I’m telling you all this because research is a great opportunity, and I’ve learned so much from my experiences. Plus adding a research project to your resume instantly makes you stand out from the sea of applicants for future job opportunities and for applying into your dream graduate program. So let’s get started into this guide…

Tip #1: Get started early on

If you know that you’re interested in research early on, then go ahead and get started right away! The earlier the better because doing a research project takes time to finish. But if you aren’t quite sure of what you want to do, it’s always okay to take a semester off and see where your heart takes you. It’s a lot easier to jump on a project in the middle than to back out of one if you hate the experience.  

Tip #2: Reach out to professors and advisors for research opportunities

The easiest way to get started on a research project in college is to simply ask your professors and advisors for any leads on potential opportunities that you could join in on. A lot of professors, at least mine did, have a laundry list of potential research ideas that they want to start, but just don’t have the time to right now. Those are great opportunities to spearhead a project from the beginning to end.

Or you can also jump in on a project that has already begun. Sometimes students graduate before a research project is completely finished and incoming students will jump on it to finish it off. Those are great opportunities as well, especially if you’re starting late in your college career. Regardless of where you start, you’ll get invaluable experience that you can’t get anywhere else.

Tip #3: Don’t be afraid to make your own opportunities

Do you have a great idea for a research project? Pitch it to an expert at your college! There is no right or wrong answer for potential research questions so take a chance and see where your ideas take you. You may end up finding a mentor in your journey that’ll help guide your ideas into something else (aka something greater!).

You may even have a great idea for a project after you started working on a different project. Speak to your professor or leader on the project and see if you can dive more into your idea for the remaining of the semester.  

Tip #4: Pick a topic that you think you may enjoy or have an interest in

Research projects take a lot of time (we’re talking years), energy, and effort to complete. They are not for the weak at heart, but at the end of it all, it’s all so worth it. With the numerous amounts of professors on campus, you’re sure to find a topic that you find interesting or have a passion for. Even if you found a project that you might be interested in, but you know nothing about the topic, don’t let that stop you from jumping on board.

Tip #5: Have a goal and timeline in mind

When starting a research project, you’ll want to have a goal and timeline in mind about how long you want the project to last and what you want to get out of the project. Do you want to present your research at a national conference and publish your manuscript into a medical journal? Or do you want to discover a potential new drug or pharmabiotic that you can attempt to take to market? There’s no right or wrong answer to the goals that you set but go ahead and set them ahead of time. So whenever the going gets tough and you’re exhausted, you’ll remember your goals.

Pro-tip: It’s a lot easier to stay on track to reach your goals if you have a timeline of when you want to be complete your research project. I recommend setting up realistic deadlines for each section of the project from data collection to writing the manuscript.

Tip #6: Partner or no partner?

A big question that you’ll want to ask yourself before joining a research project is rather or not you want to have a partner on the project or not. Sometimes professors will post about opportunities on the university website but will state that they are looking for 2 or 3 students to spearhead the project. Having a partner isn’t always a bad thing though because typically if the professor is looking for multiple students it means that it’s a larger study that requires more hands-on deck. You can easily split the workload multiple ways.

Or if you want to be the only student on the project, then you can take on a project solo. Just remember that you won’t have back-up if you have a busy month in school or other issues arise later on.

Tip #7: Understand your why

Like I mentioned earlier, a research project is no small feat and requires a lot of time on your end. Before jumping onto a project, sit down with yourself and write down why you want to get involved in a research project in college. Is it to make your resume stand out for graduate school (like pharmacy or medical school)? Or do you enjoy working in a lab and want to gain more experience in that area? Make sure you have a good reason for joining a research project before you sign up for one. Otherwise you can be signing up for something that you later hate.

You may also like: How to Gain Pharmacy Experience as a Freshmen in College, 7 Ways to Build Your Resume with No Experience, and How to Manage Your Credit in College and After Graduation 

The post A Student’s Guide to Getting Involved in Research appeared first on Uniquely Mickie.

Mistake #1: Procrastinating until the last minute

If you’re the student that waits until the night before an exam to finally study, then you’re making one of the number 1  study mistakes that college students make worldwide! Procrastination is the thief of joy, productivity, and sleep. I promise you’re going to be better off if you put your phone away and start studying immediately.

Instead of waiting the night before to study or to complete a big project, break down your work into smaller bite sizes pieces that are easier to handle. For an example if you have a big exam coming up in a few weeks, study a little bit of the material every day after class for 30 minutes to an hour a day. This way you can stay focus long enough to learn the material and your brain gets the chance to review the material every day, which is great for long term memory.

Mistake #2: Studying with people who distract you

You cannot study with people who are going to distract you the entire time…unless you don’t plan on getting any work done. When putting together a study group, you want to make sure that the people in the group are going to be actively studying and helping one another.

This is the time to get help on a topic that you’re having difficulty in and formulate practice questions that can help you remember the material. I personality would limit your study group to three or four people. Any more than that can cause an imbalance and make for more of a hangout scene versus a study scene. 

