5 Things not to do

5 Things not to do when you want to perform admirably in your academics.

1. Put off assignments until you reach a certain point where you barely are able to finish an assignment before the deadline. It is an obvious recommendation, however, from my own personal experience there are basically two kind of students: there are those to whom this comes naturally and then there is the second kind who need time pressure to force them to put effort into their academics. I have found that there isn’t a proportional rule between these kinds of student and that it is all individual and random. I have always took my time and completed my assignments right before the deadline and was able to get better results than students who worked on their assignments more often and more frequently than I have. My point is, it is extremely more efficient for a student to do his or her assignment in sooner than later and basically start working on each right after they are assigned. Recently I have tried this approach and I can safely conclude that now, it is my preferred attitude towards my academics.

2. Do not let the weather outside affect your mood. If you are studying in the foreign country, most of the time the weather is going to be foreign to you as well. I have experienced some intense fluctuations in my mood depending on the weather here in Aberystwyth, and it was quite difficult for me to adapt and learn how to cope with the weather over here. I am convinced that there are people who adapt quicker and others for whom it takes a considerably more time. The main thing is to realize that weather in your new location is indeed different. For me this happened late in my first year in Wales and it was groundbreaking awareness for me. Now in my third year I take pride in the nice days and try to enjoy them by going outside and during the bad days I just get on with my life as usual and hope for a better tomorrow.

3. Do not forget to get enough of sleep, food rich in nutrition and physical exercise. This is a fairly usual recommendation, but it is the most frequently omitted advice. Eating right and getting plenty of exercise and generally fresh air makes wonders to for your body. A sound mind in a healthy body. If your university offers cheap access to a swimming pool, saunas, or gym, use those facilities. You will eat better, sleep better and most importantly feel better...

4. Do not let a second language intimidate you. Most of my first year I wasn’t participating in open discussions on lectures or seminars, because I was afraid of saying something out of a place and embarrassing myself. I know for a fact that most of the freshers feel like this, especially if you are not used to communicate in English on a daily basis. Sometimes during academic discussion a native English speaker might sound a lot more intimidating, especially if he or she is opposing your argument. The best thing to realize is that he or she is your academic peer and I have also observed that students from the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic generally have a broader high school education and are able to grasp new concepts very quickly compared to the English students. There are exceptions, of course, but in my personal experience some concepts of the IR (International Relations) theory were already part of my high school education and were not new to me, unlike for my English friends.

5. Do not underestimate the willingness of the lecturers and tutors to help you and offer insights for your work. They are there to help you and usually the younger members of staff such as the PhD or MA candidates are often enthusiastic and by talking to them for a few minutes about your problem will help you dramatically and if they are not necessarily helpful they will point you in the right direction. They have just been through the same system and they were successful and their academic experience is always helpful for those who ask for it.