dead everyday

for those who are thinking of taking up nursing in polytechnic life (in singapore of course hehe), here is what both Ngee Ann and Nanyang Polytechnic have to offer: 

NGEE ANN POLYTECHNIC:

Year 1.1  - Anatomy & Physiology 1  - Fundamentals of Nursing  - Nursing Skills Laboratory 1.1  - Health Psychology   - Microbiology & Infection Control  - Creative & Innovative Thinking Skills  - Communication in Nursing Practice  - Clinical Attachment 1.1

Year 1.2  - Nursing Skills Laboratory 1.2  - Gerontology and Community Nursing  - Cell & Molecular Biology  - Pharmacology 1  - Anatomy & Physiology 2  - Nursing Research 1  - Medical Sociology   - Clinical Attachment 1.2  - Sports & Wellness

Year 2.1  - Nursing Science 1  - Nursing Science 2  - Nursing Skills Laboratory  - Pharmacology 2.1  - Nursing Research 2  - Clinical Attachment 2.1

Year 2.2  - Nursing Science 3  - Nursing Science 4  - Nursing Skills Laboratory 2.2  - Pharmacology 2.2  - Law, Ethics & Health Care  - Singapore & World Issues  - Emerging Clincal Trends: Mental Health Nursing & Palliative Care  - Clinical Attachment 2.2

Year 3.1  - Nursing Science 5  - Pharmacology 3.1   - Nursing Management & Professional Development  - Research Project  - Nursing Skills Laboratory 3.1  - Life Sciences Electives 

Year 3.2   - Clinical Attachment 3.2   - Pre-Registration Consolidation Placement (PRCP)  - Clinical Attachment Specialised Placement  - Healthcare Career and Professional Preparation (Nursing)

NANYANG POLYTECHNIC:

Year 1 Core Modules:  - Fundamentals of Nursing and Critical Thinking  - Communication and Safety in Healthcare  - Family and Community Health  - Women and Children Health  - Research Methods  - Psychosocial Perspectives 1  - Human Bioscience 1A  - Human Bioscience 1B  - Nursing Laboratory 1A  - Nursing Laboratory 1B and Health Assessment  - Nursing Practice 1 Complementary Electives:  - General Studies

Year 2 Core Modules:  - Adult Nursing 1  - Adult Nursing 2   - Mental Health Nursing  - Professional Nursing Practice and Health Education  - Statistics and Evidence-Based Practice  - Pharmacology  - Human Bioscience 2  - Psychosocial Perspective 2  - Nursing Laboratory 2A  - Nursing Laboratory 2B  - Nursing Practice 2A  - Nursing Practice 2B Complementary Electives:  - General Studies

september has finally arrived and the dates for the upcoming gce o-level exams are getting closer. fear not, this fellow poly student will help you out on some tips when it comes to o-levels :D oh and btw im from express batch 2016 so yea know, if you want to know how my papers went, feel free to ask

1. practice makes perfect.

as much as how cliche this sounds, it exists for a reason. get your ten year series and prelim practice paper out, and start working! give yourself a time limit as well, depending on your paper and subject. force yourself to go to school on a weekend (if allowed) or arrange a time to go with your friends to a place to study. for me, my math teacher arranged to come back to school on saturday mornings or even go to the airport to have some coffee. i definitely love the ten year series as it gave me the excitement of doing math! you can’t really practice much for science and english, but what you can do is get a clear idea of the questions’ requirement. It’s most likely the same way the questions would be asked in your o-level exams, even though phrased differently.

2. consultations

consultations are like the best to be honest. I’m blessed that i have teachers that are willing to help me out. even though it might be hard to ask your teacher out for a one-to-one session, it’s gonna be very beneficial if you take their advice and tips to the heart and actually practicing what they say. always take the chance of teacher consultations when they offer to help, they mean well :) it’s a sign that they do want you to get a good result and they do care. consultations helped me so much. it ensured me that i don’t make the same mistakes all over again and gave me a sense of self-confidence when answering questions! always seize the opportunity!

