How would you rate 2018 out of 10?
9/10
What was your biggest academic accomplishment in 2018?
I'd say adapting to university style assessments. After several years of high school, where I could easily locate relevant information and sift through past exams, uni came as a bit of a shock. Although I was an independent learner during high school, I learnt that there was an added element of responsibility that I had to assume. This consisted of booking consults with tutors, speaking with past students of a subject, attending academic skill workshops and investigating content from subjects, which had some relation to my own.
If any, what's your biggest academic regret for 2018?
Perhaps being preoccupied with marks. It took me a while to understand that the marking landscape of uni is vastly different to that of high school. The tasks are harder, because the competition is stronger. But in hindsight, I don't think I regret my constant ruminating of mistakes. If anything, it's taught me that mistakes happen, and that I will almost never make the same error twice. This kind of perspective will be important for future years.
If you had your time again, what would you change from 2018?
I would definitely have gotten involved in a club or two. Next year, I intend on meeting frequently with the Unimelb German Club! I see it as a good opportunity to not only practice my German, but also meet with those willing to actually speak. During my German tutes, it was frustrating to see that the majority of students were indifferent to partaking in German conversation.
What's your funniest story/moment from school/uni in 2018?
During a Principles of Business Law lecture, strange exotic music started blaring through the speakers. The humour, however, stemmed from my lecturer's fierce effort to ignore the noise and continue teaching what constitutes an invalid contract!
Were your exams as expected?
Pretty much. Only one of my linguistic subjects was a bit left of field. I left the exam feeling completely deflated, and sure that I may only just pass. Amazingly my marks said otherwise! I suppose this is helpful encouragement for year 12s awaiting results. Often we underestimate our own performance (maybe owing to the pressure that clouds perception) in exams and can easily feel as if effort does not translate onto the page. But these thoughts are not always reliable; even when you think you arecertain of errors.
What's your best advice for younger year levels studying in 2019?
For students still studying at a high school level, I'd encourage you to be curious learners. Try and absorb yourselves in the content, by asking frequent questions and taking nothing at face value. This type of 'critical' mindset will work wonders when you get to uni. And for students embarking on their uni journeys next year, don't be reluctant to take 3 subjects per semester. Coming from high school, I thought that this would be too little a workload. But it is absolutely not. Taking three subjects per semester has meant that I've been able to thoroughly indulge in each of my subjects. Indeed, if I had taken four subjects per semester, there's no way I'd be able to maintain the WAM I currently have. And the great thing is that you can take winter/summer subjects and still finish your degree on time!
Outside of school/uni, what were the best and worst parts of 2018?
The best part of 2018 has been the refreshing sense of independence I have gained. Before this year, I hardly used public transport and could never navigate my way around the city. Now, all of these are of second nature. Maybe the worst part has been the lack of connection with my old high school friends. With each of us spread across 4 different unis, it has been hard to sustain the friendship that was previously there.
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