What I wish I knew about time management...

"Spending time planning your studies will save time in the long run."

"Not everyone gets concepts right away. Sometimes you need time to sit with it. So don’t be disheartened if you don’t get it, spend time with the ideas at play. Spend time throughout the year looking at your notes and keeping it fresh in your head, and don’t leave it all to the last minute before exams."

"You have more than enough time to stay on top of the content and do things outside uni. You just need to organise yourself and find a pattern that works for you."

"Do a little bit of each module each week, even if there is no assignment or supervision."

"Allocate time to a task and then be okay with however much progress you’ve made in that time."

What I wish I knew about assignments...

"Best to start working on them as soon as they’re released, and making progress consistently throughout the week. Don’t leave it for the night before!"

"Assignments aren’t designed to be done in one sitting. They’re difficult, you need a few days to sit with the questions and think about how to approach them. So don’t leave assignments to the last minute."

"Have a go at them yourself and then meet up with a group of friends to discuss. This was amazing in first year."

"Start them as soon as possible! The later you leave it, the more likely you'll end up pulling an all-nighter... assignments will almost always take longer than expected."

"Assignments are there to challenge your understanding and promote further investigation. It is easy to sit in lectures and passively take on information and feel you have a good grasp of the content, but then when it comes to assignments be very lost- this shouldn't be cause for stress or frustration, but for deep diving into what you've learned to deepen your understanding. Also don't cut corners and be lazy with assignments; make proper time for them as they may take a few hours to complete to full satisfaction."

What I wish I knew about supervisions...

"If there’s a specific question you have, email your supervisor in advance so they have time to prepare something for you."

"Go to every supervision as they really help you understand content in an easier way compared to lectures."

"To make the most of them and go there with questions to ask. Don’t be afraid of thinking it’s a silly question, you’re probably not the only one. But even if you are, getting the answers to your questions will allow you a different way of looking at problems."

"Supervisions are immensely useful and you will (most likely) miss them in second year - make the most out of them. Ask your supervisor questions, email harder problems in advance and if you don't understand why you got an assignment question wrong, or can't do a worksheet question, say so! Do not underestimate how valuable advice a fourth year or PhD student can give you."

"Ask dumb questions. Other people are thinking the same thing. Lose your ego. A silent supervision is just depressing. Be active! Have a go! Guess!"

What I wish I knew about tutorials...

"Your tutor is a wealth of knowledge and knows so much about how university works- ask them about everything! About the library, the maths building, microwaves etc."

"They are a very good way of asking specific questions which the lecturer may not have answered."

"Your tutorial group can be very useful not only for discussing maths but because you are all going through similar problems at similar times. Sometimes in a tutorial we haven’t done any maths, and have just destressed together."

"Make the most of them by going there with questions. Your tutors are experts, and are able to explain something covered in lectures in a different way that helps you understand what is going on."

"Make sure you review the lecture material before going - it makes it a lot more fruitful to work with the Tutor on the problem sheets."

What I wish I knew about lectures...

"They are very fast paced so keep up to date and go over content the same day you learn it."

"You learn more from being in person, so try to attend every lecture. Also a way to meet other students who might be facing similar difficulties."

"My rule was never to miss a lecture. Much better than lecture capture. Also, I always tried to take notes and stay active in lectures. If you go on your phone, you’ll loose track and then not understand the next 30 mins. Be focused and ask questions when you’re baffled."

"It’s fine not to understand everything, circle it and go through it later on so you understand it your own pace. Sometimes you’ll come up with a different way that makes more sense to you."

"I think when it comes to lectures you really get out what you put in, which may seem counterintuitive as you may feel like a passive audience member than an active participant. However, making a concerted effort to apply yourself in lectures, maintain focus as best you can, and really trying to make yourself believe in what the lecturer is saying after the fact, can make a huge difference to the value that lectures have."

What I wish I knew about revision...

"The assignments, homework sheets and past exam papers are the best practice you can get."

"Start past papers earlier than you think! You might think you know all your stuff but actually trying questions puts you to the test."

"It's unlikely you will understand 100% of everything in the notes for every module. In university maths, doing questions is more important for revision and understanding than copying out notes and memorising them. Try to do shorter proofs from the notes without looking first. If the lecture notes have examples, try them without looking and then try them again after glancing at the solution, so you get both practice and memorise. Prioritise doing every worksheet & assignment question. Don't spend too much time on any one module, you have many to do."

"Revise early and often - just review small bits throughout the year. It'll save you so much more time later on!"

"I think revision is a balance between reaffirming your understanding of concepts, and practical application of the concepts in the form of practice questions and past papers. It is no use attempting questions without really knowing what's going, and equally sometimes the best way to solidify your understanding is to put it into practice by solving problems."

What I wish I knew about the second year essay...

"Start early! Working on it little & often is much better than pulling an all nighter in the library."

"It's not meant to be perfect. Try to do something you're interested in and put in as much work as you reasonably can to make a good finished product."

"It doesn't have to be a masterpiece or contain super ambitious fourth year material, be realistic. Go to the in person LaTeX sessions the summer before if you can and make sure you complete the online course. Work on your essay, if not complete it entirely, during Christmas. Do prepare something, but don't take the presentation too seriously - if you actually understand what you've written in your essay you'll be fine. Do at least one practice presentation with a friend to get an idea of the timing."

"Block out time each week to do this. Don't leave it last minute! Little bits of research here and there help massively."

"That you will not understand what you’re reading at all at first and that’s okay."

What I wish I knew about exams...

"They’re hard, but not impossible. They aren’t designed to trick you, nobody wants you to fail- you can do it."

"They feel stressful but term 3 lets you focus on them fully. If you have done your revision properly you will be fine. If you do poorly in exams that's okay, it happens. You should focus on what went wrong and improving for next time."

"They're normally not as bad as you think, and if they are bad then everyone else will also think so."

"They get less stressful as the years go on, and that helps as you are more composed."

"As a first year, the exams are far harder than anything I was used to up to this point in my education. Don't be phased by this. In my Analysis I exam in January there were times when I was completely puzzled by a question and didn't write anything down for several minutes. Then to my surprise, I achieved a far better result than I had anticipated, so don't stress in an exam if things aren't exactly as you'd expected or hoped and take a calm and measured approach to doing the best you can then and there."

What I wish I knew about looking after my physical & mental health...

"Join a society- it gives you a nice break from your workload and is the best way to meet new friends!"

"There is help for mental health, which is more accessible than you think, and there is no judgement from anyone. For physical health, a little bit of movement is better than none, appreciate the campus especially in Spring."

"If you feel overwhelmed, make sure you’ve 1) eaten well, 2) slept enough, and 3) exercised, Focus on those and if you’re still not feeling good, think about reaching out. The SU is absolutely fantastic."

"Doing exercise is really helpful, and socialising, it’s worth sacrificing an hour a day for it."

"Being at university is so much more than your studies. There are many things I took for granted including basic self-care when living at home that I was suddenly tasked with completing myself when I started university. This was a difficult adjustment to make, but most things soon became natural and easy after a shorter period of time than you'd expect. Also it is important to make time for social activities and personal recreation to keep your mind and body healthy: seeing friends regularly, getting as much exercise as you can, spending a bit of time outdoors each day, and having a healthy sleep schedule are my top recommendations for staying afloat and happy."