With winter break behind us, it’s time to get focused and ready for the start of a new semester! Although the beginning of the semester can be stressful, it’s a great time to get organized, set new goals, and find your place on campus.
Although having a new class schedule and routine can seem daunting and overwhelming, the first few weeks back on campus are a great time to get organized for the semester ahead before your schedule starts to pick up and get super busy! Not only should you organize your class materials and assignments, make a plan for big deadlines throughout the semester, and get back in the groove of studying, now is a great time to take care of the things you may have put on the back-burner last semester. For example, take this time to get to know your professors and GSIs during their office hours and form study groups with your classmates. As the semester picks up, you and I both know it becomes hard to put these things at the top of the to-do list, so taking care of them now will greatly benefit you when class material becomes increasingly difficult! Remember, your professors and GSIs are there to support you; if you don’t reach out and establish a connection with them, how will they know you are struggling? Use your resources!
Aside from getting yourself ready to hit the books, now is a great time to check in on your overall life balance and reset your goals for the upcoming semester. Did you get enough sleep last semester? Did you procrastinate too much, resulting in last-minute stress that you could have avoided? Did you hit the gym as much as you wanted, focus on your health in terms of your diet? Did you see your friends as much as you wanted or allot enough “you” time in your busy schedule? Did you check out that new study spot or coffee shop that all your friends told you that you should visit? As the semester picks up, it becomes harder and harder to make these simple, yet crucial aspects of our lives a priority. By setting these goals now and coming up with your own personal system to keep track of your goals throughout the semester, it is a lot easier to care for yourself and make sure you aren’t continually telling yourself, “maybe I will get to that next week instead!”
With that being said, we here at Beyond the Diag wish you a happy, healthy, and successful semester!