What Works Best For You?

I’m on several grad school blogs and one brought my attention to a recent article on study habits and the shift in findings from ongoing research. The article talks about how evidence is suggesting that changing your study environment and studying more than one thing during an individual sitting might better establish the neural networks that help you retain the information that you are learning. I find this interesting from the perspective of working with college level students and my own kids…Milah just took her first test in first grade! I remember being in undergrad and grad school and having different spots in the library or coffee shops that I would frequent depending upon my mood and/or the material I had at hand. Hard core stuff definitely required the sixth floor stacks with an enclosed desk, but next to a window (you guys know how I am about atmosphere!) so that I could have some natural light, and I could pause to look out over the really cool garden in front of the library. I think you’ve heard me say how much I loved, loved, loved Ohio University’s beautiful and historic campus!

So, what works well for you? How do you find that you study best? Oh, the article also stressed the benefits of studying things “a little at a time” instead of cramming the night before – but, of course!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/07/health/views/07mind.html

Check out the article and share your thoughts and experiences!

Graduate School Mindset

It's no secret that one of the best parts of my job is working with our students, but of course. I love keeping in touch with alumni and I love getting emails, calls, texts, etc. and hearing about their latest adventures and accomplishments. So, besides getting a text message from Sam with a photo attached - a photo of her new "grad student id card" at the University of Illinois....I've been going back and forth with Sam on the email about the acclimation process and her experience so far. She actually just found out that besides her fellowship, she is going to get paid an additional stipend for her research assistantship - how cool is that? So how is Sam doing? So far she loves it. This is what she wrote to me and I think it speaks volumes on why pursuing your Ph.D. is a rewarding thing to do.

"The workload. It's a lot A LOT of reading, but I don't feel overwhelmed. I just got out of one of my classes and I really learned a lot in that class just in the last 3 hours! So I am loving this. I also noticed a shift in my everyday thinking. I don't leave class and talk about random shit, I leave class and talk to my friends about the information we learned. We have more in-depth discussions and I think that really contributes to my breadth of knowledge about everything. It's just a totally
different academic atmosphere, but I like it."

--Sam, McNair '09 (you guys met her this summer)

Can't wait to hear more about Sam's adventures in her Ph.D. program at Illinois! And, I can't wait to hear about each of yours! :-)

"It's been a long time comin'