HMC Studies ♕

Philosophy is intimidating. You probably think of Pluto and Socrates, and while they are a part of philosophy, there is so much more to it. The subject is foreign and hard for many, but once you get the hang of it, it can easily become one of your favorite classes. Here’s some tips to make these classes a bit easier:

What the flippidy-doo-da even is philosophy???

Philosophy is the study of why. Ethics, morality, reasoning, all fall under philosophy. There’s a bunch of sub-topics in philosophy, like hedonism (what determines what is good for us?), relativism (why do we have different morals from someone else?), morality (what is the difference between right and wrong?), and more!

What makes a philosophy class different from any other class?

In philosophy there is no right or wrong answer. Everything is relative, subjective, and opinionated. The answer is never “yes” or “no”. Philosophy is essentially a lot of questions, but not many answers.

What can I expect in a philosophy class?

Socratic. Seminars. They are everywhere in philosophy classes. These are very similar to debates in the sense that its a group/the whole class talking about a subject, but you’re not trying to persuade anyone or change anyone’s mind, you’re simply talking about it. In college, philosophy classes tend to be smaller (under 40 people) for this reason. But don’t let the idea of a Socratic seminar scare you away from taking a philosophy class. They aren’t that bad. Why? Because there is no right or wrong answer. You don’t have to worry about saying something wrong or sounding stupid because literally you can’t say anything wrong. And if the idea of talking to other stresses you out, just remember that your fellow class mates are in the same exact position as you are. 

What can I do to *succeed* in a philosophy class?

Know your argument. Typically in philosophy there are three “arguments” (similar to a debate…ish). The for, the against, and the somewhere in the middle. On all of my philosophy tests, all of the questions are the same. exact. thing. Here’s an example from my last philosophy exam:

What is Hedonism?

What is an argument for Hedonism?

What is an argument against Hedonism?

What is your opinion on Hedonism?

You need to know of both sides of an argument, but other than that, there’s no memorization. It’s all explaining and why. You’ll learn very quickly how do BS a paragraph.

Also, Crash Course - Philosophy will become your best friend in the world.

Types of people who would especially love philosophy classes:

- Like writing, debates, and is opinionated

- ENTJ, ESTP, ISFP, ENTP, INFJ, INTP

- Aquarius, Leo, Gemini, Sagittarius, Pisces

Welp, it happened. You failed a test and are pretty disappointed. Trust me, I’ve been there. Here are just a few steps I took (and recommend) for whenever this happens.

1. It’s okay to cry about it. I cried for a few minutes after I saw my test grade. I had never gotten an F on any test during my college journey, and I couldn’t believe I started university with failing my first test. Know that it’s okay to cry; it’s better than keeping it in.

2. Don’t put yourself down about it. Now that you’ve cried and let out all the emotions about it, remind yourself that it’s okay that you got an F. It is not the end of the world, even though it may seem like it. Don’t think it means you’re stupid or something, because it doesn’t; it just means you may need to study differently.

3. Talk to your professor or TA. Talk to the person who graded your test and ask if they can go over what you did wrong. Also ask if they can show you the proper way to complete a problem or answer a question you may have gotten wrong.

4. Ask more questions in class. If you’re like me, asking questions in class may frighten you. You may wonder if they’ll sound stupid, but chances are there’s at least one other student there with the same question. Don’t be afraid to raise your hand if you’re confused about something in class.

5. Go to office hours more. Try to go to as many office hours if you can. Even if you don’t have any questions, there might be students who have some there. Plus, you might think of some questions along the way.

6. Take advantage of other resources your school may have. My uni has both drop-in tutoring and tutorial groups, both of which are super helpful. Depending on the class, many TA’s also hold open office hours to review questions with multiple students. Find out if there’s other resources you can use that will help you.

7. Change your study habits. Did you study while watching Netflix? Maybe that didn’t help. Did you rewrite your notes? If you didn’t, maybe you should start. There are many ways to study, so find what works for you!

8. Form an awesome study group (if you do better in groups). Personally, I study better when I’m alone, but there are many people who study better in groups. Try to get a group of your peers together to study before the next test, or even just do homework together!

9. Eat and sleep well before your test. Make sure you’re eating as healthy as possible before your next test. Also, get as much sleep as you can. Make it a goal to finish studying early the night before so you can have at least 7-8 hours of sleep.

10. Remember, it’s going to be okay. I can’t stress this enough, because your mental health should be your priority. Be confident in yourself, and don’t stress yourself before a test. You’re going to do great.

Are you too completely broke after spending all your money on Urban Outfitters, your Spotify subscription, that new MacBook for the (overpriced) Studyblr Aesthetic ™? 

I recently graduated high school, and now, as a student, I can finally get my account at UNiDAYS. It’s a platform with discounts on basically everything - from the Financial Times to a cute little French Lifestyle Subscription Box I found recently. (Apparently the one for September is focused on weekly planning and stationery!!)

