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March 28, 2024, 09:26:27 pm

Author Topic: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree  (Read 9133 times)

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dutyfree

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A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« on: July 11, 2020, 07:19:32 pm »
+15
Contents
1st year BSci
P1: Introduction – 2020 Sem 1 Review + some random thoughts
P2: 2020 Sem 1 Results + some random thoughts
Unit reviews:
P3: Review of O-week + 1
P4: Review of Week 2 + 3
P5: Review of Week 4 + 5
P6: Mid-sem reflection
P7: Review of Mid-sem break + Week 8
P8: 2020 Sem 2 Review + Results
Unit reviews:
P9: Reflection of 1st year

2nd year BSci
P10: Review of O-week
P11: Irrelevant segue: How do you study?
P12: Review of Week 1 + 2
P13: Review of Week 3 + 4
P14: Review of Week 5 + Mid-sem break

Uni journal P1.
Some random thoughts:
I’m currently eating biscuits dipped in tea (this is normal, I think) and listening to some random Jubilee podcast in the background.
This semester was a bit tough for me with a very random but kind of worrying diagnosis in regard to my health but other than that, it has been average. I’m disappointed in missing out on the social and free alcohol aspect of first year but also glad I didn’t have to see too many people (I’m kind of an anxious extrovert). Regardless, I used the extra time for more shifts at work and to reassess my privileges/ fortunate things in my life.
I’ve always been aware of political and social ‘wokeness’ around me, but never have I been as invested in it as this year. I’ve been having active, sometimes flammable, discussions with my family and reading up on history especially in regard to my own culture and people. I had a period of self-loathing and disappointment, about gradually loosing fluency in my native language and being angry at my parents for involving me in cultural events but I’m slowly re-gaining the lost pride in my heritage and plan to go back re-learning the language, (ngl, tiktok had a huge influence on this)
In terms of work, I have been immensely fortunate to still have a job during the quarantine, but I think I’m going to have to venture outwards for a new job, perhaps within science, just to gain some new experiences. As a first year, on the surface level, I’m kind of sad in missing out on the orientation events, joining all these clubs and meeting new pals but putting everything into perspective, obviously, it’s just a case of unfortunate timing and there are definitely much bigger things to worry about right now.

2020 Sem 1: Review
-   Began a Bachelor of Science after switching around approximately 4-5 times
-   Subjects: BIO1011, CHM1011, SCI1020, ATS1338 (check out my reviews)

I started this semester enthusiastically, being type A, I of course had to check out every single review and past unit guide of my subjects, a month in advance, to dot down all the dates, assessment percentages,  any tips and things I need to prepare by each week in a massive one note. Actually, I recommend doing that to anyone who likes making too many to do lists, it kept me in check and sane and acted as a massive birds-eye view of the semester. On a side note, I’m also grateful for all the lecturers who put in so much time and effort to make sure, us first years didn’t feel lost and without a support network.

In terms of going into majors… mmm. I’m looking into Physiology and a minor in Biochem as I’m still quite adamant on trying for medicine. So currently, my course plan is organised into fitting the prerequisites for postgrad med and adding a few subjects with lighter content to cushion the harder subjects. I think selecting subjects should be a mix of interest and strategy in a 1:1 ratio, depending on your end goal for your degree. My plan for these holidays is to firstly get some rest, catch up on some shows, maybe get into working out and baking again and read up on GAMSAT prep. Then once it’s a bit closer to semester 2, start preparing my mindset to get organised for the next onslaught of subjects.

Side note: I’ve been reading Atarnotes for a while and wanted to start a VCE journal but was a bit nervous to click that post button. But 2020 is the year of changing it up, plus I really wanted to give back after realising how grateful I am for all the contributors in here.
I plan on updating this every couple of weeks, feel free to ask any qs and Thank you for the platform!  :)
« Last Edit: April 17, 2021, 12:41:11 pm by dutyfree »
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

AngelWings

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #1 on: July 11, 2020, 07:56:05 pm »
+10
It's nice to see you join the uni journal gang, Dutyfree! Hope you feel less anxious about clicking the "post" button in future updates. :)

How did you find the leap from high school to uni?

