How to Succeed At University--International Edition: The Complete Student Guide

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Chapter 1

Getting Ready to Succeed

Why We Wrote this Book

The academic year begins. Around the world first-year students embark on the journey of a lifetime as they start their life at university. This journey varies from country to country but fundamentally the sequence of stages and the things that students need to know are universal. In general, students undertake three or four years of undergraduate studies to earn their Bachelor’s degrees. The fourth year is often an Honours year which consists of a research project and thesis writing in addition to coursework. Following the completion of a Bachelor's degree, some students will pursue graduate studies to earn a Master's or Doctoral degree.

Did You Know?

There is some variation in the educational systems, the degrees available, and how they are granted from country to country. In the United Kingdom, for example, undergraduate Master’s degrees are available in addition to the three- or four-year Bachelor’s degree. These integrated Master’s degrees may be completed as an alternative to an Honours Bachelor’s degree; they involve an extended programme where the final year of study is at the Master’s level but are distinct from postgraduate Master’s degrees.

Universities in some countries may adhere to completely different degree systems; however, these are being phased out in favour of conforming to international standards (i.e., a three- or four-year Bachelor’s degree). Later, we’ll talk more about how long it is actually taking students to get their undergraduate degree these days.

Did You Know?

The Bologna Process is a measure promoting reforms in European higher education. Its objective is to harmonise the higher education systems between European countries and establish a European Higher Education Area. One of its aims is the implementation of the three-cycle system of degree structure (i.e., Bachelor’s, Master’s, Doctorate) in institutions that don’t yet have it in place. ¹

Regardless of the country or the person, first-year students are almost always enthusiastic; they are excited about their new life at the university. They have great hope for academic success. But, without help or guidance, the challenges for many will be next to insurmountable. It has been well established that the first year at university is a challenge that many students cannot meet. Often as the first year begins to end, the situation is tense and students are somewhat less than enthusiastic. Where did the time go?

All of a sudden the year is over and reality has returned. Plans to acquire a Bachelor’s degree can now seem like a distant dream. Many will have failed a class or two or received bad grades that may put them at risk for dismissal from the university. They will have to face another year of some of the same classes, the same material—another year of the same things. All of this could have been avoided if the students had had some guidelines in the beginning. But it doesn’t have to be so.

That’s one reason why we wrote this book: to give incoming students a guide to success not only in their first year at university but in the years that follow. This book will spell out in black and white what you have to do to survive your first year and to continue as a successful student in subsequent years at university. It will give you advice that no one else will. There’s a second reason for this volume. We have succeeded and we want to tell you how we did it. Together we can give you the insight gained from being university students as well as the additional unique insight that years of teaching at university have given us. University can be a struggle but we believe that all incoming students can do the same. All you need is the sincere desire to succeed. After all, the university accepted you; now it’s up to you to validate that acceptance.

Professor O’Day’s Experience with Pursuing Success at University

My pre-university years in North Vancouver, Canada, were totally lacking in academic merit. The majority of my grades were well below average in the early years of secondary school. In grade nine I was told to enter the non-academic (manual arts) programme. However, my parents decided that I should stay in the university-oriented programme and they encouraged me to work harder. After that my high school grades did improve, but they never became exceptional.

In those days Canadian universities had entrance examinations, which all incoming students had to write. Counsellors used the results to advise students which career they should pursue. Many weeks after writing my entrance exams at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, I was summoned to the counsellor’s office and informed of my underwhelming success. Apparently I had demonstrated no academic potential whatsoever. The counsellor was aghast at my poor showing. (I guess he was wondering how I had gotten that far.)

I think that you should forget the idea of going to this or any other university. You simply don’t seem to have the aptitude or the inclination to make it, he said, more or less repeating the words that had been spoken by another counsellor several years before.

You mean that I can’t begin my studies this fall? I asked, fearful for my future.

No—I’m just offering you sound advice. You appear to have no academic future. University would undoubtedly be a waste of time.

I enrolled in the fall despite the learned man’s pessimistic appraisal and I emerged from the University of British Columbia’s hallowed halls four years later with a Bachelor of Science degree in zoology. My first year at the university had been shaky, but I persevered and my last year’s average was only a percent below first-class. I had wanted to go to university and along the way I had discovered the keys to success. The essential habits that enabled me to succeed in my undergraduate studies are outlined throughout the following chapters.

Some Take-Home Messages

We want to begin with a couple of take-home messages. We are experts on university life. As a result, we have good insight into what motivates students and we know what works for most. We also know what doesn’t work. On the other hand, like anyone, we don’t know everything. Since we don’t know everything, we keep trying to improve, to grow and to learn. We also know you are not like every other student. You have your own ideas and approaches. You will like some of our ideas and you will hate others. The key is that you read what we have to say. If you don’t like some things, then use the information we provide to suit your specific approach and needs. Adapt what we say to your own specifications. If you don’t then it will take you several years before you’re truly on track and doing the best you can at university.

