Helpful hints for first-year students at Grenfell College, Memorial University

First-year university is made a lot easier for students at Memorial’s Grenfell campus thanks to the campus’ Learning Centre.

The centre’s tutoring and academic support services are free to all Grenfell students. The centre offers many helpful hints and tips for students entering university:

- Attend all lectures and take detailed notes. If you miss a class, copy the material covered from a classmate.
- Review the materials covered after every lecture. Unlike high school, new material is covered almost every day in university courses.
- Read the textbook. Buy the required book as soon as possible. If you have a course outline, try to read the material to be covered before you go to class.
- Do extra problems. It is not sufficient to merely do the assignment problems. Work out as many problems as you can that are in your textbook and get help to do the ones you can’t.
- Start working on assignments before they are due. If you’ve tried and can’t solve all of the problems, submit your assignment anyway – at least the professor will know you attempted the work.
- Look for help if you have difficulties. Don’t put off asking for help. Chances are if you can’t understand current material, you will not understand future material. Go to your professor, the Learning Centre, a peer tutor or other books – anywhere you can get help.
- Keep up to date. It is hard to cram for tests. If you don’t work systematically, it’s not likely that a night’s work before a test will help much. A good night’s sleep after regular thorough work is the best preparation for an exam.
- Work in groups. Organize a study group. Usually students working in small groups tend to do better in a course than those working alone.

For more information about the kinds of academic services offered by Grenfell College’s Learning Centre, visit www.swgc.mun.ca/lcentre.