In terms of work, I have been immensely fortunate to still have a job during the quarantine, but I think I’m going to have to venture outwards for a new job, perhaps within science, just to gain some new experiences.
I'm currently working between two science/health jobs. If I had any advice for getting a science-related job, it'd be to make sure that you have some solid connections, read up on current scientific literature and see if you can do a placement/ internship/ research unit or similar experience (e.g. summer/winter research scholarship) when those become available again.
VCE: Psych | Eng Lang | LOTE | Methods | Further | Chem                 
Uni: Bachelor of Science (Hons) - genetics
Current: working (sporadically on AN)
VTAC Info Thread

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #2 on: July 11, 2020, 08:49:20 pm »
+6
Thanks  :D Angel Wings! Have gained some sudden braveness this month.
I think I definitely struggled going straight into uni from school, hence why I swapped around so much with drastically different degrees; law, physio and a few more. I had many misconceptions including wasting my ATAR, deciding on one degree/ career until retirement and when I was seeing my friends immediately settle down into their dream degrees, I wished I knew where I was going with my life. So that's a big part of why I decided to have a gap year, during which I travelled, gained some work and voluntary experiences and kind of had a think about what I really valued.
This year, coming from an year of absolutely no studying was a bit disorientating to start with but I gave myself a couple of months to rebuild my mindset towards studies and being goal oriented. Overall, I would say, without the gap year, I would've been jumping into something I was mentally not ready for, but right now, I'm quite settled with uni content and excited for semester 2 and year 2, to start seeing people again.

In terms of work experience, I've had a little look at internships and jobs and I was wondering if anyone could clarify how SCI3902 runs in regard to a Monash sourced internship and what the selection process is?
And how PASS leaders are chosen (WAM requirement and any required experience)?
With connections, do you speak with your lecturers or past students as I haven't really seen too many networking events for Science?
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

AngelWings

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #3 on: July 12, 2020, 03:52:55 pm »
+8
I think I definitely struggled going straight into uni from school, hence why I swapped around so much with drastically different degrees; law, physio and a few more. I had many misconceptions including wasting my ATAR, deciding on one degree/ career until retirement and when I was seeing my friends immediately settle down into their dream degrees, I wished I knew where I was going with my life. So that's a big part of why I decided to have a gap year, during which I travelled, gained some work and voluntary experiences and kind of had a think about what I really valued.
It's great to hear that you really honed in on what you valued. Where did you travel to, if you don't mind me asking? 

Going to put my answers to a few of your questions in a spoiler to avoid taking away the focus from your uni journal:
Spoiler
In terms of work experience, I've had a little look at internships and jobs and I was wondering if anyone could clarify how SCI3902 runs in regard to a Monash sourced internship and what the selection process is?
The link for the SCI3902 handbook entry is here and more info can be found here.

There's a compulsory session in the semester prior to taking it (about Week 7-10, from memory?) that you had to attend in order to take the unit, with little warning about when it is, but I remember attending it. Unfortunately, I didn't do the unit in the end (I took GEN/BIO3990, the research unit, instead).

Not 100% sure of the process to get a Monash sourced one though, as I don't even think that was available when I was there (I finished Honours in 2018) or if it was, it was super competitive and I failed to get in.

And how PASS leaders are chosen (WAM requirement and any required experience)?
I'll just leave this link here, which has most of your answers already.

With connections, do you speak with your lecturers or past students as I haven't really seen too many networking events for Science?
By connections, I meant primarily your classmates and such, though I would certainly talk with lecturers if you're interested in research/ diagnostics. I found that many of my fellow Honours classmates helped to find jobs for each other and I did the same for them.

I would actually argue that Science had a lot of social/ networking events. If the coronavirus wasn't a thing right now, there would've been plenty for you to go to: Science Orientation week, Monash Science Ball usually happens once a year, Careers Days happen once a semester usually and there's another one dedicated to Science ones only, Peer Mentors for first years... the list goes on.

