Student blogs

Insights on time management, making friends and self-care

Many Imperial students such as your departmental Mums and Dads (a support scheme of older students) would tell you that Imperial has a “work hard, play hard” culture – drink on weekends, study hardcore on weekdays. This is not necessarily true as you are the one in control of your uni experience. It’s also impractical if you cannot stand working for long hours. Moreover, not drinking seems like a social disadvantage since the most notable weekly event at uni bar FiveSixEight is when all sports societies head down after practice to chill. There’s so much going on, academics, socialising…- the people are one of the best things about Imperial – so how do you make the most of your time here?

1. Food. Plan meals ahead of time, cook with friends to save money and time. Lots of people have the same meal for the whole week and prepping the Sunday before in advance – make a stockpile of a dish and separating servings into boxes for the freezer. Or you can have your friend do it for you or as a helping hand when you need to improvise with whatever’s left in the fridge. 
2. The Pomodoro Method. This 25 min work, 5 min break method may sound intensive at first but is so effective, trains up your concentration span (25 mins is not long at all which makes you push harder for that long-awaited break) and unlike your time at school, uni is ALL ABOUT EFFECTIVE STUDYING. More details are useless in exams if it’s all blabber, lecturers would much prefer concise, well-structured answers and short bursts of studying really helps focus on what you NEED to be clear about concept-wise. 
3. Societies! I regularly attend Imperial College AnimeSoc. It is incredibly active, the committee is so friendly and absolute mad lads. TV showings on Mondays, social and art sessions on Wednesdays in which we play card games and learn how to draw body parts or cute characters, and Friday film showings including Spirited Away. They also co-host events with other London unis like Halloween and karaoke. Joining committees is an excellent way to enhance your CV whilst dedicating to extra-curricular passions :> 
4. Exercise. It’s all about finding the workout that works best for you and you ENJOY. Everyone has days when they want to slack off working out boosts your memory, overall physical and mental health. I do pilates and personally find those endorphins way more effective than therapy and medication. That is NOT to say that you should be afraid of seeking help at all, Imperial has plenty of resources.