This book contains the old tried-and-true information that never changes. It also contains new insights into student learning and new approaches. One thing you need to understand up-front is your reasons for attending university. Are you hoping to be a doctor, lawyer or business professional? Are you just trying to make Mom and Dad happy because they’re footing the bill? Or are you still unsure about what you want to be in life but you want to ensure that a university degree will help you get a job? Whatever your reasons are for wanting to be successful in school, this book is for you. This book will not only show you the tricks and skills you need for student success, it will put them into a relevant context and assist you in preparing for your future.

Did You Know?

A diversity of research has shown that self-image is the strongest indicator of life satisfaction. More to the point, academic performance at university is directly related to life satisfaction.²

The Ten Rules for University Success

As discussed previously, an undergraduate degree generally takes three to four years. But if you have goals of going on to graduate or professional schools, a four-year Honours degree may be required depending on the institution. Today many students take an average of over five years to complete a four-year Bachelor’s degree. Here are some tips to get completed as quickly as possible with a degree (i.e., marks) of which you can be proud. Many of these points are expanded upon later in this chapter and elsewhere in the book, but here is a quick summary of the guidelines for university success:

1. Get on Track Immediately

It’s too bad that in many countries the introduction to university life starts with Party Week—sorry, Orientation. Many students fail to understand that once classes start the party is over. It’s usually okay to go out with your friends but make it once a week, not every night.

2. Use Your Freedom Wisely

Unless you are living at home, you are now on your own. No one is going to tell you what to do or when to do it. As your own boss, you need to remind yourself that you do have responsibilities and commitments. Then make sure you live up to them. One of these commitments is emphasized in the next point.

3. Attend All of Your Classes

We can tell you from experience: it’s always the class you miss that turns out to be the most important. Getting the notes from other students just doesn’t cut it. Often you won’t be able to read their writing let alone understand what their shorthand means. Sometimes, professors drop clues or emphasize points that indicate what will be on tests and exams. Other important class issues can also be brought up that can cost you dearly if you don’t find out about them.

4. Do All of Your Coursework

It’s not uncommon for students to study hard for important exams and finals but to put minimal effort into the minor tests and reports. This approach is an A killer and most likely a B killer as well. Getting poor marks on the minor tests and reports can nickel and dime you to death, taking your A or B grade on major tests and exams down to a C. Also, many professors look at their students’ progress in the class as they assign final grades. For example, professors may give their students the best possible grade or reward them with a boost in their grade for consistently high quality work. When professors see a student with an uneven record, they usually don’t adjust his or her grade upwards. So do the best you can and you might get a pleasant surprise.

5. Manage Your Time

Students often are taught the basics of time management in high school (secondary school) but few use what they have learned. Why? Because in high school students usually don’t need time management; they can cram successfully or pull an all-nighter to get reports or studying done. At university, this just won’t work. You need to schedule your commitments on a daily, weekly and monthly basis using your timetable, a calendar and To Do lists. Later, we’ll show you how to do this.

6. Talk to Your Professors

Every year university professors and instructors get dozens of requests from students who need references or letters of recommendation. Professor, I did well in your biology class. Can you write me a letter of recommendation for medical school? A not uncommon response is, Who are you? Actually, most don’t say that, but they do think it because they don’t know many of their students. This is because some classes can be very large. Usually the students have never spoken to their professors or asked questions in class. With hundreds of students in each class, how can your professors get to know you unless you make an effort to let them know who you are? There’s another reason for talking with your professors. They can give you insight not only into other aspects of the classes they teach but also ideas that can help you make meaningful career and life choices.

7. Correct Any Failings

This is a tough one because each of us has strengths and weaknesses. One area of common weakness is in writing. You are going to have to write reports and essays as well as essay-type examinations. If your writing is weak, no matter how well you know the material you’ll lose marks regularly because you can’t communicate your thoughts effectively. Another issue is spelling. Each discipline has key terms and words that embody the subject. Learn to spell them correctly.

8. Leave Your High School Attitudes Behind

Some students attend a university where their friends are going rather than one that specifically suits them. Others seem to carry over high school attitudes. A simple example is talking to friends during lectures (our special pet peeve) or having your cell phone ring. Not only will these approaches annoy your instructors, your fellow students will also notice your attitude.