Also, read some of the faculty emails once things get back to normal; I read them more closely than most and ended up on a trip to an interstate research facility, networking with a lot of other determined science students!   
VCE: Psych | Eng Lang | LOTE | Methods | Further | Chem                 
Uni: Bachelor of Science (Hons) - genetics
Current: working (sporadically on AN)
VTAC Info Thread

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #4 on: July 12, 2020, 05:56:42 pm »
+7
Thank you so much for all the info!  :)
Regarding my gap year, I travelled a bit around South East Asia but only for a couple of days at a time, my main destination was Japan. I’ve always wanted to go there since I was young, after learning about their culture, history but mostly I was interested in how such a modernised ‘non-religious’ country can still have their traditional spiritual roots. I was brought up in a Buddhist household but personally, I’ve never really held any real value to praying and chanting (I’ve nothing against it, but I’m still learning about my place in something greater). Anyways, so other than going to all the fun places (finally went to Universal Japan) and trying some amazing food, I’m grateful I also got to visit many temples and observe practices.
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #5 on: July 26, 2020, 03:00:56 pm »
+5
Uni journal P2.
Some random thoughts:
I’ve been feeling slightly unstable, so I finally decided to bleach my hair crisp (been wanting to do that for a while) and I guess #orange is the new black. I have no regrets but I’m glad no one new gets to see me. I also caved to my mum’s relentless nagging and started to play piano again, it’s very rusty..eek/

Now.. for some thoughts on the lockdown by a dumdum (disclaimer, just a rant and not an actual attack)
I’ve been interpreting this whole “losing our rights” vs “it’s to protect you” mindsets as individualism vs collectivism. Our society as are many western societies culturally oriented to prioritise the rights and liberties (economic and social) of an individual and that’s perfectly fine. So, in this situation, we are able to have these open debates, criticise our government, have access to scientific information and usually transparent news coverage on the pandemic. However, we remain reluctant to even adapt a temporary collectivist mindset, to protect the most vulnerable in our society; people with a high disease burden, financially – hospitality, entertainment, tourism industries etc. The amount of entitlement and a serious case of anti-authoritarianism cause some with the privileges to stay home, to argue as having their rights violated with little to no regard in holding up their responsibilities. But then again, I don’t know. I’ll just try to do my part while benefiting out of an interconnected society, whether that’s wearing a mask which may or may not directly help me, but which may likely reduce the eventual burden on the healthcare system or staying at home.

2020 Sem 1: Results
- ATS1338: 83 HD, CHM1011: 87 HD, SCI1020: 87 HD, BIO1011: 91 HD
Firstly, I’m proud of myself, I never used to give myself props for any results before this and I’m trying to adapt a positive mindset. Secondly, the results definitely reflect my effort, organisation and interest for each unit, in that I neglected the English unit comparative to Bio. Numbers wise, I wanted 85+, so my arts subject didn’t make it, but I’ll give it a pass.
Goals for next semester:
-   Setting a timetable, with prioritisation given to the subject I’m the worst at and have the least interest in.
-   Being really diligent and stringent with in-semester assessment and not losing ‘easy’ marks
-   Revising the previous topics, two weeks after – to reduce the burden on SWOTVAC in which I know I’m definitely going to procrastinate in 
 :)
« Last Edit: December 24, 2020, 09:50:17 pm by dutyfree »
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #6 on: August 06, 2020, 09:13:05 pm »
+5
Uni journal P3.
Review of week 0 and 1:

Wow, my motivation is officially at an all-time low, what a great start! I seem to have no oomph but I’m forcing myself to do all the necessary small quizzes and I’m trying to do the set weekly readings and work. In terms of subjects, the intimidation towards STA1010 and my presumed ‘easy’ subject ATS1298 is very high. Agh, I feel stumped. Hoping for a better mood and outlook as the semester goes on. I’m optimistic about CHM1022 and BIO1022, they seem to be very organised and have relatively supportive staff.

I’ve also recently started this random case-study competition. Ngl, I feel so incompetent, my randomly allocated team consists of a doctor, a food scientist and a psychologist and I’m just a random first year. So, I’ve worked hard to research and spend a lot of effort on the project, to show my worth. After our meeting, which was an absolute mess, I’m sort of glad that I’m challenging myself. Everyone had their own opinions based on their fields and were NOT budging; definitely not ready to compromise so I ended up playing the middleman, trying to sort of mesh everyone’s ideas while attempting to stay on track.

