Post-Secondary Ramblings

With the sudden subarctic temperatures hitting the Lower Mainland, we finally have our winter. And thanks to that, I’ve caught the sniffles. I woke up in bed this morning with a sore throat and was faced with a dilemma.

Should I even bother waking up and going to my 8AM class?

I was sick, but not sick enough to spend the stay at home. Just a sore throat and nasal congestion. The worst kind of sick, and it was partly my fault for not dressing warmly enough the past few days. In the end, I did drag myself out of bed, pop some pills and head to school. I was definitely not my normal self though, and it was a terribly long day.

How sick do you have to be before you deem yourself too sick for school?

As I was standing in the corridor today waiting to enter SRC to write my first final, many thoughts went through my head, but the one that I was thinking about the most was not the actual exam, but rather…

It’s a tough decision okay? Usually I like to sit in the back I find it pretty intimidating to sit in the front, but lately I’ve found it comforting to sit in the front. There’s less distractions since there’s no one else that’s in front of you so I find myself more focused on completing the exam. And in the even that I don’t remember to bring a watch, there’s usually a clock at the front where I can keep track of the time and pace myself through the exam.

Today I found another reason to sit in the front. I can keep my eyes on my bag. There is a disturbing prevalence of theft that happens during exam time, and I didn’t want to take that risk today. It also made it easier for me to leave the exam room once I was done.

So now I turn it to you. Do you have a preference as to where you sit in the exam room? If so, is there a particular reason?

As my midterms have rolled to an end, I want to take a minute to reflect on my study habits. I’ve always struggled with studying. I change my studying habits a lot trying to see what works and what doesn’t, and for the most part, nothing works. This time however, a friend of mine shared his study habits with me. Although they did sound really typical at first, I decided to try it out and see how it went. Below are some things I learned about myself.

I found out that I study better when I’m alone. I’ve thought that I would do better studying with someone as I could get instant answers to questions when the arise, or just have someone to keep me on track. Turns out it’s actually the opposite. I’m way more productive when I’m alone. Perhaps because I get distracted really easily. To keep myself on track, I choose a place where other people around are studying so I’d feel guilty if I were to slack off.

In addition to studying alone, I study better in silence. I’ve always loved to be plugged into music while I’m working or studying, thinking that it would help me concentrate. Turns out it’s the exact opposite. At first it was really tough, but after a while it felt really good. I found myself actually absorbing the material that I was reading rather than reading the same line over and over again because I was more focused.

Of course, I ditched all my electronics. I think this was the toughest part. I printed out everything off Vista, left my laptop at home and my iPhone in my bag, and if I was at home, I’d give them to my mom. Laptops, phones and electronics in general are a huge distraction. Not surprisingly, my productively went up exponentially once I rid myself of them.  I also felt as if I was in control of my life instead of having it controlled by electronics. My backpack was lighter without my laptop and my back probably thanked me for that too.

Lastly, I didn’t take breaks. I had general guidelines of how much I wanted to study during each session, say 2 chapters, but if by the end of those 2 chapters I was on a roll, I’d keep going. While most people find that having a break would be refreshing, I actually found that it was distracting for me. I would lose all my momentum that I’ve gained while studying, and in turn lose motivation. Having said that though, I wouldn’t burn myself out. If I’m done, I’m done. Pushing myself too hard wouldn’t do anything to help.

Everyone has their own way of studying and the above strategies just happened to work for me. I’d love to hear little tricks and tips that everyone else has about studying :)

Recently I’ve found myself a position in a research lab on campus and have been working for about 2 weeks. I was super excited for this whole experience as it was what I have always dreamed of doing, working in a genetics lab. In the past 2 weeks, I have really enjoyed going to work. I’ve used the hashtag #ilovework way too many times on Twitter lately.

A lot of my friends have been asking me how I was able to land an opportunity like this. It’s not as hard as one may think it is. The biggest tip that I can provide would be to apply to any and every position that remotely interests you. Persistence and determination is key. I probably applied to every work study posting when they came out and only had interviews for about 2 of them. But it was from one of those 2 interviews that I found out about the position that I currently hold. Your interviewers may know of other faculty members that are looking for help and are not posting it, making every interview valuable. Let your instructors know that you’re looking for a position as they may be looking for help too. Dropping by during their office hours is a great way of getting to know your professors.

Don’t be discouraged if you get rejected. It does take time. I know of a friend who sent out about 50 emails to different labs only to get 3 replies back. However, when you do land the position, the feeling is very fulfilling. Take it from me. Happy job hunting (:

It’s been a week since school started, and like most people, that was long enough to build some first impressions on the different classes. Last year it was BIOL121 that really stood out for me because well, I’m a Biology major so that was natural, but also because Dr. Greg Bole was simply the best.

This year, I actually have two that stick out for me. Both my BIOL234 and CHEM233 use Twitter in the classroom, and being a Twitter fanatic, I was super excited to hear about it all. In my opinion, Twitter fits right into the classroom setting, especially in today’s society where technology is steadily advancing.

In BIOL 234, we use the hashtag #biol234 to ask questions, and once in a while, Dr. Redfield would pause and answer questions. She encourages us to also have background discussions and to retweet those questions that are important so they get bumped to the top. Since lectures haven’t really started yet, I haven’t had the chance to see how well this works, but personally, I can see myself asking more questions in class as I won’t be put on the spot and ask questions by putting up my hand.

CHEM 233 uses Twitter differently. My professor has a Twitter account, @chem233ubcjay, and encourages us to follow his tweets, and I suppose ask him any questions that arise. I find that this is another effective way of having students ask questions. I personally, have tweeted him a few times, and had some friendly replies. After knowing that he isn’t as intimidating as all professors seem, this may be the first that I actually drop by during office hours for a visit!

I guess one downside to that is that some people think it’s immoral. I had a friend that thought I was getting too close to my professor because we were tweeting each other. I can see where he is coming from, but I believe that it is no different than dropping by office hours or emailing a professor– it’s just a more informal setting. As long as the content doesn’t cross the line, it’s a great way of building on a professional professor-student relationship.

I’m glad that UBC instructors are starting to catch on all the new different ways to incorporate technology into their lessons!