Back to School

Textbooks
Reading the assigned texts is very important. A lecturer can be great resource, but a quality textbook is there by your side even at 3AM on the morning before the exam. Of course, that's not to say all textbooks you're assigned or recommended by the lecturer will be quality textbooks. Sometimes, they've got a book to sell. Sometimes, they're illogically attached to a textbook that's out-of-date or otherwise inferior to another product. Sometimes, you and your lecturer will simply have differing opinions on what makes for a quality textbook.

And that's fine. Really. Remember that your university has a bookshop and a library, both of which will stock many books that aren't on either the required or recommended list of books handed out at the start of semester. For instance, when I was studying Network Computing, the set book for Java wasn't to my liking. After spending a few minutes in the library flipping through basic Java books, though, I found a better one that ended up lasting me through the semester.

Sometimes it's important to buy the text that the lecturer suggests. You might have weekly tests relating to that book's content, for instance. If not, hold off on buying it for a couple of weeks and borrow it from the library instead. If it's no good, find something else instead and buy that. Many bookshops, including those at university, are able to order in books they don't normally stock. Just make sure the book covers all of the topics you're supposed to learn about during the course of the semester.

Taking care of yourself
We can't stress enough that gaining a tertiary education is an exercise in discipline and motivation. A lecturer won't chase you around campus for your work. They'll simply fail you. It's up to you to keep up to date with what's expected of you and when you're supposed to hand in work. It's up to you to read the textbook and attend classes or, at the very least, seek out the audio recordings and PowerPoint slideshows your lecturer uploads each week.

It's also your responsibility to use those communication skills of yours to tell someone if you're having a hard time. Don't understand a topic? Talk to the lecturer or tutor. Seek them out during their consultation times. Send them an email. Give them a call. Don't simply wait until next week's class, as by then everyone else will have moved onto something else and you'll still be struggling with the previous topic. The university semester is only 13 weeks and in that time you'll be expected to cover a lot of ground, so failing to gain competency in even a single week's material can put you very far behind. If you get no satisfaction when dealing with your tutor, speak to the lecturer. Look at swapping to another tutorial. Ask your fellow students.

Too, taking care of yourself off campus can considerably improve how you fare on campus. Living off crap food - instant noodles, takeaway, etcetera - will have an impact on your energy, concentration and how often you come down with colds and other common ailments. On the job front, a couple of hours a week at a retail outlet won't give you enough money to afford decent food, let alone textbooks, fuel, train tickets and necessities. One job that guarantees a decent amount of hours each week, even if it requires you to miss the odd lecture, is better than even three casual jobs.

Having a job while you're studying is undeniably a good thing, as it - ideally, anyway - will give you more money than welfare, not to mention the sense of pride that comes from actually working for your money. Too, a casual or part-time job can provide relevant experience for when you eventually seek out full-time employment. Retail and call centre work can provide experience in dealing with customers and end users that can carry over to pretty much every area of employment, including information technology.

If everything falls apart and you happen to fail a unit, it's your responsibility to deal with the resulting mess. If you've just failed - that is, by five marks or less - you should be able to apply for a near pass. In my final semester of my Bachelor of Communication, I was gutted when I found out I'd failed a unit by three marks. In that situation, it was my responsibility to head to student services and speak to someone and to then do exactly what they told me which, in this instance, was to confirm with the lecturer that he'd followed the policy on having someone else mark anyone who got a high distinction or a fail. Turns out, he hadn't followed the policy and set about correcting his mistake immediately. The second person who marked my assignment gave me a pass. If I hadn't made the effort, I'd currently be repeating that subject instead of starting my postgraduate course.

Summing up
Good luck with the rest of the semester, the rest of the year and, ultimately, the rest of the course. Don't be put off if you balls up your first assignment or find the transition from school difficult, as I can guarantee you're not alone. Tertiary education offers so much room for growth and learning more than can ever be possibly crammed into 13 weeks' worth of lectures and tutorials, but it's also a lesson in managing your time and becoming the sort of resourceful individual you need to be to succeed professionally.