June | 2012 | Inside The University of Melbourne

Exams

I thought I’d do a serious post for a change, and since it’s still the midst of exams for most people, I decided it would be appropriate to relate this entry to them.

So a few days ago while trudging through the crowded streets in East Village after work, I received a call. It was an Australian number, it turned out to be a friend who’s still at The University of Melbourne. It was 8 in the morning in Melbourne and she was just about to head in to an exam.

This triggered my recollection of how I dealt with exams. The following was my routine.

Throughout the semester I usually end up studying the bare minimum in order to just have a superficial understanding of the concepts. I usually end up only attending tutorials and the odd lecture when I feel motivated enough. If a subject has a mid-semester test I usually end up neglecting my other subjects and focussing on preparing for that. Yes, I was lazy, but I still got great results.

As exam time neared, I’d often start looking through course materials in a more serious manner. This was often around Week 11 or 12. During SWOTVAC I’d start filling in the gaps for all the little things I needed to know. I’d always consult with friends who had done the subject previously to get an idea of what to expect and what to focus on. This saved a lot of time. Plus, I’d just end up using their notes too.

During SWOTVAC, I become nocturnal, although I spend a lot of time procrastinating too I end up working much better at odd hours of the morning. I’d often procrastinate for hours, then sparodically pull off some of the most intense studying I could ever imagine.

The days leading into the exam I’d do a bit of practice and end up relaxing a lot more, often doing nothing the day before the exam. On exam day I’d avoid talking to people about the exam and just listen to music and not really think too much until I got to the venue.

After the exam I’d spend the day relaxing and not really thinking about my next exam until the day after (Unless I’ve been so unlucky and it’s on the same day ofcourse!)

and yeah.. in case you were wondering.. this routine got me a pretty solid average.

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Tagged exams

Worrying Whingers!

So… here we are now, after a long semester of classes, it’s time for SWOTVAC. Technically it’s “Study Without Teaching Vacation”, but for most it’s “WAKE UP FOR EXAMS” vacation.

It’s a quiet period on-campus at The University of Melbourne, with no classes on, most students are flocking to the study areas to either extensively revise or actually look at their subject materials for the first time.

But beware, there are Worrying Whingers…

Nobody likes exams, but with the presence of annoying students who constantly whinge about their “lack” of studying, it doesn’t make things better.

We’ve all come across this type of student before as they are pretty popular at The University of Melbourne.

Worrying Whingers are the type that post a Facebook or Twitter status every hour with something like..

“OMG OMG I’M SO GOING TO FAIL!!!!”

Or
“EXAM TOMORROW – BUT I WATCHED ____ INSTEAD OF STUDYING TODAY! I AM SO SCREWED!!!!!”

Further characteristics of their behaviour include vague responses when asking for assistance regarding university study or just mentioning they have “no idea” regarding a topic, when in all honesty they have probably revised it extensively.

In reality, nobody respects nor likes these students. Nobody really cares about their bothersome whinging either.

However, some of them do actually live up to their word and fail (Yeah, with all that time spent letting everyone know of their misery through every form of social media imaginable, it’s not a big surprise!)

But the majority don’t as they are often studying aggressively and put forward the false pretense to everyone that they are not.
I’m sure some of my readers will also be guilty of this behaviour too, but there’s always at least person who we all know that is a bit excessive in this behaviour.

Also, Many of these worrying whingers will be Career Kids or FOBs.

Here’s some ways to deal with them:

1. Do NOT give them validation or comfort.
Don’t just say they are “going to be ok” when they whinge about how they will fail.
Instead, say something like “Yeah, have fun repeating next semester”.

2. Ignore Facebook and Twitter status updates.
I think once there are little or no responses, their thick brains will finally absorb the fact that nobody cares about how the epicenter of the world isn’t based around their sad life of study, but then again, don’t be surprised if they continue, they seek attention after all.

3. Avoid these students before an exam.
They are the absolute worst people you can surround yourself with before an exam.
They will make you more nervous and insecure about your own performance with their over-anxiety and irritating last-minute self-doubt.

Follow these tips religiously.

In all sincerity, good luck for exams guys!