Study Toolkit
Having solid study strategies in place from first year will aid progression and make assignment writing and exam revision easier throughout your university life. We have put together a toolkit with some resources that can help you to study effectively.
There is support available throughout the University to help you study more effectively. The key academic areas for study include:
Reading
Reading is a key skill, and you will find that you need to do a lot of reading at university. Reading texts and journal articles in your own subject will help you become familiar with the principles of your subject. Your course reading list is a good starting point. The Skills Hub have some helpful resources covering reading strategies, how to cope with your reading list, and other tips.
Note-taking
Many lecturers now make their PowerPoint slides available on Canvas for students, but they will present much more information during the lecture than is shown on the slides. They may also give very useful tips for assignments or exams; therefore, it is important to attend all your lectures and tutorials.
You can find tips for good note-taking on the Skills Hub.
Referencing
Referencing is an essential skill that all students need to develop - almost all pieces of academic coursework require referencing. The Skills Hub has guidance and workshops on citing and referencing.
EndNote allows you to collate, annotate and organise your references, create reference lists and add citations to your text. This is available on all University networked PCs and students are able to install one copy of the software on their own computer for personal use.
Cite Them Right Online is a user-friendly online resource which helps students reference correctly and understand how to avoid plagiarism.
Exam revision
To help you get the most out of the time you'll spend on revision, you need to develop 'active learning' techniques. For example, ask yourself questions about the subject, and explain information in different ways, such as by using mind maps or diagrams, or using cue cards.
There is more information available to help you to prepare for and sit exams on the Skills Hub.
Presentations
Most students will give oral presentations as part of their studies at university. For presentations, you need to research a topic, plan the content, structure and delivery, and then prepare a PowerPoint or visual support presentation of it.
There are some helpful tips on preparing and giving presentations on the Skills Hub.