Overall, my outlook has been pessimistic, but I have spontaneous bursts of energy, which I use to better organise myself. Here’s hoping that I get myself together!  :)
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #7 on: August 26, 2020, 11:02:29 pm »
+6
Uni journal P4.
Review of week 2 and 3:

Firstly, I would like to ask my past self, why exactly did I pick another maths unit? The first week was aight but it’s definitely getting tricker to stay on top of lectures while trying to watch too many videos to understand a supposedly simple concept.
In terms of my studies, I guess my routine has gradually improved over the two weeks. I've been using the forest app quite a lot to discipline myself to not get distracted. My mood is a bit better after I had a short meeting with my lecturers. I highly recommend this to anyone regardless of whether they are in a slump or not, they helped me structure out my thoughts and gave some advice with moving on from an unmotivated burnt out stage.
For my arts unit, surprisingly, I’m really enjoying writing structured essays. I guess, the fact that I started my assignment pretty early also contributed to my lowered stress levels.
Other than uni, my life consists of work and watching crime shows. Sometimes, I’m scared of my own tolerance for violence and gore, I’m working towards getting back to a more wholesome mindset.
Goal for next week: Organisation, fill in the gaps (unseen lectures) in chem and stat.
 :)
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #8 on: September 11, 2020, 05:07:53 pm »
+5
Uni journal P5.
Review of week 4 and 5:

Stats (my most beloved  ::)): I’m finally up to the dreaded probability section, and it looks like I’m going to be watching a ton of videos on coin flips. Despite my overall negativity, I’m actually not doing that bad, it’s just as a lazy person, the unit is taking up more time to understand than I’d like to. Currently, trying to hustle and catch up on about 8 lectures but being relatively calm about it.
Bio (Negativity P2.): I love bio, but this semester is just not doing it for me. I like the content, lecturers, the assignment schedule, the main problem is my lack of motivation to learn the weekly content. There’s no real solution except a stern ‘you can do it’ talk to my brain and keeping to a consistent schedule.
Chem: pretty solid so far. The unit is structured almost exactly the same as CHM1011, no surprises there and I’m enjoying organic chem.
ATS: the one unit that genuinely calms me, oh but I should probably wait until I get my first assignment back, but so far positive vibes only.
Overall: I’m feeling like this year for me, was a waste of time; a small hollow space in the timeline. I think, it’s probably due to the high expectations at the start, not predicting anything less than that. I’ve also been having a lot more fights with my siblings but that was inevitable. We’ve created some regulations to maintain respect and minimise verbal attacks (that sometimes crush your soul).
Goal for the next week: staying calm for the approaching midsem assignments.  :)
« Last Edit: September 11, 2020, 05:12:11 pm by dutyfree »
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #9 on: September 23, 2020, 05:55:49 pm »
+5
Uni journal P6.
Mid semester reflection

This is a letter (out of many), I wrote to myself about how I was handling BIO1022 + about my overall attitude.
Disclaimer: cw - this is kind of a look into an unhealthy mindset that tries to justify voluntarily creating anxiety
Dear Dutyfree,
I think this time, I have gained some optimism and learned about resilience (or at least I think I’ve gone through slightly drastic character development).
Looking back at the start of the semester, I sort of find my mindset comical and wholly unhealthy. I was an arrogant little sh**t, who thought I was perfectly studious, a genius at bio and deserved that 100% on every little quiz and assessment, ultimately adding up to the coveted 100 unit score. Anything less than a 20 in the weekly quiz was an immediate failure.
I’ve come to appreciate my original trigger that began my demotivated slump at the beginning of the semester => 17/20, equivalent to a whole 0.3% off my entire grade.
What does 17/20 really mean?
I’ve learned that, okay Dutyfree, that’s a solid score, you have sound knowledge of the topic, but some minor areas aren’t your forte, just yet and this is an early sign to hyper-focus on those areas before the exam. I’ve slowly adapted to thinking that every mark I lose in these weekly quizzes is one more hopeful mark gained in the exam if I learn from my mistakes.
I hope this is more sustainable in the long run and I can hold myself accountable to stay in this mindset.
This all still sounds very idealistic to me even after a whole 3 weeks of picking myself back up and being content + motivated after ‘less than 20’ scores. But turning around a pessimistic personality is probably going to take a little bit longer.
I finally finished ‘The subtle art of not..**k’, I have many takeaways but the one that really stood out was that; I’m always going to have problems, I just have to pick which ones I can manage to survive with. Getting a 100% doesn’t mean an end to anything, it’s just a temporary chemical rush and a week full of stress with the expectation to perform just as well the next time.
Anyways, thanks for joining (being forced to join) my philosophical journey to the acceptance of 17/20.
 :)
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #10 on: October 11, 2020, 09:24:31 pm »
+6
Uni journal P7.
Review of mid-semester break and week 8:
I’ve honestly been a wreck. Just when I thought, I had some semblance of a sleep schedule, out pops seizure no.5. I’ve sort of had enough, I don’t know what the medication actually does anymore. It tires me out a bit and affects my mood. During the break, to my parents, I probably looked like I was doing practically nothing and just reading all day. My main priority was to stay calm and prevent spiralling. My doc said, I don’t treat myself very well and I think that statement left a mark.

