5. Plagiarism

Before I started college I was unaware of the full meaning of plagiarism and just how serious an offence it can be. You never think that by copying and pasting something from the Internet would cause so much trouble. I was lucky in the sense that when I started college the first thing the lecturers thought us was how to reference properly but others aren't so lucky. To avoid being done for plagiarism its simple, make sure to reference the information in the right way and to let the reader of your work now where the information came from.

 The Harvard Referencing system shows you how to reference your material properly. This is the recommended way of referencing and is used by many students throughout Ireland. Every college in Ireland has some system set up so that each student can submit their work and they will then be given feed back on how much they have plagiarised, if the referencing has been done correctly they percentage will be quite low. If a student is found guilty of plagiarism he or she may be expelled from college. 

When I'm doing assignments I make sure to reference all the information and material I have used, it may take 5 to 10 mintues extra but its those 5-10 minutes that could keep you in college. It takes some time getting use to it. The below video show you just what plagiarism is. 

1.Effective Note Taking

 Note Taking  is the key to successful studying. There are many different techniques which can be used and each will differ when it comes to each person. I myself have stayed with the one method for the last few years and I think now that I'm in college for the next four years and the studying is going to get harder I need to have a method which works for me and helps me to do my best.

 While in lectures its sometimes hard to decided what you should be taking notes on and just how much to take down while listening at the same time, with the amount the lecture has to get through in a lecture it can be hard to do. My method at the moment involves taking down the main points in bullet format and adding keys words as I go along, recently I've begun using a mind map  depending on the subject or topic that I'm studying and also on how much information I have to learn. The different use of colours and images sometimes helps me to remember the information better.


Once you have your notes compiled its important that you keep them well organised, there is nothing worse then having notes for a certain subject and not having a clue where they are or what order they go in. Each person differs when it comes to taking notes and I think its important that each person finds the method that suits them best, as this will relieve stress that can be avoidable. 

9.Time Management

When I think of time management I think of all the things I could have done if I had been given more time. While in secondary school you could say that your day was in some way 'planned' out for you, you had class at certain times throughout the day, break and lunchtime at the same time every day all year round. This prepared you for the outside world as some would say. When it came to exams and projects while in school I would always leave things to the last minute and it never worked out to my advantage, but yet some people say you work better under stress...I'm yet to find out !

As you grow up and start college and things become some what more serious then in Leaving Cert you begin to realise how precious time is and that managing it has to be done in the proper way so that it will benefit myself and others. Recently I was given as essay to do for disability studies and me being me I left it to the last minute and had the positive attitude that I would get it done...little did I know how much research let alone the writing it up that had to be done, there was a few all-nighters pulled that weekend and I learnt my lesson. 

At the end of the day there is only 24 hours in a day and its how we use them that counts, subtract your recommended 8 hours sleep each night and your left with 16 hours and you will be amazed how fast time goes. 

The video below shows you the effect of bad time management but in a funny humerus way :) 

10.Effective Revision/Exam Techniques

 When you put the words 'revision' and 'exams' together in the same sentence it sounds like a nightmare but with the right revision, exam techniques and timetable it can work out to your advantage. When doing the Leaving Cert I literally left the studying to the last minute and it came back to haunt me, I thought I had loads of time left and next minute it was the 9th of June and I was about to sit English paper 1. Doing pre-mocks and then mocks you think I would have learnt my lesson, but no I didn't. 


Revision is something that we cant escape if we want to do well in school or college, its one of those things in life that we have to do. If you have a positive attitude it will get you far. Revision Methods are there to help you get started and in some cases keep you going, setting out what you have to do and how you are going to do it. Leaving things to the last minute or 'cramming' as people call it doesn't work and will leave you feeling drained and stressed to the limits. 

4.Effective Presentations

When I hear the word 'presentation' my heart skips a beat, my hands start to get sweaty and I have the fear of god in me. I never know what the major problem is with doing a presentation, I think its the fear of standing in front of people who you may or may not know and talking about a subject that may be of no interest to them, the terror that flows over you when their eyes are watching your every move and just waiting for you to make a mistake. As the day gets closer the nerves start to kick in and you see everyone else getting so worked up about it, I wonder sometimes are nerves contageous!! 


Research shows that people learn more from visual means of communication then any other, but yet its the one type of communication that we all hate presenting. I had the support of my whole group when doing my presentation and I believe that helps you alot, the sense of achievement when I was finished was great, I was almost proud of myself for getting up in front of a large group. The video which can be seen at the end of this paragraphy may be on the topic of marketing but it shows how the difference in two presentations and how effective the second one can be.