09-05-2012
I completed an exam today that marked the last of all the work for year two of my HND. All being well I'll have a diploma in a couple months and I'll be more than half way to my degree.
I didn't do particularly well this term. By that I mean that I'm pretty confident that I passed but I don't like having less than distinctions and I'm not sure that I got many, if any, this term. I put it down to poor prioritising. I got so stressed and wrapped up in my project that I let it consume all my energy, thus everything else suffered.
Still, I did very well first term, and I had couple of curve balls thrown at me in the second so I'm still pretty pleased with my over all performance.
Things I learned.
Each subject gets equal time until they're completed.
Learn the academic report structure and get used to using it. Introduction, Implementation, Critical Evaluation each having a conclusion. Most of my assignments had some sort of writing element to them and nearly all of them followed that format. Get used to it, learn to like it, because it's everything.
I've definitely picked the right award. I had a class this year that I hated with my very soul and I found it impossible to put any effort into my work. I suspected this was going to be a problem when I decided to go to University and chose my course accordingly, and it looks like I was right.
Consider applying the chosen methodology of your FYP to all of your work. I found this to be a great way to keep everything moving.
Study groups are very helpful, even if you listen more than your contribute, just getting together and reviewing out loud is very useful.
Always read your assignments over and over. I wasted a lot of time on inconsequential or otherwise incorrect aspects of the assignments because I hadn't read the assignment document correctly... or at all.
Conclusion.
So, pending my results I now move on to top-up, which means I become a real boy and move in with all the degree students. Four terms down, three to go.