9. Know What Is Available

Things won’t always go as planned. You may get sick. You may get lonely. Something bad may happen. For these reasons, you need to know what resources are available on your campus. The university offers a diversity of resources to help you in your academic life and with other aspects of the student experience. There are doctors, nurses and counsellors to help you with health issues. There are clubs where you can join in activities that may interest you. There are always on-campus activities and sporting events where you can meet up with your old friends or make new ones.

10. Have Fun

While the previous nine rules may sound like you’re in prison, that’s not true. You’ll be interacting with students between classes and at various social events. You’ll still get to socialize and have a great time. If you find that you’re not enjoying yourself, then it’s time to re-evaluate why you are at university. What do you want out of life? Once you know, then you’ll be on your way to success.

Understand Yourself

Make the most of yourself for that is all there is of you.

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

At first glance the university can be an awe-inspiring place. You will enter the almost sacrosanct halls of academe as the underling. You have lost your place as one of the upper-year students in high school; you will have to start from the beginning again at university. You are young. As a result you may feel insecure in your new environment. You will be tempted to sacrifice the me for the us. Don’t do it! Remain unique. If you are not already independent, develop independence. Don’t follow the crowd unless it is clearly to your benefit. Your newfound freedom, the freedom that life at university can give, can lead to your rapid decline if you aren’t enough of an individual to survive.

The biggest problem for students, as for people in general, is to understand yourself. What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses? What are your personal limits? You must learn to build on your strengths and cautiously avoid your weaknesses or, better yet, overcome them. For instance, a surprising number of students enter university with a limited command of written English. If your written English is weak, you can work around your deficiency. Don’t try to write sentences that are beyond you. Don’t get so tangled up in words that your meaning isn’t clear. You should write sentences that are short and to the point. On exams most professors are not expecting fancy displays of terminology; they want you to tell them that you understand and know the material.

Did You Know?

In 2011, only 52% of high school graduates who took the ACT (a higher education admission test in the United States) were capable of reading at the postsecondary level.³

However, you will be assigned reports and essays in which you will be expected to show a reasonable command of the English language. If your English expression is weak, you would be well advised to strengthen it by taking an introductory English class in your first year. Even if you have an extensive vocabulary, you must know your limits. Don’t employ words or terminology that you are not positive about. A simple word that is correct conveys more than a pompous one that is wrong. Using the wrong word may suggest that you don’t know what you’re talking about when in reality you might.

The person who uses a lot of big words is not trying to inform you; he’s trying to impress you.

—Oscar Miller

Now don’t get the wrong impression. We are not advocating adhering to an inadequate vocabulary. We am saying that while developing your vocabulary, you should be careful to remain within the limits of your learning.

There are few mandatory first-year English classes in many universities today. Often high school English requirements are also minimal. In the absence of good training you should use what you do know to your advantage.

If you are not competent in English, you will pay for your incompetence time and time again. In every subject your grades will be lower because you have difficulty expressing your ideas in written words. The cure is a writing workshop (most universities have one), a non-credit class that teaches you how to write essays, book reports, etc. In a writing workshop you will write essays for critical assessment. Your weaknesses will be corrected and your strengths reinforced. If your written communication is weak, take advantage of this facility. Details about the university writing workshop (how it is organized, when it operates, whom to see, etc.) will usually be available in the student services centre, library or similar facilities, in addition to the university website.

This seems the best time to broach a very important aspect of your life. You are a unique, special person. You have to develop your feelings of worthiness. If you find that book learning does not come easily for you no matter how hard you try, don’t feel stupid. Some people can’t learn easily from books; some people do not do well at university. So what? Find out what you are good at and do it. If you discover that you just aren’t interested in succeeding at university, know when to pack it in. Exploit your virtues, not your weaknesses. Don’t waste time trying to get a degree that will be made meaningless by low grades on your academic transcripts.

That said, people who can’t learn from books are in the minority. We firmly believe that anyone with normal intelligence can be a top student at university. That’s what this book is all about.

It’s Your Future

Most students attend university to obtain a degree. That’s a simple fact. It wasn’t always this way. Years ago students attended university to learn for the sake of learning, but that’s not the way it is today. You will probably attend university for the purpose of making it through three or four years to emerge with a degree in some area of specialization. If you are like many students you intend to be a doctor or a lawyer or to enter some other equally remunerative occupation.

Professor O’Day’s Advice: Competitive Programmes

I teach cell biology and a class in human development so it’s not surprising that many of my students are motivated to become medical professionals. If I had a Canadian dollar for every student who told me he or she was going to be a doctor, I would be rich. The sad part is few students have the grades to enter medicine, let alone any other competitive programme.

