music major studyblr

You and your roommate might not get along.

Just because you woke up early every day in high school doesn’t mean you will be able to in college.

Conversely, you might just realize you are a morning person in college. 

You should learn to examine your personal biases. Ask yourself why you have a certain opinion.

There are plenty of students who have taken 17, 18, 19 hour course loads and they have been successful; however, it may not be financially feasible. 

Searching for scholarships doesn’t stop when you get to college. Keep looking for them and applying for them. Create a separate email account to receive and correspond to scholarship emails. 

Don’t put off visiting your academic advisor. Mine absolutely saved me when I was going through the lowest point in my life.

Let your mom/dad/parental guardian (if applicable) make your bed on move-in day. 

Get involved, but only if you want to. Student organizations in college are much more time-consuming, so be certain that it is something you really want to do. 

Have fun. You don’t have to go out every single weekend. But go get coffee or study with a friend. Have some sort of interaction with others. 

Getting a job really eased my financial burdens and I made friends, and established references. Having money just feels good. 

Wash your face. Keep make up wipes close to your bed for nights when you are just too tired to go through an elaborate skin care routine. 

Communal showers suck, but we all have to endure them. I promise you will get used to it. But you gotta bathe, friend. 

Be honest with your support system. Many times, those closest to us would help us in a heartbeat, but they never knew we needed help in the first place.

Utilize services your tuition covers. These include, but are not limited to, tutoring, legal services, medical services, etc. 

Sit in the front row. Just do it. Seriously. You will be less inclined to get on your phone/not pay attention to lecture/discussion material if the material is two feet away from you. You can also see better on those days when you forget glasses, or run out of contacts. 

Your MWF life does not know your T/TR life. You can totally hit those clothes with some febreeze and wear them on heavy rotation.

Speaking of clothes, everyone washes clothes on Sundays. It’s a fact.

You really don’t need to bring all of your clothes, expensive jewelry, trophies from that time you did soccer in 2nd grade, etc. to your dorm. Just enough clothes to fit in your drawers/closet for all seasons, and a couple sentimental items to remind you of home.

Save the boxes you use to move into your dorm/apartment. You will need them come move out.

Live and die by the syllabi, but know that professors will change things up randomly. They will also announce things in class that are not on the syllabus at random. 

Do invest in some good plates and Tupperware.

Drink water. 

The freshman 15 is real and it is coming for you. But it’s okay. You’re still awesome. 

Parking in college is universally limited and unforgiving. Be mindful of this. 

Many retailers will have sales on microwaves and mini fridges when fall comes around. Invest in them. 

Storage containers are a must. 

Respect quiet hours. 

If you will be living on campus, and your campus is dry - RESPECT THAT. Seriously, it’s such a dumb mistake to make. I have friends who started out on probation because they decided to drink in their dorms their freshman year. 

Get a power strip. Or three.

There’s no dress code in college. So you can totally wear that crop top. But be mindful that those surrounding you are potential professional connections. A lot of college is networking. 

But, in all honesty, no one really cares what you are wearing. 

You are an adult now, so setting boundaries is necessary.

Don’t stay in that toxic relationship.

Keep in touch with your friends/family from back home. 

Do ask your professors questions in office hours, during class (if able to), or via email. 

Use protection.

Stand up for yourself, what you believe in, and others.

Get the number of at least one person in each class during syllabus week.

Expect to stay the entire 2-4 hours of your lab. 

Be respectful of your roommate’s space. 

Be respectful of other’s differing opinions in Blackboard discussions. 

Be a point whore. Do the extra credit. Do it. 

Remember that college is a new beginning. 

Realize that grades do not define your intelligence.

Realize that sometimes we fail classes, but it does not mean that we are not “smart enough.”

Know that college is not for everyone. 

It’s okay to take a couple semesters off to better yourself. I did, and I am so thankful that I made that decision.

Buy your textbooks and access codes and lab manuals as early as you can. 

Use a planner!!!!!! 

Mental health is just as important as physical health.

Hi everyone! I thought I would make this little list because I think my life would be a little more productive if I were reminded of these little things. This may not be very helpful to others or come off as random but I hope this helps. It’s my first time doing something like this so I hope it isn’t awful! 

