[chococya96]

Well, this is something that shouldn't be discussed in this forum but I'm just curious and want to hear opinions from you guys who have more experience than me (ofc, people who goes to uni that is )

As a first year undergraduate, I've just went to my first lectures today. And to me, it seems that I'm having trouble to follow what the lecturers is saying and at the same time, taking notes as well... maybe coz my English is not perfect but who knows -_-;;
At the end of the day, I felt like I was fucked so badly that I couldn't even walk... so much work in future etc... well I knew its gonna get A LOT harder than high school but not to this extreme....

Anyway, that's me right there but I hope I can cope with this and able to learn and get to finish assessments without any problems. So how do you guys cope with the lectures??
I mean, there are tutorial classes but I want to know specifically what you guys do in lectures.

P.S My timetable is so fucked up that I have 4 lectures in one day -_-;; (considering each lecture lasts 2~3 hours and I got like 1 hour break only in between) fuck me...
And also, why the hell does the textbooks cost hella expansive??

[chaotix37]

Well this is I had experience when I first enter my College Life, every beginning is difficult, you can get used to the pace of time. Depending on how many minutes of lecture per subject. Try to take down notes legibly, and if ever you don't have a break. Try to bring some snacks a little, just to keep you energize. Sometimes you get sleepy during the golden hours(afternoon). So that you can enjoy your college life. Hope you learn something from me.

[blooddust4]

Yea i just started uni today as well
my lectures were only introducing the subject with only limited info on the course to come
imho i believe that when your taking notes write down the important stuff
thoroughly read the course outline and base the notes around them anything remotely relevant
unfortunately for me i have to buy textbooks AND a lab coat LOL

[Beak]

For me I'm still in my first year. Haha, I had a very hard time adjusting, even till now. Maybe because I'm a lazy person. The correct way (or what the others do anyway) is to read the lecture notes before attending the lecture itself so you won't stone in class. Like I said, I'm lazy so =/ Note writing is up to your discretion actually so yea, like what chaotix said, write legibly.

For textbooks, you should approach your mentor or a lecturer and ask them which one is needed for the whole duration of your course because you don't really need so many (and their prices are like omg). Like for me, I have one textbook that they will be using for the entire duration and other books are just supplements so it's up to me if I want to get them or just photocopy the relevant ones. Sometimes, you can even find the softcopy version online if you look hard enough.

[WuxingBagua]

you have no idea.... undergrad was a joke with 14 hours per semister, maybe 35 hours per year max... my degree at the time was one of the hardest too and im not that smart.. i had maybe 3 classes that required study. I could see having a language barrier would be an issue, so thats understandable. Let me know when you take 100hours per year, then its a reason to complain. I wish life and school was easy as undergrad but compaired to high school sure its a jump, since high school you show up to get a B.

[GhostOfNobody]

you should have chose an arts degree only 8 hours a week

[ImBored]

i guess it depend on what course are you taking.. an example, im taking engineering so notes have little important but for practical experiment (god) ill cry if i miss a class on that

and about the textbooks, yup its damn expensive especially when my uni doesn't allow softcopy from the internet

[chaotix37]

Originally Posted by ImBored

i guess it depend on what course are you taking.. an example, im taking engineering so notes have little important but for practical experiment (god) ill cry if i miss a class on that

and about the textbooks, yup its damn expensive especially when my uni doesn't allow softcopy from the internet

Very well said. Also you needed your own laptop of course theres the internet if you cannot understand the lecture well, if your uni has a wifi access. This is a must for us now.

[WuxingBagua]

btw I never bought a book new. I bought them old but in good condition by using the ISBN number and buying online. I also checked them out in the library for free. Most of the books you will never use again. Some are required like botany books or biology to draw in to give to teacher,etc. Sure in general its a scam. Most teachers give you 60% of the material in class to know, even that may be a low percentage. Buy them only for really hard classes, used, and ask fellow classmates about the classes before you sign up to see what you need. Hope this helps. I spent 500 dollars for 4 years in undergrad max of supplies. I got paper out of the copier machines to use for free. Pencils and pens are cheap and people leave them around all the time. Also, universities sometimes have book sales of older published books which are bascially the same. The first edition and sixth are just reprinted and a few new things, so thats also is a scam. Remember, its about money and they want you to buy, buy, buy for no real reason.

[zanpaktou0101]

when i first started attending uni I didn't really notice a big difference. The way i did it was just paying attention in class and taking notes. sometimes the prof would not stop but they usually have all the notes online. So if you dont get all the notes in class you should be able to get them online.