Blog posts
This is how I’ve been wasting my time.
As the holidays came to a start- my initial mindset was, “Oh, I’ve got looaaddss of time. I definitely deserve a break. One more season of this show on Netflix won’t hurt.” It must have slipped my mind that the exam on the day I go back is not a mock. Now that I’m about 70% through my Easter/Spring break, I am filled with regret and drowning in revision. :’)
- Watching a season of Hell’s Kitchen The first thing I did was binge watch as soon as the term ended. Personally a big Gordon Ramsay fan, even though he’s not a believer in Vegetarianism/Veganism cries.
In my post about affording London prices I suggested bringing lunches to work, just to save money. No matter how busy I am, I do it most days, thanks to a collection of delicious and ridiculously quick recipes I collected (let me know if you’d like me to post them!). However, sometimes I treat myself to a lunch at Imperial. Where do I go?
At South Kensington campus we have a big choice of catering outlets that serve everything from sandwiches and salads to Japanese and Indian. About 11am they post the menu of the day, which helps to make an informed choice (and procrastinate from work for a few minutes).
I recently used a R script from Keith McNulty to analyse my Facebook data. I was curious to know how much I had been posting for the past 10 years, but I also wanted to know much information Facebook had about me.
I was able to download over 4,000 days of data and more than 30,000 posts. These posts were mine, but also from friends that were posting on my timeline.
In the process, I learned these three points:
1. I have 1000’s of posts per year
I remember when I initially joined Facebook, my friends I would basically communicate and organise everything by posting publicly on our walls (no sense of privacy!).
And how to avoid it
However much you might try to think you make the best use of your time, I’m sure that there’s always some time during the day when you sit there not quite getting on with your work but pretending that you are. As a particularly keen procrastinator, especially when I find the work difficult, here are some of the ways I’ve managed to get through tough revision periods avoiding procrastination.
- Make a timetable with not more than 45 to 90 mins revision sessions at a time. Don’t just write down what subject or module you will be studying, include key details of what particular topic, or which past paper you will do in this time.
Studying at the most International University in the UK
It goes without saying that Imperial College London is one of the most culturally diverse university communities in the world. Just walking around campus, it is clear to why we have been named the UK’s most international university by The Times Higher Education. Being one of the highest ranking universities in world and leading the way in scientific research, attracts some of the brightest students from across the globe, giving Imperial its signature incredible variety in culture.
Having lived in London my whole life and attended, what I thought was, quite a diverse school, I’m not sure what I expected Imperial to be like however, I had really not anticipated making friends so quickly with people from all around the world.
First things first, who saw (and recognised) that The Hobbit reference in the title? 😉 🙂 🙂
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Anyway moving on to less important stuff the main point of this post, every international student (whether Imperial student or otherwise) should have heard of HOST UK. And maybe go for a HOST visit at least once over the duration of their study here. No? Well, you must!
So what is HOST UK?
HOST UK is a charity that arranges visits for international students to stay with a host family anywhere in the United Kingdom. The visits can range from a day or 2-3 over the weekend.
This is part 2 of my placement year blog post. If you’ve missed part 1 be sure to go back and have a read (otherwise this next bit won’t really make sense!)
Paignton, Devon
My year in industry placement was at Whitley Wildlife Conservation Trust in Paignton in Devon. Specifically I was based at Paignton Zoo, one of 3 zoos owned by the trust. First, a little background about my location. Devon – a place that everyone seems to have visited “when they were a child”. For me, I had heard very little about Devon, even less about Paignton. However, everyone I talked to about my placement, whether it be family friends, elderly ladies at bus stops or cab drivers, knew about Devon and Paignton Zoo.
Summer term’s just around the corner, and what does that mean? That’s right! Endless episodes of exams. Over the years as a student at the RWTH Aachen, I have collected various tips on how to survive the intensive studying phases – all without jungle hair and mental suffering.
First, schedule your free time
Even if you plan to study 8 hours a day, I always take the time to plan my private things first in my weekly schedule. Fitness and relaxation times are a must, and there are even studies that recommend such a planning. In the critical phase time naturally gets a bit tight and sometimes your exercise suffers, but one should always strive for a balance.
Hi guys,
I’m finally back from the dead lol. But seriously, it’s been such a long time since I last blogged. Sorry about that, I’ve been busy procrastinating studying.
Anyway, it’s been a little more than a week since my first real field trip to Dorset (not counting the one to Leicestershire in Welcome Week, that is). Before that trip, I was very much psyched about it because,
1) We’re going to the beach, how cool is that! (it’s my first time going anywhere near the seaside since I came to the UK),
2) I get to travel free (okay fine, it’s not really free actually… but I still don’t have to use any of my own personal funds so I’m happy), and
3) This is my chance to get closer to my coursemates and everyone yosh ganbatte erynne-chan!
