Studying in Australia: The Study Abroad Student's Guide to Success

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3. Getting started:balancing study withleisureManaging yourcommitments: making astudy timetableTo manage all your commitments you need toplan a balanced weekly timetable that works foryou. To get the most from your study at UoM,your timetable should allow for all the regularactivities you do each week. So, as well asclasses, assignment work and study time, yourtimetable should include activities that you mightdo in a week; for example, a part time job, sports,hobbies, clubs or travel.Even if you don’t use a timetable, the practice ofcreating one is a way to raise awareness of yourtime commitments each week. Your timetable willidentify what needs to be done each week andhow much available time you have to completetasks. It also helps you develop a routine, which isessential for successful study.It will also help evaluate how efficiently you areusing your time. It should be tailored to yourneeds and learning preferences, and may take alittle time to adjust to. A useful timetable must alsobe flexible.A weekly schedule might look like this:• You can colour code sections, such as whenclasses are on and when assignments aredue. This is a good visual reminder about whatis happening in your week.• Include regular times for revision of lecture andtutorial material within 24 hours of first learningthe material. This will help embed the materialinto your long term memory.• The secret to success in managing theworkload is to do small but regular amountsof study in each of your subjects. Irregular orlast-minute study concentrates your effortsinto high stress periods and produces poorlong-term learning gains.• One hour is about the minimum ‘chunk’ ofstudy time before you need to take a break.You need to get a good ‘run’ at study so thatyou internalise information and achieve studygoals.• Aim to study at least 2 hours outside classeach day, and do some study in each subjecttwo to three times a week.Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday SaturdayAMDandenongstrip with hostfamilyUni classesAust Studies.11-1Work on Ecoassignment#1 draftStudy10-11GenderStudiesStudy 9-12.30Gender StudiesUni classesGender Studies11-1Study 9-11Aust Studies.PMAFTDandenongstrip with hostfamilyWork on Ecoassign#1 draftUni classesEco. 1-5Uni classesAust Studies.1-3Finalise Ecoassignment#1Uni classesEco. 1-2FreePMEVEFree Study 7-9Aust Studies.Study 7-9EcoWork on Ecoassignment#1 draftTennis 7.30*Eco assignment#1 due5pm todaySimon’sparty!14 http://services.unimelb.edu.au/academicskills
In America, we have much longercontact hours. There’s morelecture format and more tutorialcontact hours. And I think theprofessors don’t anticipate thatyou’re gonna spend as muchtime in the library as you wouldhere.Scott, USA• Consider your personal preferences forstudying. Allocate study into times when youare most productive. e.g. schedule difficultthinking tasks at your strongest time – whethermorning, afternoon, or evening – and do lessdifficult tasks, such as photocopying, whenyou feel less alert.• Use active learning strategies to keep yourstudies interesting; ‘do’ something with thematerial you are studying, e.g. summariseit, explain it to someone. Include somecollaborative study tasks so you are notlocked away alone all day.Now you’ve completed your timetable – put itsomewhere prominent where you (and others ifyou are sharing accommodation) can see it as avisual reminder of your weekly commitments.You also need to think about managing your timeover the semester. This means getting organisedthroughout the early part of semester in order tocope with the busy weeks at the end of semesterwhen everything is due. A semester / year plannercan help with this. (Year planners are available atnewsagents.)Australian classes: howmuch study should I do?The amount of work required will vary dependingon your subjects. In Australia, most subjects willhave a major assessment (exam or assignment)towards the end of semester, with one or two otherminor assessments during the semester.Generally, for most of the semester, your studytime will consist mostly of reading and reviewingof lecture and tutorial material. As a general rule,approximately two hours study for each hour ofclasses is the minimum required.When assignments are due, expect to spendadditional time completing them. With fewercontact hours it may feel like there is plenty oftime to get the work done, but if you haven’t putin the regular study time earlier in the semester,then at the end you may be overwhelmed by studydemands.Consider your studyenvironmentPart of creating good study habits is making sureyou have a place to study where you can geta reasonable amount of work done. If you arefinding it hard to settle down to study, you mightneed to think about your study environment.There’s not as much pressure onyou to do work, it’s more up toyou whether you want to do it ornot. I suppose at home there’smore pressure, more deadlinesto meet. There’s not so muchemphasis on exams either, a lotof it’s essay work which leaves alot up to yourself. So, in that way,it makes you think more, whichis probably more of a challengethan at home.Richard, IrelandStudying in Australia: The Study Abroad Student’s Guide to Success15
Page 1 and 2: Study in AustraliaThe Study Abroad
Page 3 and 4: Studying in Australia:The Study Abr
Page 5 and 6: 1. Studying in Australia:what to ex
Page 7 and 8: Back home in all my classesyou’re
Page 9 and 10: The marking system was a bitdifficu
Page 11 and 12: Getting help and gettinginvolvedStu
Page 13 and 14: Attitudes to authority andrulesNoti
Page 15 and 16: A good place to meet Australian stu
Page 17: Succeeding in study in any situatio
Page 21 and 22: Motivation: how to stayenthusiastic
Page 23 and 24: 4. Tips to maximise yourstudy succe
Page 25 and 26: • To create a basis for your writ
Page 27 and 28: SpeakingThere are two main academic
Page 29 and 30: WritingIt is common for subject ass
Page 31 and 32: Research resourcesThere are many re
Page 33 and 34: Australian academic writingstyleThe
Page 35 and 36: Writing with support: using sources
Page 37 and 38: Exam preparation essentialsLike mos
Page 39 and 40: Using your memoryIt’s important t
Page 41: 6. Heading HomeWhen your exams and

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