As the academic year kicks off again, you’ve probably forgotten about all those library camp-outs, Red Bull overdoses and excessive highlighting sessions that summed up the summer exam period. With four months of freedom just gone, who could blame you? But whether you’re still recovering from life as a fresher, or are now entering that scary final year, now is the best time to be looking back on your time at university and evaluating your progress. You’re here for a reason after all. Whilst it may seem like a waste of brain energy, being able to reflect on yourself, your achievements and your disappointments is seen as a highly respected skill amongst employers, and will come up time and time again in interviews. Also, it takes almost no time at all – I promise you’ll be back to your crazy refresher-ing before you know it!
-
The Good
Let’s start on a positive note. What did you achieve last year? This could be anything – university is not just academic. From making it onto the football team, finally getting that first class in your coursework, even finally having the guts to say ‘hi’ to that cute guy in your seminar; think about something you’ve done/said/been that has been different from the year before. If you’ve gained more confidence in speaking in front of other people, or even simply made more of a conscious effort to call your mum, you have made progress. It might be in the smallest way, but it is always good to know you are moving forwards… and you can start this new year knowing you’re in a slightly better place than last year.
-
The Not-So Good
Sadly, there are always the things that didn’t go so well. Getting rejected after an interview, handing in coursework late, having a roommate who doesn’t know what air freshener is – there are probably areas of life where you were disappointed last year. Identifying these, however, gives you the power to avoid them happening again. If you know where that interview messed up, practice, practice, practice. Start this year’s coursework NOW if you have to (just kidding…). Either confront that roommate, or find new people to live with. Just do your best to go into this year addressing those slip-ups that could have been avoided.
-
The Year as a Whole
Compared to this time last year, are you a better person? Are you happier now? Without getting too philosophical and deep, try and envision your position 12 months ago. Were you carefree? Excited? Naïve? Shy? And has that changed at all? Again, not trying to zap too much of your brain power, but viewing your progression as more of a long-term journey can really help you to decide the direction you take in life. If you feel better than last year, you’re clearly doing something right. If you feel stuck, or maybe feel you’re going a bit backwards, now is the best time to have acknowledged it.
-
Looking Forward
No-one is saying you have to go crazy about your future right now. But if you’ve just reflected on your year, naturally you would have touched on areas that need changing or improving. You would also have noticed things that are best kept the same. Whatever those things are – academia, confidence, your dress sense – the fact that you have addressed them means you can go into this year with a head-start. You’ll know what you need to do, and for the scatter-brained, life-questioning humans that we are (aka STUDENTS), that’s half the battle.
Congrats on getting through last year. Here’s to an even better one this time around!