One of my big concerns as a teacher has to deal with students who have unrealistic goals. It is not easy trying to gently explain to a student with poor or average grades that he or she has no chance of even being considered by a reputable medical school as a potential student. If a student has such unrealistic expectations, I often try to guide that student along by asking if he or she has ever thought of alternative occupations which are more in keeping with his or her marks.

While I am not a counsellor, I give students some suggestions about potential alternative life choices hoping that in time, they will move these secondary choices to the front line when they realize their marks won’t be enough to allow them to apply let alone get accepted to medicine. If the students persist in their single-mindedness, I don’t try to dash their dreams but suggest that they then need to focus entirely on their studies if they hope to meet their goal. You also need to determine if your current goals are realistic. Ask yourself some questions:

• Are your grades good enough to get accepted to any competitive programme?

• Do you enjoy studying the subjects required for entry to the programme?

• Do you find that you often question what you are doing?

• Are there some other areas that seem more interesting?

Unfortunately, the reality is that there is very little chance of you being accepted by a medical school. Just look around you and assess how many doctors there are per capita and you will realize that not everyone gets to be one. The same is true for other competitive programmes. I have no intention of bursting bubbles or telling you that your dreams are not possible. You are reading this book, but I don’t know who you are or whether you have the potential to be admitted to medicine or other competitive programmes. If you do have the potential, then I sincerely hope that you reach your goal.

Whatever your aspirations are, we hope that this book will help you in your quest. This book can help you generate the high grades needed to impress potential employers or to be admitted to postgraduate programmes, but it cannot work the miracle of increasing the number of jobs available or places in these programmes. This is where we would like to offer you some other aspects of succeeding at university.

Look at your grades. Often your marks reflect your true interests. If you are getting great marks in specific subjects, that could indicate your special interests or abilities in that subject area. Look at what options and opportunities exist in that area and try to determine if that’s a route to follow. We’d also advise you not to panic. Sometimes students don’t really figure out what they want in life until it’s almost time to graduate. Remember, a good education will serve you in a diversity of ways that may have nothing at all to do with the specific subjects that you studied.

Did You Know?

According to the 2006 National Survey of Recent College Graduates in the United States, 33.8% of graduates with a Bachelor’s degree in science, engineering or health who held a job were employed in the same field as their degree. Another 10.6% were employed in a different science-related field, while 55.6% were employed in a non-science occupation.⁴

Evaluating Your Goals and Alternatives

Did You Know?

A 2010 survey of first-year students at thirty-nine Canadian universities revealed that for 27% of students surveyed, meeting parental expectations was a very important reason for attending university.⁵

It’s often the case that students haven’t even thought of alternatives to their primary goal in life. In high school, the job opportunities that students are made aware of are generally very limited. Attending university can open your eyes to the wide variety of career options that are available. In the meantime, it doesn’t hurt to reassess your current situation. Often one’s primary goal, especially for the professions of medicine, dentistry and law, among others, is in reality a parental dream not the student’s.

Professor O’Day’s Advice: Assessing Your Goals

Every year I have students come to ask for advice about their progress in my classes. Often they are failing or doing poorly and can’t understand why. In a large number of cases, the reason is simple. They are attending university for all the wrong reasons. The primary reason is Mom and/or Dad want them to become a professional. I’ve had dozens of students over the years come to me and ask what they can do because their parents are putting unrealistic pressure on them to become a professional when they either aren’t interested or won’t be able to meet the demands of getting accepted to that profession.

As an adult, you need to look out for your own interests. So if your marks are not up to par for your goals or if you are finding that your goals are changing, here’s a list of assessment questions you can answer that should help you in determining just what is right for you:

1. Write down your goals and interests in two side-by-side columns and list the positives and negatives for them.

2. Note whether they are your goals or whether someone else is pushing you in that choice.

3. List the subjects in which you are doing your best.

4. List the subjects in which you are doing your worst.

5. List the subjects which you like the best.

6. List the subjects which you don’t like or skip classes.

7. Seriously evaluate your grades (cumulative and recent).

8. Compare your actual grades with those that are required for the profession that you want.

9. Go through all of the above and see what things are positive and which are negative.

10. Based on those results, do an online search for professions in those areas.

In short, write down the plusses and minuses of your current life. Look at what you have written and see if being a student is the best route for you.

The smartest thing you can do, as a student, is to keep your options open. Don’t limit yourself too much too early. It’s very likely that you really don’t know what you want to do in life. How could you? You hardly know what real opportunities exist! You haven’t yet had the chance to examine in depth all of the options open to you.

For this reason, we re-emphasize: keep your options open. You may wonder, How do I do that? The first thing to do is to select a programme that will not limit you, that is, one that allows flexibility in selecting the subjects you wish to study in your first year. Many students enter their first year with unrealistic dreams and take subjects that are