My university

My university

The University Life: Studying for a Degree The progression from secondary to tertiary education represents probably the most important and certainly the largest-scale adjustment – in terms of learning and lifestyle – individuals will experience in their scholarly lives. For the three or more years' degree duration, one is (in most cases) now dedicated to a single discipline of enquiry; a course of study that is therefore far deeper than it is broad. What this highly specialised mode of study equates to is a fairly profound transition in learning approaches; the foremost component in this is a sizeable leap in independence. Undergraduates are expected to exercise far more responsibility in structuring and maintaining their own study efforts. Put simply, degree students, being adults, are largely treated as such. Hence university study does not involve the same highly regimented, punitive and paternalistic dimensions that are found in secondary education. Lecturers are not likely to take you to task if you miss a seminar or lecture (if they notice your absence at all). These commitments are yours to honour or neglect and the gains or losses are similarly your own; it is up to you. The price of autonomy is discipline and discipline is born of will power: which you will definitely need to cultivate in good measure. You need to be self-motivated, ordering your life so to accommodate regular study and get the best results from it; in other words, learning how to be a scholar. The academic life is, after all a life.