As part of Library Services’ Love Me/Love Me Not theme for Valentine’s week, skills@cumbria share some of our favourite study tips and resources. Share yours via the Love Me Love Me Not Study Tips padlet
Study buddy
Having a study buddy – someone to study/check in with – can be a supportive way of keeping ourselves accountable. When we’re not feeling like heading to the library or working on an assignment, having someone else to meet up with and/or answer to can help us re-find our motivation. And if a study buddy isn’t an option, there is always Gongbang or “study with me” videos. South Korean YouTubers have been streaming videos of themselves studying since around 2018 and then these really took off globally during lockdowns. People have reported finding them helpful for staying focussed, as the video creators often make use of the Pomodoro technique, and also as a form of company whilst they study.
Break things down into manageable chunks
Split anything that feels overwhelming into bite sized chunks. You’re much more likely to write a 200 word section of an assignment than tackle the full 2000 words, and it feels so much easier to get something done if it’s in manageable sections.
Time management and editing
One thing I learned as a student was the importance of leaving time to proofread. Once I allowed myself 2-3 weeks for editing, I felt an improvement in my marks; giving myself 2-3 days away from looking at my work made my own errors stand out. This was something I very much didn’t understand as a first year.
Know when to stop!
The best thing I was told as a student was to have a “Stop Point” – after which messing around with the work any more, trying to cram any more work in, is going to cause more issues rather than improve the work. Setting yourself mini deadlines that leave time to proof read, edit, mess around, can help to reduce the temptation to keep tinkering with work unproductively right up to the deadline.
Signposting
I really find the Signposting page helpful, particularly the table of linking words and phrases. These help me to navigate my reader through my line of thinking. I also like the Academic Phrasebank for varying my academic vocabulary.
Reading and Notetaking tips
I love the tips shared by UoC students at the top of the Reading and Notetaking page.
Reverse Outlines
I wish I’d come across reverse outlines as an undergraduate. I found making a plan before I started writing a draft really hard as I tend to work out what I am thinking by writing. Reverse outlining is a way of checking structure and content after writing a 1st draft by making a plan from the draft itself. Then you can check that you’ve covered all the content needed and you’ve got the paragraphs in the best order to present your discussion.
Feedback: warm hug or a bucket of cold water?
Learning not to take feedback as personal criticism was a big step forward for me. If I’m feeling a bit wobbly around feedback, I try to park it for a couple of days, do something unrelated that I enjoy, and forget about the assignment for a while. Then when I come back to the feedback, I’m more likely to process it constructively and see it as guidance to help me develop in future. If I understand what I’m being advised to work on and why I need to develop these areas, it helps me identify future actions I need to take. I now like to think of feedback more as feedforward. See Working with Feedback for further tips.
Visit skills@cumbria for more study tips, resources and guidance.
Share your study tips …
Share your study tips via the Library Services Love Me Love Me Not Study Tips padlet