Don’t put off…

-Showering & washing your hair I know sometimes when you’re just so exhausted and lazy and you have so much to do you just put off showering… go take a shower and wash up, it’ll be really worth it -Filling up your drink bottle  Personally, the closest water dispenser for me is like outside my dorm room in the common area, and sometimes I don’t want to go out! But! Seriously, don’t put off water ever, and bring a big jug, fill it up too -Cleaning up your work space I know you might want to continue tomorrow, but just take a quick minute to tidy everything up, close your books, straighten your items, you’ll feel much fresher starting work on a clean space. Also, clear your bin as often as you can. -Doing your assignments and revision Seriously, don’t putt of work until the last minute, that sucks. At least come up with a draft to work off of, and revise when you have time! Don’t keep putting it off! You can do this!  -Making a call/answering messages If you’re more introverted like me, calling people might just sound absolutely exhausting and tiring. But personally, I get kind of restless when I know I have a call to make, or a message to reply; so if you have someone important o call (lecturer, classmate, etc), get it out of the way. It’ll be fine. -Eating your meal (before it’s too late) Sometimes when I’m not too hungry yet, I put off eating or ordering food, but seriously, eat during mealtimes, or make sure you have food in your room. Once I got really hungry at 11 pm because I skipped dinner, and there weren’t exactly stores open, and I had no food, and no car, so I was just… really hungry. It’s not fun. Especially when you have a test and your stomach’s just growling. -Making your bed It really just helps you feel more productive and getting it done.  -Brushing your teeth Fresh mouth, fresh mind. It just really makes you feel a lot fresher -Morning routines and night routines If you don’t have one, establish one. When you wake up, getting all that done will make you feel like the day has started. For me, I change out of my PJs, do my makeup, draw the curtains. Some people work out, go for a jog, or have coffee. Wake up, turn on the lights, get it on! And at night it helps you sleep and get into your nighttime mood too!  -Starting something new It can be a new studying habit, a new diet, a new exercise, a new skill you want to learn; don’t put it off and say things like, “I’ll start next month!” Start it now! You can do it! This includes stopping old habits too! -Confrontation I know this can is kinda like different strokes for different folks, but what I mean is: if you have something that’s pent up inside you, like a disagreement with a friend or anyone, you should really just get it over with, talk to them about it, express your opinions honestly and respectfully. I feel like this gets stuff off your chest and if you’re like me, I hate leaving things unresolved. So. Yes. Take this however you will, but I just think you should confront someone you have a disagreement with before it gets too late, or just to give yourself a little more peace of mind. Take it from me, oftentimes, the worst case scenario is really just in your head and things go better than you would expect! 

FIND YOUR SUPPORT SYSTEM. What I mean by this is find a group of people that will catch you when you fall. Or a people. It really doesn’t matter how many there are or where they’re from. They can be your studio mates, professors you really click with, other people in your year, whatever. Hell, tumblr alone has roughly a million music majors. Just find people who will support you, because you will need it.

ALSO FIND PEOPLE WHO WILL BE HONEST WITH YOU. Hopefully, these two groups will overlap. It’s incredibly important to find people who won’t just tell you how great you are. You need people who can tell you what to work on, as well.

PLAY IN MASTER CLASSES. Jesus H. Christ, play in master classes. You will hate it. It will probably one of the most nerve-wracking experiences of your life. But if you can play in front of a large group of your peers (particularly the ones that play your instrument), you can play in front of anyone. Seriously. Trust me on this.

TAKE EVERY PERFORMANCE OPPROTUNITY YOU CAN. Literally the best way to get better at performing is to do it a lot. After you do it enough, you’ll figure out a system or a ritual or something to calm the nerves. Just remember- no one wants you to fail. Everyone in the audience wants you to do well. Nobody is out there just waiting for you to mess up. They are there to support you. They will love you even if you screw up. We’re musicians- it’s what we do.

GO TO CONCERTS. Go to master classes that aren’t necessarily for your instrument. Go to lectures. Learn things. That’s why you went to college.

ONE BAD PERFORMANCE DOES NOT DEFINE YOU. Neither does one bad practice session, or lesson, or jury. What matters is how you bounce back. You auditioned and got accepted into your major for a reason. You can do it. I promise.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, SLEEP. Drink water. Eat real people food. Take care of yourself. Do not be like me and go to rehearsals on the brink of death. Your health> just about anything. Take it from the girl who went to a rehearsal while her ears were full of fluid and ended up with a double ear infection that kept her out of classes for a week and a half.

TALK TO PEOPLE OUTSIDE OF YOUR STUDIO. For that matter, try to talk to people outside of the music department/school. Otherwise you’ll forget that there is life outside of the practice rooms. I understand social anxiety, so if talking to people in person is too difficult for you, try talking to people on tumblr or other social media sites.

LISTEN TO MUSIC OTHER THAN WHAT IS ASSIGNED TO YOU. Seriously. You will grow to hate JS Bach. Listen to music that makes you happy and reminds you why you loved music in the first place.

