Guide to Success in First Year

of University.
Brodie Te Kira
The Five Do’s for success in first Year at
University.
 Do 1: Prepare

One of the most important thing to do before arriving to class is to prepare. Do this by making
sure you know what class you have, what room it’s in, and to do any relevant readings to
prepare for it. More ways you can prepared is by arriving early and reading annotated notes
from pre-readings that you should have made. This is best way to make sure you succeed in
first year of university.
Do 2: Attend

The another important thing to do to ensure your success in university is to make sure you
attend. You should attend everything, lectures, office hours (even if you don’t have
questions), tutorials, and workshops. This is the only way that you can properly learn content
required. Attending is how you will succeed first year university.
Do 3: Engage

It’s all good attending class but once your in your lecture you need to make sure you are
engaging with what’s happening. This can be done by asking questions, taking notes, and
joining in with class discussions. The best way to engage that will help you succeed in first year
at university is by taking notes and asking questions.
Do 4: Revise

Just taking notes in lectures isn’t always enough to make sense of a topic. The next best thing
to do after taking notes in class is revising the notes you’ve taken. You can do this by re-
writing the notes you’ve taken in lectures. This will help solidify the content covered in
lectures. This is a very good way to improve success in first year of university.
Do 5: Study

Now if you have followed the last 4 Do’s of success you still haven’t done enough. To ensure
you have completely understood content, you must still study. Cramming does not work. Even
when you don’t have up coming exams you still need to study to ensure you know the
content back to front. After a test or assignment you also shouldn’t forget about the content
you will need to make sure you are revisiting past content. This ensures you know and
remember it, it will still be needed in the future.
The Five Don'ts for success in First year at
University.
Don’t 1: Procrastinate

The number one best thing you shouldn’t do that will affect how you succeed in first year is
procrastinating. University is nothing like high school, waiting till last minute to start
assignments doesn’t help you to succeed. Procrastinating will guarantee you’re failure at first
year.
Don’t 2: Miss class

To ensure success don’t miss classes, attending class is your best chance of succeeding at
university. By missing a class you fall behind and by falling behind in university, you are almost
guaranteed not to catch up due to the amount of content given, therefore you fail. To
succeed you must attend class.
Don’t 3: Cram for test

The worst way to prepare for an exam is cramming. This doesn’t help you succeed in first
year. Yes, it might help you pass that exam but once you have finished your exam it’s almost
all forgotten. The best way to prepare is to study consistently throughout the period of the
course. Once you have finished a exam don’t forget the content still revise it. This will still be
needed in the remainder of you studies. Not cramming is the best way you can succeed in
first year university.
Don’t 4: Party week days.

The worst thing you can do is party on week days. To learn you need to have a clear and
unaffected mind. By drinking the night before you increase your chanced of a hangover
which makes engaging in lectures almost impossible. As well as this, sleep is the most
important thing need to make sure you able to retain content. It’s best to leave the partying
to the weekends. By not partying on weekdays you can ensure your success at university in
first year.
Don’t 5: Don’t stress

The biggest challenge to success is your self. Stress makes everything harder and makes
learning almost impossible. The best solution for stress is prevention. Make sure you don’t allow
yourself to get behind in work, by missing classes, or procrastinating. Apart from it being bad
for your health, stressing before a test by cramming and doing all-nighters doesn’t help you
retain any more information than normally. A good sleep is the best way to succeed and
prevent stress. As well as sleep if you feel stressed have rests and avoid caffeine, it’s a stress
causer not preventer. This is the best way you can avoid stressing and succeed in first year
university.
 Thank you

This is why guide to success in your first year of university. By following this you should be able
to get you best marks.
- Brodie Te Kira