Positives: Even if its barely, I’m still handing my assignments on time and trying to complete them to the best of my ability. I’m learning and practising how to control my mood, to keep a healthy, stable mindset. It’s going to take a while.

Studies: I don’t know who made up that, ‘arts subjects are easy’ because they are NOT! Mm, I think for me it’s very difficult to get over that 90% barrier. They don’t have strict criteria, like the science subjects, so it’s based on how you interpreted what they want you to write about. I’m enjoying writing, it wasn’t one of my better subjects when I was younger but I’m glad the excessive reading of Wikipedia/ random websites has helped. Bio, chem and stats are so-so, still within the path to meet my expectations.

Major/ minors: I’ve been considering physiology/ developmental biology/ biochemistry or chemistry as a major. I’m indecisive even after reading the past unit guides and my interest is pretty even for all 4. After talking to the bio PASS tutor, I’m a little bit more inclined to do at least a minor in chem. We shall see after this semester’s performance.

Goals: hopefully, keep a clear head and stay in control.
-   Um, breathe pls!
 :)
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #11 on: December 23, 2020, 05:06:26 pm »
+4
Uni journal P8.
2020 Sem 2: Review

The last couple of weeks of semester 2 were brutal. I felt like I was burnt out and procrastinated a ton. It was hard balancing random extra-activities, volunteering and studies.
Semester 2 was messy. I had multiple meetings with professors about motivation levels and managing studies. I dedicated too much time and effort to unnecessary leadership activities and work. On a positive note, I’m proud of myself, with getting through this year with my sanity still slightly in check. I improved on my sleep schedule and tried my best to avoid all-nighters. I only went on 3 social media blackouts and managed to maintain all my close friendships (yay).

2020 Sem 2: Results
ATS1298: 81 HD, CHM1022: 88 HD, STA1010: 91 HD, BIO1022: 93 HD
ATS: oof, only scraped a hd + sort of disappointed. I allowed too much leeway, felt too secure with the first 2 assignments and gave myself 2 days!!?! to write a 40% essay. Of course, that ended badly – 68%, thus, a subject that I began as ‘easy to manage’ turned out to be my worst score.
Learning point: start essays early (roll eyes), stay consistently motivated to do well in all assessments.
CHM, BIO: surprised, considering my in-semester marks were mediocre compared to last semester.
STA: doing SCI1020 helped a ton, otherwise with the pace of the unit, I would’ve been left behind, just as probability started.

To be honest, I was just flat out shocked with my results. I mean, I tried my best with in-semester assessments, but my exam prep was minimal to non-existent. SWOTVAC consisted of just procrastinating with BTS videos and transferring slabs of info from the textbook to a word document and calling it ‘notes’. 2 days before the exam, I would flip through PASS notes and watch Khan Academy (bless).
This lack of actual studying is why I don’t think I deserve the grades. Immediately after the exams, I go through a mild breakdown, imagine the worst possible outcome and calculate a hypothetical WAM to make sure I’m mentally ready to see the number when the results come out. Sometimes, when I talk to my friends and listen to them complaining about studying for hours, I wonder if I’m doing this whole uni-thing wrong. Anyways, I’m very pleasantly surprised about the results and more motivated to believe that I have more potential if I consistently engage with my studies.

Next semester, I’ll try different subjects to solidify what I want to major in. I think, I’m definitely doing physiology but I’m iffy about considering a major/minor in dev.bio, biochem or chem. I also miraculously got into the exec team in a society, without being engaged in first year at all, so I’m excited to be a part of that. I’m looking forward to the new year, after experimenting with how I learn and understanding how my mood affects everything I do!
 :)
« Last Edit: February 01, 2021, 05:57:44 pm by dutyfree »
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

Owlbird83

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #12 on: December 23, 2020, 06:39:18 pm »
+2
AHH congrats with your results and improving your sleep schedule!!

