Gen 105 - Student Survival Guide

Student Survival Guide

GEN/105

Student Survival Guide

Deciding to go back to school after being out of school for more than a decade to continue getting my education is a major step in my life that I am still adjusting. I have devised this guide to assist me throughout my journey.

Using Axia's Educational Resources

All schools have tools set up to assist their students throughout their academic careers. I am taking every opportunity I have available to take advantage of these tools. The student workshops and labs for just about every subject that the school is offering was very beneficial to me. I have already participated in eight workshops and have found more to coincide with my courses.

Through the university library I am finding things that have come in handy on every assignment. The Center for Writing Excellence has a section that helps me check for plagiarism on my papers and WritePoint checks the grammar of my papers before I turn them in. I have been provided with valuable material that I can download on to my computer for easy access. All of these resources are things that every student should become familiar with.

Upholding Academic Honesty

Upholding academic honesty basically means I will not cheat. This will be the key to my success as a student. All learning facilities need to know that their students are turning in their own work. Cheating to me, is a big waste of time, space, and money for all of the people involved (student, instructors, and the school). It does not make sense financially (especially) to take out all of the loans to attend school and learn nothing. When cheating, you learn nothing because you are not the one diving into the information and soaking up all of the knowledge.

To uphold academic honesty, I will:

* Turn in my own work.

* Never buy or use someone else's work.

* Never let someone else buy or use my work.

* Plan ahead and devote enough time to complete each assignment on time.

* Never cut and paste from other documents

* Always use in-text citations when necessary to avoid plagiarism.

* Always communicate with instructor for better understanding of assignments.

Setting and Achieving Goals

Setting goals is one thing, but achieving the goals you have set is a whole different matter. This is the key to everyone's success. Obtaining my Associate's Degree is my long-term educational goal and requires determination and consistent effort (2007). I have set numerous short-term goals to get me there. Giving myself a long-term deadline helps set the short-term goals needed to succeed.

Following the syllabus for each class gives me a weekly schedule that I can plan around. No one ever said that achieving my goals was going to be easy. Keeping a daily journal to schedule and keep track of all tasks gives me visual reminders of what I need to get done. If I should ever get backed up or off track, it is only minor a setback. Creating this schedule gives me a visual of how I will be able to get back on track. . No matter what, I know I cannot and will not give up.

Managing Time Wisely

Time management is defined as a set of principles, skills and tools that work together to help you get more value out of your time to improve the quality of your life, (2010). The ability to manage time wisely is the key to everyone's success and how I am going to make it to graduation.

My first step is to get a planner and start filling it in according to the syllabus. By inputting all of the test dates and due dates, it makes