasting time. You should think about each card. Use the word in a sentence, remember some places you’ve heard it, say it aloud to yourself, etc. Engage with the content, don’t just say “yes, I know it” or “no, I don’t.” In fact, the spaced repetition concept from above would even suggest that you rate how well you know the card on a scale of 1-4. Then you sort the cards based upon how well you know them and study the ones you struggle with the most first before coming back to the ones you know better.

If all of this sounds hard to manage, there’s a better way.

So if you really want to improve your learning with flashcards:

Study it whenever you have a few minutes to kill. Embrace the small minutes of downtime you’d normally use to check social media.

Engage in the content. Say the words to  yourself, use them for an example, and don’t rush through the cards.

Source

[tealovingstudies]

take the time to read this

look I know you’re tired, and I know you’re scared. scared of that daunting task, scared of screwing up that daunting task. I get that you might be mad at yourself for procrastinating or letting the work with seemingly far away deadlines pile up and suddenly it’s 1am and you realise your thesis for that essay is horrible and you have no idea what the hell you’re talking about. but all of that is in the past, all of those decisions in the past and you can wallow in anger and self loathing and continue to put off things you know are important, or, you could utilise the time you have right now to do as much of it as you possibly can as soon as you can. so go onto google calendar, or grab your planner, or a scrap of paper or hell, a napkin, and figure out the time you have on your hands in the next 24 hours, estimate how long you think those big horrible, breath shaking and head-in-hands inducing tasks will take. if you get it done in that time, great. if you don’t, move on, you have other shit to do. it’s better to have 85% of most things done than 98% of one thing done and 2% of another thing done that will turn out to be equally as important. save yourself further stress, do the napkin plan thing, block social media sites, write down what you’re feeling if you’re feeling anything immense, because emotions tend to take your mind off things, and get it done. Whether it’s %100, %85 or even %10, get some of it done.

[tealovingstudies]

04/08/2018

Happy August ☀️ Today I’m working on problem sheet 9 out of 10 for my Group Theory module. I wasn’t sure I’d make it this far, but I’m so glad I’ve kept it up! I’ve also been writing out past paper definitions for each of the modules I’ll be studying soon (using latex) whenever I can’t be bothered studying and have nothing else to do!

[tealovingstudies]

Ask me some stuff ✨

School Supply Asks

Answer in photos if you like!

👔 Do you have a first-day-of-school outfit/look planned? 👗 Do you tend to dress up or dress down for school? 👓 What are your must-have accessories for your school outfit? 📐 Have you bought any new school supplies yet? 📓 What’s your favorite school supplies item? 📅 Do you keep a planner or bujo during the school year? 🎨 Do you have any favorite color schemes for your school supplies? 📒 What’s your favorite stationary or school supplies brand/store to purchase from? 💼 What kind of school bag do you carry? 🎒 What’s typically in your school bag? 💻 What are your must-have items for your school bag? 💸 What school supplies do you always buy, but never end up using? 🍱 Do you usually bring your own lunch to school? 🍎 What is your favorite food item to eat on a typical day at school? Reblog for asks!

[tealovingstudies]

NYC travel spread! I really like the layout of this one.

[tealovingstudies]

How to be a “Bad Ass” at University

Find things to be excited about because your attitude will dictate your experience.

Plan a nice outfit for the first day of school. It doesn’t have to be very fancy, just something you will feel good wearing. The way you dress can improve your confidence. 

Get a planner. It’s helpful to have a book dedicated to school work and extracurriculars so that you stay on top of your game.

Write down your instructors/professors/teachers names, e-mails and office hours ASAP. You never know when you will need to contact them.  

Please be nice to your instructors/professors/teachers. Reach out and connect with them so that you have a professional relationship with them, as you never know when you will need extra credit or a recommendation letter.

Once you receive all of your syllabi, write all of your assignments/deadlines down in your planner/bullet journal/calendar. 

Start studying and put effort into doing work on day one. You will thank yourself during finals week.

Don’t listen to your peers about what was on the test/exam if they get to take them before you. Do your own thing.

Don’t focus on how many hours your peers spend studying. Everyone completes work and studies at their own pace, there is no hour limit that you need to achieve to receive that A+. 

Don’t procrastinate a study session by planning what you’re going to study. A simple to-do list will work fine. 

Attend talks, conferences, events on campus to fully immerse yourself in university life. Sometimes professors are willing to give extra credit for attending talks/conferences (as long as it is related to their class).

Have a song that gives you hype. Whether you’re waiting for a big presentation or you’re nervous on the first day of school. I always listen to “Sorry” by Beyonce. 

Please do your own work and don’t plagiarise as it can ruin academic careers.

Please don’t share your work with other students in case they might plagiarise from you. Even if you think they’re your friend, it’s better to not share your work. 

Reflect and remember how lucky you are to be getting an education. School isn’t a punishment, its an opportunity for you to create a kick-ass foundation for the rest of your life.

Save your coin and make your morning coffee/tea at home. Invest in a travel to-go cup, I always use my Starbucks one. 

People will leave you alone when you have your earphones in. 

Have a couple of spots for studying on campus, where you can sit down and focus to do work in between lectures. I would have a couple of favourite spots in my uni’s library were I could study free from distractions. 

Don’t compare yourself to other students. We’re all on our own paths; therefore, the most important person you need to focus on is you! 

Visit my blog or follow me on Instagram from time to time for some study inspiration. You can contact me via my inbox on Tumblr or Instagram DM’s. 

This was as fun to make as my College Truths list from a couple of years ago, so I hope you enjoy it! Please remember that this is just my personal opinion and that you can adapt these to your school/lifestyle. 

[tealovingstudies]

30.07.2018

☀️Dance The Night Away - TWICE

I bought these cheap little books from HEMA so I can rewrite my notes (again) from this year. I don’t want to highlight too much but some pages just look so plain!

[tealovingstudies]

8.5.2018 | Today is a funny kind of day. I haven’t actually been in service at our church for the past three weeks because I’ve been in the toddler room, but I’m catching up on our sermon series through Galatians and taking time to journal this evening. Also making a cameo in this picture is my trusty C. S. Lewis volume of signature classics since I’m hoping to finish the last few of his writings I’ve yet to read over my break before fall semester. 

[tealovingstudies]

[08.06.18]

Happy August!! This summer flew by so fast and I’m sad to see it go, but I’m also really excited to be a senior. Good luck to everyone starting school this week, I’m sending you lots of love! (click for better quality)