I really admire your self discipline with the social media blackouts, I cannot successfully do them. What kind of impacts do they have on you? (positive or negative)

Woo! that's pretty cool about the leadership in the society! What kind of society?or if that would be too non-anonymous what is your role in the society? That sounds like a fun thing!

Learning point: start essays early (roll eyes)
same

I hope you have a relaxing holidays! take care of yourself  ;D

I hope we get the same physiology class next year!!
2018: Biology
2019: Chemistry, Physics, Math Methods, English, Japanese
2020: Bachelor of Psychology (Monash)

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #13 on: December 24, 2020, 07:23:27 pm »
+3
Thanks  :) Owlbird83!
I usually drop out of social media when I get overwhelmed with studies/ work/ people or all of them mashed together ‘shrug’. Sometimes, I feel terrible when I don’t give people a warning before they worry, but now my friends pretty much know it’s standard procedure, so it’s okay.
I guess the impact is neutral. It’s just one thing I can let go of, when I’m stressed.

Mm, the x-society is sort of academic + some social events. I went for the secretary position cos I’m relatively organised and it seemed like the most ‘lay-low’ title with admin duties. I’m weirdly excited to write minutes, agendas and emails (my favourite thing)!!
I’ll see you in PHY2011!  ;D
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni

dutyfree

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Re: A tax-free Science journal by Dutyfree
« Reply #14 on: February 01, 2021, 09:04:08 pm »
+6
Uni journal P9.
Reflection of first year

I only attended on campus on the first day, but it was so underwhelming; traveling my (privileged) 2 stops by bus felt like going to the local high school again. I don’t know why I imagined it exactly as some coming of age film, with the pop song in the background and the great ‘not hot-not cold’ weather. I was about 15 minutes late to my 45-minute lecture and bonded with my fellow late attendee. But then I somehow thought we were going to be friends and add each other on Facebook, because we had a spark?!? (like a clueless idiot). Then I had my lab, where my hair tie decided to not fulfill its ONE job and broke. Thus, only one day in and I had breached their safety codes and had to wait 10 minutes for a rubber band, before participating. Review of day 1: eventful yet mediocre.

Then everything changed to online. Wow! It’s like gap year 2.0 gReat! To be honest, I didn’t find the online situation too hard to adapt to and even found the recorded labs much easier to comprehend (just a bit boring). I joined all the unit chats and even made a few friends from the 4am communicate-only-with-memes hours. Work was really hard to manage with uni, especially because they increased hours after some workers quit. I naively thought I could attend a tutorial at 9am after coming home at 3am (dead tired). So, the natural conclusion was that I had to take a break from my measly income, if I wanted to have good grades (+ a sane mind).

I’ve always known I get a bit too obsessed with calculating grades and percentages but 2020 took it even further. I would panic even if I had lost one mark in a 1% quiz, because that single mark translated to a little percentage subtracted from my grade. I knew it wasn’t healthy but somehow, I fooled myself into thinking that it was motivating and made me self-accountable (as a sort of mental punishment eek). Anyways, I arranged a couple of zoom meetings with my professors to find some other ways to encourage myself to study and stay organised. I think it sort of helped, they offered their own experiences with uni and it made me reanalyse how my perspective was so self-obsessed and arrogant.

Okay, onto the positives: I truly and genuinely appreciated my friends during the lockdown, all the memes, the tiktoks and random facts. My best friend and I bonded over our mutual and slightly consuming love for BTS. My laptop miraculously survived over the entire year (despite my dad’s lack of confidence) and though I’m currently typing on a new one, I will forever remember my OG, who has survived through overheating (a bunch), too many falls and tea spills. Rip

Overall, despite last year being rather abnormal and without much predictable structure, its only really another insignificant year in the timeline. I hope this year is conventional and stable for me. 
 :)
« Last Edit: February 02, 2021, 10:11:11 am by dutyfree »
2018: ATaR: 98.8
2019: quarter-life crisis
2020: Bachelor of Science @ Monash Uni