Hey everyone! My name is Tahira and I’m a Co-Editor for the AEO to Ivey Blog, alongside Jessie. I’m excited to share all the great work that the team and I have been working on. We are truly living in unprecedented times, and I hope that by taking a few minutes out of your busy day to read an article on our blog, you learn something new or gain a new perspective. With that being said, I wanted to share a couple of tips that I believe are important to making the most of your university experience – regardless if you are online or on campus.
Say Yes!
In university, it is incredibly easy to feel overwhelmed by everything changing at once. New classes and classmates, new extracurriculars, and an entirely new environment – especially since we are all adjusting to online school. It can be challenging to determine how to navigate these changes. My advice is to say yes! Taking risks is one of the best ways to learn, and you’ll never know if you like something unless you try it. Enroll in that class you’re super interested in (even if none of your friends took it), join a Zoom networking event to meet new people, sign up for a club that allows you to pursue a passion you don’t normally spend much time on.
University is a time for personal growth, and you’ll never regret saying yes to an opportunity that has the potential to change your experience. There are so many great opportunities at Western, and I recommend determining how you can personalize your university experience by saying yes to opportunities that will take you out of your comfort zone.
Active Learning Approach
With classes online, it can be easy for work to pile up and seem unbearable. Rest assured, it has happened to all of us at some point or another. Luckily, there are lots of ways that this can be avoided. The way that works best for me is taking an active learning approach. This involves reaching out to professors and TAs early, forming virtual study groups and being open to speaking up in class. Personally, this resulted in some risk-taking and stepping out of my comfort zone, but once I got the hang of it, I started retaining information much more easily. It is important to remember that your professors and classmates want you to succeed, and they are the best resource when it comes to learning new class material. When you take more of an active approach to your learning, it becomes much more manageable and enjoyable!
I look forward to working with the blog team to share more perspectives on our experiences! Feel free to reach out to me at talarakh@uwo.ca for any questions about my experience as an AEO student, my program (international relations), or anything blog-related. Cheers to a new school year!