Mistake #3: Not learning how you study best

A lot of college students will simply re-read the class notes over and over again, hoping that something will stick in their brains. Let me tell you that re-reading your notes is passive learning and it’s not the most effective way to learn for an exam. This is why it is so important for you to learn how you study best and avoid this common study mistake. 

Everyone is so different in terms of how our brains operate and store information. Some people have to watch Youtube videos while others have to do things for themselves. So what does that mean for you as a college student looking to improve their studying? You have to try different study techniques out and see what works for you. I really enjoy making my own exams and creating color-coded study guides, which has helped me throughout pharmacy school.

Mistake #4: Studying in chronological order instead of in priority order

Just because your psychology exam comes before your organic chemistry exam, doesn’t mean that you have to study for each exam in that order. I’ve noticed that a lot of students study in the order that their exams are in, which is a big mistake! When you have a bunch of exams at the same (like midterms or finals), you want to spend the most time studying in the classes that are more difficult for you, not in the ones that are easy. This is where you have to learn how to prioritize your study and manage your time appropriately.

Mistake #5: Not preparing for the unexpected

Every time there’s a bunch of exams coming up at once (yep, I’m talking about midterms and finals), there’s always something that goes wrong and that is unexpected. Either you get a horrible cold or spill coffee all over your laptop. Something is bound to happen during this time period because you’re already stressed out and on edge. Make sure to do your best to prepare for the unexpected. Back up your laptop to online source or external hard drive (this is the one that I swear by!) to make sure you don’t lose all of your notes for the entire semester. It’s happened before and it definitely sucks!

Mistake #6: Refusing to ask for help before it’s too late

Don’t be the student that rushes to their professor’s office begging for a curve after you failed the class. Instead of waiting until it’s too late (aka after you failed the class), ask your professor for help whenever you’re not understanding throughout the semester. Your professors are here to help, and they want you to exceed in their class.

I promise, they aren’t scary once you get to chatting with them. By asking questions to your teacher, it’ll help you learn and understand the material faster than you could on your own. And don’t forget about your TAs (or teacher assistants)! They are also a great resource to use if your teacher is hard to reach or has weird office hours.

Mistake #7: Not quizzing themselves on the material 

If you’re aren’t quizzing yourself in a similar fashion as your exam, then you’re missing out on an easy and simple study hack. For an example if you know you have to write an essay or draw out diagrams for your exam, then re-reading your class notes isn’t really going to help you prepare for your exam. Instead practice answering some essay questions or practice drawing out the different diagrams from memory.

By practicing and studying in this way, you’re going to reinforce the material that you studied and prepare yourself for the type of exam you’ll be taking. This little tip will also identify where you have gaps in your memory, which makes it really easy to go back and study the areas where you need the most help in. Another great way for you to quiz yourself is by using the website and app called Quizlet. You can easily make your own quizzes and flashcards online to help you study.

Mistake #8: Basing your preparation on a number

You’ve probably heard students say that they need to get X percent to pass the class or to maintain a certain grade level. Honestly assigning a number to your success can actually make you feel more stressed out and disheveled than before. Because when you don’t reach that specific number, you feel depressed and anxious about the results, when it’s probably not that big of a deal.

Now I’m not saying to not worry about your grades and test scores, but just remember that that’s not everything. You have homework assignments, presentations, and essays that can also be a part of your overall grade. Instead of worrying about achieving a certain grade score, focus more on understanding the material and doing your best on every assignment or exam that counts. At the end of the day, you’ll feel more relaxed if you just study every single day and do the best that you can.

Mistake #9: Not having a game plan!

It’s so easy to just open up your textbook or notes and start readying them word for word. But it’s not going to be as helpful as you may think. You have to go into your study session with a game plan and an active mindset. Before you sit down to study, write out your game plan and figure out what you’re going to study, how you’re going to study the material, and the time commitment you’re going to need to complete the plan. Once you know what you’re aiming for, it’s going to be a lot easier to sit down and actually have a productive study session.

Mistake #10: Forgetting to take a breather

When you’re in college, it’s super easy to just go, go, go and burn yourself out with all of the stress that comes with being a college student. But when it comes time for midterms and final exams, you have to learn how to manage your time appropriately and allow yourself a break to do something that you enjoy. It can be as simple as watching your favorite show on Netflix to going on an adventure in your city plus lots of sleep! You’re going to do so much better on your projects and exams when you’re feeling relaxed.

What is one thing that you struggle with when it comes to studying?

The post 10 Common Study Mistakes and How to Fix Them appeared first on Uniquely Mickie.

Being in pharmacy school and in school for 6 years, I’ve been through quite a few semesters in college. Mid-semester burnout can hit you like a brick if you don’t catch it early. In today’s post, I’m sharing 10 tricks to help you avoid mid-semester burnout before it can raise its horns.

