Let’s be blunt here: there’s not too much longer left in the academic year, and you’re gloriously close to finishing not only the semester, but your first university year. Go you!

Yet, for many, it’s a case at the moment of “so close, yet so far”. So close to the finish, but still many hurdles in front of you: final assignments, SWOTVAC/STUVAC, exams. So how can you keep motivation through this important period of the semester and, ultimately, make sure your final marks are as high as they could possibly be? Here are some things to keep in mind.

You’ve actually already started studying for exams.

What a lot of students do is see in-semester assessments and end-of-semester exams as entirely independent entities. And whilst that’s sort of understandable, in reality, it’s probably not the case. In all likelihood, the content you’ll be assessed on in your exams is the content you’ve learnt already throughout the semester. Subsequently, every lecture you’ve been or listened to, every tute you’ve attended, every reading you’ve done – that’s all playing a secondary function of revising for exams, even if you don’t realise it at the time.

Once you start to see the semester holistically, exam preparation becomes a lot less daunting. On the assumption you’ve actually been to a few lectures and paid attention here and there (… *cough*…), you’re not actually learning 12 weeks of content; you’re just consolidating that knowledge, and brushing up where you can. That seems a lot more achievable.

 

Small choices now can have big consequences.

And that’s the thing: doing well in your units doesn’t necessarily require, like, huge cramming sessions, or 24/7 study. Simply doing the little things consistently can get you over the line, and make a huge difference in the end. Start your assignments early where possible, make sure you proof-read your responses, cross-reference with the provided criteria to make sure you’re not, say, double-spacing, when the assignment called for 1.5 spacing (shock horror).

When there are marks like these up for grabs, you should, y’know, grab them. So many students throw away marks on plainly silly stuff: referencing incorrectly, using the wrong font, not really answering the question. If you focus on doing the little things well, not only will your marks improve, but your short-term goals will be a lot more achievable.

 

Your WAM and GPA don’t lie – effort pays.

Motivation lulls come and go, but you won’t be able to change your final unit marks once they’re done. So if your grades are important to you, you should keep in mind that future you will thank current you for doing your best.

Or, alternatively, future you will lament current you for playing too much Fortnite, or doing whatever it is you do to procrastinate from studying. It’s your choice!

 

Holidays aren’t too far away!

And, trust us, university holidays are pretty generous. You’ll have weeks and weeks under your belt to do as you please before Semester 1 of the 2019 year begins. That time will be way more enjoyable if you know you did your best throughout your first year, and if you have no regrets. That’s what you should be gunning for. That’s what you should be working toward.

So with that in mind, you should keep on pushing throughout the next few weeks not only for sake of your marks, but also for sake of your holidays. You don’t want to rob yourself of maximum enjoyment throughout your break!

If you have any university-related questions at all, we have places to ask them! You might like to start in our general university discussion boards, which you can find here.