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Preparing to study

Studying at university level can be an exciting challenge and mastering key organisation skills can make a positive difference to your academic success.

Academic transitions

Whether you are pre-arrival, a newly enrolled student, transitioning between years of study, or returning to learning after a break, navigating the different stages of university life can feel overwhelming when you’re not sure what to expect. In the following information we demystify some of the key skills and expectations you may encounter on your academic journey to help make your academic transitions as smooth as possible.

Starting to study at university

However you arrive at Edge Hill, be that direct from a more traditional further education (FE) route, via a vocational qualification or having experienced a professional career, you’ll quickly discover that university involves more self-directed study and independence than other forms of education.

That’s why developing your organisation skills and strategies can really help you maximise your time, keep on top of your workload and contribute to managing a healthy and happy study-life-balance. Your first year of study is also a great opportunity to learn new foundational academic skills that you will continually develop throughout your studies.

We asked one of your Student Advisors, Tom, what some of the key things were that helped him when starting at university:

  • Find out what support is available
  • Be proactive in accessing support and asking for help
  • Engage with your tutors and wider learning community
  • Build your foundational skills and develop further from feedback
Place holder image to indicate a video will be coming soon. On the image is a still of Student Advisor Tom with the text 'coming soon' and a video play icon.

Transitioning between years of study

It’s okay if your academic skills are a bit rusty, no one is expecting you to arrive a university with all the skills you need and there will be plenty of opportunities for you to continually learn and develop as you progress through each year of study.

And UniSkills are here to help too! We’ve included some useful links in the drop-down boxes below and you can access all our resources and support by exploring our wider pages to learn more about foundational skills such as finding academic informationacademic reading and writing and referencing. You can also explore our Getting Started With UniSkills support which covers the essential academic skills you will use at university level study.

Transitioning into Level 5
Transitioning into Level 6
Transitioning into Level 7
Returning to learning

Managing your time

Time management is a crucial organisation skill and developing your time management strategies can help you balance academic demands, reduce stress and enhance productivity. The first step to managing your time better is to work out how you currently spend your time and identify any gaps you could use more productively. Our Evaluating Your Use of Time Guide can help you check where your time goes. Could you use it more efficiently? What changes could you make?

Embrace the tips and resources below to take control of your time and make the most of your university experience.

Time management templates and guides
Pomodoro technique
Time management apps
Staying motivated

Getting the most out of your lectures

What you do before and after your lectures is just as important as attending and actively engaging. Below are some tips for making the most of lectures.

Before your lectures
During your lecture
After your lectures

Notetaking

Notetaking isn’t just for lectures. It’s a useful skill you can develop with practice and use in seminars, tutorials, labs and other learning environments – including your independent study. Finding the notetaking strategy that’s right for you can take time and trial and error because we all learn differently.

Effective notetaking is an important part of learning at university for lots of reasons, including:

  • Helping you make sense of new information
  • Capturing your reflections and those of your peers
  • Highlighting questions and areas to clarify
  • Helping you recall information
  • Identifying connections between topics
  • Summarising key themes, topics and theories
Cornell method
Mind mapping
Critical notetaking
Notetaking apps

Academic resilience

Nurturing your academic resilience can help you face challenges or setbacks you encounter during your time at university. From receiving a disappointing mark to feeling out of place in your seminars, recognising that you have the potential to succeed despite the adversity you face is paramount. With research suggesting a positive correlation between academic resilience and attainment (Cassidy, 2016), you may find it helpful to identify whether you have what psychologist Carol Dweck (2012) refers to as a ‘growth’ or ‘fixed’ mindset.

If you would like to know more about developing your academic resilience you can work through our interactive Grow Your Academic Resilience Toolkit or book a place on one of our UniSkills Workshops.

Launch the Grow Your Academic Resilience Toolkit

Group work

Working in a group with your peers can be a really rewarding activity to undertake at university. Working collaboratively with others on a shared project can help you develop skills such as communication, time management, critical thinking and decision-making. In the following information we have pulled together some key considerations and top tips to help you get started and work successfully in a group.

Getting started with group work
Group work considerations
Spaces for group work
Tips for successful group work
Group work and academic integrity