Remember your purpose and your dreams

Every year (and right before a new semester), I write down my goals, my aspirations, and the reasons why I decided to be a pharmacist. Whenever I’m feeling overwhelmed or that I’m not good enough, I remind myself what my purpose is and that there’s a higher reason that I’m in this position to begin with.  I highly recommend that you do the same, which means take a few minutes to think about what your goals are and write them down somewhere where you’ll constantly be reminded of them. Once you see your goals and vision on paper (or screen), I’m sure you feel a lot better about why you’re working so hard in school.  

Take a breather and have a fun day out

Sometimes you just need to get off campus and have a fun day out somewhere. If you don’t have a car in college, no worries. A lot of colleges have a shuttle system to take students to the most popular destinations around the city. Or hop on the local bus or train system to go to a new area that you’ve never explored. Want to make it into a weekend trip? Do it! Book a flight to a cute destination or take a road trip to a nearby city with your friends. Once you focus on yourself and your well-being, I promise you’ll start feeling better and more relaxed afterwards.  

Prioritize your schedule

At the beginning of the semester, you might’ve fallen into the trap of signing up for too many commitments that you can no longer handle. This is okay, and it’s a learning situation that I, myself, had to learn a number of times. Before mid-semester burnout hits you hard, set your schedule and make changes to it over time. If something is causing you too much stress (say an organization or a relationship), you are absolutely allowed to cut out those things from your life. Life is supposed to be fun and joyful so if it doesn’t bring purpose or joy to your life, then say sayonara in the last remaining months of the semester.

Exercise, exercise, and exercise

I’m definitely not the person (at least right now) that enjoys working out, but whenever I do, I always feel better mentally and physically. Exercising produces endorphins, a chemical that our body produces to relieve stress and elevate our mood after a workout. When you’re first starting out, exercise can definitely feel like more work than fun. But overtime, it’ll eventually become fun and something that you actually enjoy. The one thing that keeps me motivated to work out on a regular basis is trying out different types of work out classes. There is so many to choose from that you’re sure to find something that you enjoy, from aerobic yoga to spin.

Start a new hobby and make time for it

Remember when I mentioned earlier about trying out new workout classes? Yep, the same principle applies. College is supposed to fun, exciting, and all about learning about yourself as a person. When you’re feeling stressed out or overwhelmed from classes, take a set back and try something new. It can be something that you used to do back in the day or something that you’ve always wanted to do but never did. This year I really want to dive more into photography and potentially get back into horse backing riding. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to take a horseback riding class in college, and it was a lot of fun.  

Go to your professor’s office hours

Obviously, a lot of stress is going to come from your classes and your workload. Instead of worrying at home, seek out your professor in his or her’s office hours. Your teachers are there to help you through the material so don’t be afraid to seek them out and ask questions. Don’t forget that they love what they do and appreciate when students make the extra effort to learn the material.

I remember when I was taking my first math class in college. I was in my teacher’s office probably once or twice a week asking questions and having her walk me through each problem step-by-step. The time that I spent with her was well-spent, and I learned so much. I had the same experiences in pharmacy school for which I am so thankful for.

Clean up your space

There is something special and calming about having a clean home. It’s so easy to let your room become messy and dirty when you’re stressed out, and for me, a dirty home makes me even more stressed out. Try to make it a habit to clean up your space, whether that be washing your dishes, washing your bed set, or picking up clothes off the floor, on a regular basis. The easiest way to stay on top of cleaning is to make a cleaning schedule and to do a little bit every day. This way your home stays clean, and it never gets super overwhelming.

Set a sleep schedule (and stick to it!)

If you want to avoid mid-semester burnout, then you’ll want to make sure you’re getting plenty of sleep on a regular basis. Overnighters and long work nights are the thieves of joy and prosperity. When you stay up all night, it feels like you’re getting a lot done and that you are being productive, but you’re not. Your brain works less effectively when its tired and overworked. Instead of pulling an all-nighter, plan your schedule to allow you a full night’s rest. You’ll feel a lot better and more energized after you slept a solid 7-8 hours.

Have a Girls Night In

Chances are that all are of your friends are feeling the same way and are experiencing the symptoms of mid-semester burnout. Reach out to them and try to get everyone together for the night. It’s super easy to set one up and cheap for the wallet. Order takeout, get together some of your favorite things, and let the night waste away. My favorite nights in college have been playing board games or watching movies with my friends. But honestly spend time, in general, with the people that you love and appreciate. It’ll make you feel 1000x better.

Go get pampered

There’s nothing better than getting a facial or massage when you’re feeling overwhelmed with life and school. If money is tight right now, look on Groupon for some great discounts on spa packages in your area. I can typically find a 60-minute massage for under $50, and it’s truly worth every penny. After a facial or massage, I feel so relaxed and in-sync that I’m ready to take on the world. Make sure to read the reviews and go to a location that has good feedback from other customers. You don’t want to be left with a crooked back or an unruly kink.

Mid-semester burnout is a real experience for a lot of college students. Don’t be afraid to take a step back and do a little mental check in. Even if you can only spare 15 minutes, relax and do something that you enjoy to re-center your mind. I know you’ll kill the rest of semester! Good luck!

The post 10 Tricks to Avoid Mid Semester Burnout appeared first on Uniquely Mickie.