PRACTICE AURAL SKILLS. Every. Single. Fucking. Day. Again, do not be like me. Do not try to cram the night before the test. It does not work.

PRACTICE IS MORE THAN JUST PLAYING. Record yourself. Listen to professional recordings. Sing your part. Meditate on your part. RECORD YOURSELF. It’s amazing what you’ll hear.

MUSIC IS HARD. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise (which they will try to do, believe me). But you’re also in this field because you love it. Remember that.

YES, GEN EDS ARE STUPID. Yes, you have to take them anyway. Accept this and grumble about it to your friends.

DON’T BE A DICK. Seriously. You never know when you’ll run into these people again. The music world is very, very small. If you’re nasty to someone, it will probably end up biting you in the ass.

17.10.19

Can’t pay the full amount you owe on a bill? Pay as much as you can each month. Most places just wanna know you’re making a good faith effort. You can usually even call and ask for a smaller minimum monthly payment plan until you catch up, so that maybe you won’t be getting late fees added on to your balance. It’s worth calling to see. 

Third time you’ve had to reschedule that doctor’s appointment? Oh well. Your doc probably just wants to make sure you make it in to their office at all. Keep trying.

Half-assing is always better than no-assing folks. I know lots of us are anxiety-ridden perfectionists and it feels like if we can’t do everything exactly right on the first try we just shouldn’t bother. But that’s not true. 

Encourage Healthy Studying

Hey guys. I’m glad to be finally posting my “mental breakdown survival guide”. As you know I struggle a lot with mental health, and so I have been through a lot of breakdowns. So many that I actually dropped out of university after 3 weeks in 2016 and had to take the whole year off. Because of this, I’ve made it my mission to help others with mental health issues as much as I can, so you don’t have to go through what I’ve been through.

Anyway, here is my guide. I tried to keep it general, and actually useful. If you have any questions or additions please feel free to add them.

IG : anaisestudies

Dear Person Hiring for this Job,

I am writing to ask you to consider me for X position.  This is a paragraph about why I want to do X position in general.  It includes at least one personal detail and at least one job skill I consider a particular strength.  It argues that I am passionate about this career.  It is not long.

I have had the opportunity to gain experience in this job by - paragraph about my work or study experience.  It should go from most recent experience back.  Include some details about your responsibilities/achievements in your most recent or most important positions.  If you have mostly study experience, give more detail about what exactly you studied.  If you shadowed people, mention that.  If your work experience is largely unrelated, try to shoehorn some of it in (e.g. I gained experience working with people by).  You can supplement with relevant hobbies.  (But if you do have recent, relevant work experience, you should largely be detailing that.  Only embroider the other stuff if you need to flesh it out.)  This should be the longest paragraph.

I hope you will consider allowing me to do X thing at your company.  This is a few sentences about why I want to work at your company in particular and what I think I could bring.  Try to mention at least one detail from the company website, so they know you visited it.  This is a short paragraph that parallels the first one.

Thank you very much for your time and attention.

Sincerely,

1) Remember that the person reading this cover letter wants to know how you can contribute to the company. Not how excited you are about the position: it’s all about what they gain. Try framing the whole thing in that sense — “You would gain my X awesome skill that would help you Y with your mission.” “Here’s why I’m awesome and a great fit for making your company go better.”

2) At the end, ask for the interview. “I am available at PHONE NUMBER at your convenience. I look forward to speaking with you about this great opportunity soon.” Maybe even say you’ll be following up at a specific time and date. Ask for the job. People respond to that, and it’s a good way to fake confidence until you make it. Ask for the job.

study in shorter intervals and take breaks (ie, 40 minutes studying and 20 minutes break)

during your break don’t watch tv or surf the internet. get outside if you can and go for a walk. or at least listen to some instrumental music and walk around your hall. or meditate or do some art. anything that doesn’t require super directed attention. this allows your attention to be replenished. it’s like a muscle and you gotta give it time to rest. tv doesn’t allow for that.

relate the information to yourself and your life. creating visual images will improve your memory.

when studying, take notes by hand and put them in your own words. generating material yourself will encode the material better in your brain, and you’ll remember it better

don’t just reread, rehearse! quiz yourself on the materials. if you use a visual image “memory palace” technique, walk yourself through it. you’re likely to remember information you’ve tested yourself on better.

organizing information into groups that make sense create more connections in your brain and allow you to remember things better. the more meaningful connections you make, the better.

make sure the last thing you do before bed is study. no phone, no netflix. your brain will process what you’ve just done while you sleep and this improve recall.