It’s helped me to save money immensely - for example with the 50% student Spotify discount. I’ve also planned to get a new tablet soon - both Apple and Microsoft offer discounts as well.

All you need to do is register here with your university email.

January 1 2018 2019

A good resolution: do something as soon as you feel the motivation to do it. Do that thing right then and there!! Don’t put it off thinking you’ll still wanna do it later!! It can be anything from studying for the midterm in a week to folding your laundry. Do it right then and there!!!!

Kids tend to want to do literally anything aside from learning this skill my parent is forcing me to learn. 

Adults actually can sit down and practice things for hours on end. Adults WANT to practice to get their skills better. Adults deliberately set aside time every day to practice. Even if it’s just 20 minutes, it’s productive growth and not wiggling in your chair mournfully watching birds out the window. 

Because I struggle bussed too hard to come up with a solid 10. Regardless, I made it this far, so I must have done something right(ish), or not completely wrong. 

Set the scene. Not necessarily in the Tumblr studying aesthetic kinda way. They’re definitely #deskgoals, but let me tell you, my desk never looked like any of the pictures you see here. What I mean, make your space a productive place to study for you. I preferred my study space to be separate from my sleep place, so my desk wasn’t in my bedroom. Not being locked up in a cave was important to me, so I put my desk by a window. Light a candle, Bath and Body Works got all my loan money. Get a natural sunlight lamp. Play some music, preferably without lyrics – classical, EDM, whatever keeps you focused without being distracting. Just make an optimal space for you. 

Stay hydrated (and caffeinated). I’m 100% a coffee addict, but water is so incredibly important. It helps you to not feel like shit, both physically and mentally, or look like shit #skincare.  Drink your morning coffee, but chug water throughout the day. Your mind and body will love you. I discovered flavoring packets that contained caffeine (Crystal Light, Mio, etc) at the beginning of MS2, and let me tell you, life-changing for those mid-afternoon slumps. And all those pee breaks you have to take? Much needed and well-deserved! You don’t want a DVT from studying all day. 

Sleep! I honestly cannot stress this enough. I don’t know how I ever pulled all nighters in college and I don’t know how my friends did it in medical school. It’s important for your mental health and physical health. Studies have shown sleep enhances memory retention and you’ll study more productively. I became a “my brain doesn’t function after 10pm” person in medical school, so I went to sleep early-ish and woke up early, but if you’re a night owl, then let yourself sleep in! You’re not taking away precious study time if you’re sleeping, I promise. And for that night before the test, that extra hour of sleep is way better than staying up an extra hour to read your notes one more time, I pinky promise. 

Move, stretch, dance, anything not hunched over a desk. Sitting for 12 hours straight is simply not sustainable. Take a couple minute break every hour to give your brain a rest. A lot of people use the Pomodoro technique with success but I never got into it. I downloaded the Forest app and timed myself for an hour, then took a 5-10 minute break between study sessions. You’ll feel refreshed and rejuvenated for another round of studying! 

Repetition, repetition, repetition. Repetition is key when it comes to learning and memorizing. Figure out your best way of learning and stick with it. Whether it be reading, re-writing notes, listening or watching lectures, recording yourself reading the notes, flashcards, etc. Find it and stick with it. Repeat it until you can do it in your sleep. I would literally wake up sometimes reciting notes in my head and I it was annoying, but it meant I had studied effectively. 

Questions. Always reinforce your knowledge with questions. You can memorize every page of a textbook but it doesn’t mean much unless you can apply it. And the more questions you do, the faster you get at test-taking, which is key once you get into 8 hour board exams. But I digress. Take practice tests, buy review books, invest in question banks. Some professors provide old exam questions for review. Do as many as you can. And if explanations are provided, read them! They’re just as much of a learning tool as any other resource! As I reviewed the questions, I’d take notes, simple one-liner facts, for review later. 

One pagers. This one may not be for everyone, but they came in clutch for me. My study method was a combination of re-writing notes and reciting things out loud as if I’m teaching it to a class. I talk to myself a lot. The more comfortable I got with the material, the more I condensed my notes until I had whole lectures or topics down to one page. This page would contain things that I thought were super important that I needed to make sure I knew, or those pesky facts that would not commit themselves to my memory. Because I’m a firm believe in not re-reading something you know you already know. This also held me accountable to always be actively studying. Then I would review these pages the day before and the morning of exams. 

Above all else, remember to trust yourself. Don’t panic. You put in the time and work, you will do great. If you have anxiety issues, don’t be afraid to seek help so you can learn how to get your anxiety under control because school is hard enough without that added obstacle. 

Because almost everything in the studyblr / studygram sphere is expensive or paid, here are some FREE bullet journal digital stickers - chalkboard edition!! feel free to crop and paste in your digital bullet journals or print them out to stick in your actual journals!! enjoy guys and please credit & reblog if you use these! 

Download here

Thinking of doing more but please shoot some ideas if y’all got any or tell me what else you’d like to see!

hope you like these and happy holidays :)