Category Archives: Student Success

Opportunities and advice for making the most of your time at UC, as well as stories featuring students who are excelling in their field.

Community notice, Our Community, Postgraduate study, Student life, Student Success, Study@UC

Ashleigh’s advice

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Ashleigh Johns (PhD student)

Digital assistance for your studies

Read&Write has been an excellent addition to my studies. It offers more than 18 study support features, all on a customizable floating toolbar. One of my favorites is the highlighter feature. I use it while reading course material to mark important points. At the click of a button, R&W can pull out the highlighted text portions and paste them into a Word document within a few seconds. I find this feature very helpful when there’s a lot I’d like to note down from an article, textbook, or other documents that I am reading. I also find the dictionary tool quite handy. It helps me check out the meaning of new or complex words. And if I want to rest my eyes, I can have R&W read aloud the text on my screen.

R&W has a translator tool too that can be very useful to international students.

The Assistive Technology Team runs fantastic training sessions to help students access the benefits of Read&Write and other such learning support applications.

I highly recommend R&W as an excellent learning support application.

Go ahead and enroll in an information session right now! You will be amazed to see what you can achieve with R&W!

Student Success, Study@UC, Wellbeing

Worried about failing? Here’s how to face the fear

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We’ve all been there. An essay that didn’t live up to expectations, a relationship that ended, a job interview that didn’t go as planned, or a promise we couldn’t keep. Even with our best efforts, sometimes failure just happens.

If you found you didn’t get the exam results you wanted, here are three strategies to help turn things around:

Deal with the feels

  • Be kind to yourself
  • Give yourself some time out
  • Focus on self-comfort

Evaluate the situation

  • Do some detective work to find out what went wrong
  • Determine what you had control over
  • Talk to a classmate
  • Talk to course staff

Make a plan of action

  • Think about positive next steps to help improve your results – for example ask questions in classes and tutorials
  • Talk with support staff for their advice
  • Reframe how you think about failing

In short, remember that failure can be a stepping stone to success when it’s used well. Be kind to yourself, learn from your experiences, and do the things that help move yourself closer towards your goals.

If you would like to read more on the topic of fear of failure, check out the Wellbeing Support Page.

And as always, if you would like to talk to someone about this topic or anything else contact the teams below:

Wishing you all the best on your journey, UC Wellbeing team

Health and Wellbeing, Student Success, Study@UC, Wellbeing

Feeling Overwhelmed?

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As deadlines for assignments and exams approach, it’s natural to feel stressed and overwhelmed. However, taking a break to prioritise your wellbeing is crucial for your success. By doing so, you’ll increase your chances of acing those assessments!

To prepare for exams effectively, it’s essential to take regular breaks and schedule rewards and downtime during your study day. Taking a walk outside or talking to a friend for 10 minutes every hour can refresh your mind and leave you feeling relaxed for your next study session.

Additionally, managing your stress and nerves by keeping things in perspective is key. Remember that your exam success does not define you as a person. Preparing in an organised manner and avoiding procrastination can decrease nerves and increase confidence levels when stepping into an exam. Adopting good habits such as consuming brain food and staying hydrated will also improve your performance and engagement levels.

There are plenty of ways to take care of yourself, whether it’s by exercising, connecting with friends and family, or simply taking deep breaths.

Visit the Support and Wellbeing page for a range of info on anxiety, stress, study skills and fear of failure.

Need to talk? Reach out to our support services on campus.