Hello everyone!
I hope you are doing stellar and continuing to enjoy the fall weather. It’s about to get cold, though, so make sure to find your winter hats and mitts again – it would be much better to spend our energy focusing on the things we want to do rather than heating our cold bodies! I wore a pink toque last year from the beginning of October until the end of winter, and it became one of my signature looks. I can’t wait to dig it out again!
Taylor Swift’s new album Midnights (and her 3 AM version) came out a couple of weeks ago, and it has been on non-stop repeat. My friends and I streamed it right as it was released while we were studying for a midterm in the Computing Lounge, and it is now my go-to study music. I hope you’re finding the right tracks to keep your motivation up!
In my last blog, I talked about prepping for exams. I’m happy to have answered some questions that I had at the time about how to make a plan:
- Some classes I can confidently answer basic questions about, and some I can’t. It is clear which classes I should spend more time studying for.
- I like studying by myself, and once I am comfortable with the material, I like to mimic exam conditions. That means putting my phone away, grabbing blank sheets of paper and pencils, finding an old exam, and working through it as if it’s a real one. This may also help with test anxiety, since you’ve done an exam and know what to expect.
- The Queen’s Exam Bank has previous years’ final exams for many courses. I can work with friends to find the answers or ask upper years.
- I like to study on campus at night when it’s quiet and I can concentrate on my work. Extra points if I have a hot drink to stay hydrated.
What works for me may not work for you, and that is perfectly okay. You may find yourself learning better without music in the background, when you work with friends, or study in the morning. It’s always learning about what works best for you. Have you found what works for you already?
I find that as we grow at Queen’s, we all become a bit more confident in our skills. We acknowledge that we learn differently and accept our different approaches to studying. If you’re just setting out on your journey at Queen’s, don’t be afraid to branch out and take the time to discover yourself, what you like, and what fulfills you as a student.
Since winter exam schedules have been released, I encourage you (if you haven’t already) to take a look at your schedule and form an idea of when you will study for each course and how you will study. It’s time to fill this or this bad boy out. I know it’s scary to look far into the future, and we tend to ignore things until we really can’t ignore them anymore, but your future self will thank you for doing the things you didn’t want to do now!
My biggest motivator to space out my studying this semester is Christmas. Last year, I spent so much time studying/cramming before my final exams (with my last exam on December 23) that I never got a chance to really enjoy the holiday spirits leading up to Christmas. Thus, I am trying to do my future self a favour by studying well now so future me can spend some time enjoying Christmas time.
Make sure to take care of yourself, and that includes your health! We are more prone to getting sick when we’re run down and spending a lot of time indoors, so be extra careful.
I hope you stay warm and safe, Gaels!