Semester 1 Reflection

As the semester is drawing to a close for me and many other university students I have been reflecting on my experience of my first 5 months of university. I thought I would share some of the things I have enjoyed, some of the mistakes I've made, some of the things I struggled with and mostly what I want to work on next semester.

 

Expectations

 

Before I started university, the idea of being in huge lecture theatres with so many strangers daunted me so much. I also thought that university would be a breeze after HSC. I also thought that I would have so much extra free time to spend on myself and to be able to relax. I was also not ready for the amount of work out of contact hours which were needed in order to keep on top of everything.

What I enjoyed

For me the best part of this semester has been meeting some really lovely people who I have gotten to know better and that have helped me to settle into university. These people have made me realise that university is a lot less daunting and that it's not just a sea of unfamiliar faces but rather that there are some really great people that are doing the same degree as me. I've also really enjoyed the challenging ideas and concepts that I have been exposed to that have really helped me to reflect on my own perspective.

 

Mistakes that I made

• When my gap year plans fell through, I couldn't get my head around going to university so I started this semester with a very hesitant mindset. This really affected me mentally as it put a lot of doubt in my head throughout the semester.

• I think with my expectation that university was going to be easy, I had a rude awakening. In the first few weeks I struggled with the workload and the keeping up with lecture notes and readings.

• I also put huge amounts of pressure on myself to complete everything including keeping up weekly with lecture notes and notes for reading. This made me quite stressed and really increased my level of anxiety.

Things I struggled with

• I have struggled quite a lot with my anxiety this semester as I had previously mentioned that I put a lot of pressure on myself. I also did initially put a lot of pressure on myself to achieve outstanding results and perform well in assessments because it was like a 'clean slate'. All of this pressure gave me a lot of anxiety and when I'm anxious I tend to procrastinate. Then I get even more anxious because I have even less time. This creates a really bad cycle that is so hard to break out of.

• I also struggled with the academic language that is used in readings and I found it very hard to identify points that are important for me to understand. I have also found it quite difficult to write in an academic language.

Things I have learnt

• I have learnt that being successful in university and achieving good results is different from being successful in high school, especially in HSC. Depending on your degree and the level of difficulty, standards can be very different and sometimes it is totally alright to achieve a pass or a credit. 

•  I have also learnt that breaking all tasks that look very overwhelming and daunting into the smallest chunks possible and then giving yourself a time frame to complete it is the easiest way to overcome any fears and struggles. It's really almost like competing against the clock and yourself and comes with a great sense of satisfaction when it's all done.

• I have also learnt that it is okay to reward myself. A bit of self love might set you back financially a little bit but it makes you feel so much better. When I talk about rewarding yourself I don't mean expensive clothing purchases or the latest technology, but just a nice hot beverage or a small inexpensive bit of make up or skin care.

Things I want to work on

• I want to improve on my time management. It has always been a problem for me but I believe the more I work on it, the better it'll become. Hopefully a bit more diary planning and more lists will do the job but I'll keep you guys interested.

• I want to continue to build more friendships and relationships and develop the ones that I have already created. I highly value relationships and friendships and I have found it so great to have all these lovely people.

• I also want to work on my mentality, to try and not give up so easily and to work on strategies to help me overcome my anxiety. I believe that the more that I am able to overcome the confidence I will gain which means that it will be easier for me to think of solutions rather than freaking out.

Hopefully you guys found this post relatable and insightful. I also hoped for anyone who has felt similar things or struggled with the same things that you feel as though you are not alone. Show this post some love and share it and also as usual please do comment if you have anything in particular you would like to see!