3. know where you want to go

at this point of time, you should know which tertiary path you want to go to. JC or Polytechnic? going to ITE is not an option for you unless you really don’t care about your grades/life. sorry if this sounds harsh but this exam is basically gonna be your future. know what kind of path you want to go in. if you’re still unsure, have one JC and one Poly course in mind that have a difference of 2-4 points due to the different point system (L1R5 for JC and L1R4 for Poly) once you have the range in mind, work hard for it!

4. get organised

oh my gosh this is very important. you know those times when there are mandatory filing checks, welp they happen for a reason. as much as i hate filing my notes and worksheets, they are very helpful actually. now that prelims are over and you can get your files back (soon… hopefully), get out your notes and tests, and tuck the rest under the bed because those ain’t gonna help you anymore. from this point on, your notes are your number one tools to help you understand what you’re going to do on your paper, and surely you don’t ever want to lose them! for me, i got the simple plastic folders you can get in your school bookshop, and you just slide the notes according to their subjects. it’s a simple habit that you should get into right now, and it’s not heavy at all! i barely use my textbooks because they’re such a heavy burden tbh, carrying it all over school. notes > textbooks when it comes to practical use.

5. sleep sleep sleep!

this is the most important part. i actually regret burning the midnight oil during my prelim study period because i felt so dreadful and tired when it was exam day. when it comes to o-levels, i ensure to use every time that i have to practice during the day, take a break or skim through the notes at night, and sleep at 10-11pm latest. there was a case in my school in which someone actually collapsed in the bus because she had an insufficient sleeping schedule, and it was an o-level exam day. always take care of your health because it is way more important than getting a decent grade. so, take this as an “excuse” to sleep more in the night, but don’t forget to wake up early to start studying!

6. create an exam schedule

my math teacher, 2016

1. take a short, power nap! 

a power nap should last you approximately 10-20 minutes, and once you wake up, it should give you a boost of energy and a level of alertness when you study. a good power nap timer app should do the job in waking you up and it even plays soothing music while you sleep, or you can just use your phone’s timer if you wish to not download an app.

2. stretch those limbs! 

you’ve been sitting down for the past 1 to 2 hours, your muscles are going to be tense. take some time to relax your precious muscles and stretch around. not only will you be able to relax, but you also get to tone your body (goodbye fats ;3) here’s a video of some study break exercises you can do if you don’t know where to start.

3. tidy up your study space! 

studying after a long period of time can make you unaware of what you do to your study area. pens and markers can be all over the place, papers unorganized, it can get your mind distracted if all of your necessities are everywhere. take the time to tidy up a bit before grinding again :) 

4. fill your stomach with a snack and water!

do not ever study with an empty stomach. like never. eating a nutritious snack bar can provide you the energy you need for studying. drink up a glass of water too! always keep yourself hydrated at all times. studying is like a sport, it requires concentration and effort to think, read and write. so drink up, soldier!

5. write a to-do list!

As human beings, not everything in life is beautiful. Everyone goes through stressful moments (whether it's school related or something that happened in your life), bad memories that give you anxiety, trauma, and basically anything you can think of. And these types of negativity can affect your performance in school if you aren't able to control or distract yourself from it. 

So here are my 3 methods to distract yourself from the negativity in your life: 1. Write any bad memory on a piece of paper, and throw it away.

I personally feel this is a way to know that you shouldn’t dwell so much in the past, but you should learn from what you have experienced. It can be a memory that has scarred you, a memory that makes you feel a certain emotion, or even a memory that just make you feel bad about yourself. I used this method before at a time when my heart was broken by a douchebag guy, and I felt so powerful for a while. Whenever this guy pops up in my mind, I would take a small post-it note, write his name, and throw it away in anger. It might not be the most environmentally-friendly method, but it is a method that makes you feel powerful.

2. Watch a video from YouTube.

This is actually my most frequently used method in trying not remember any bad memory and get my mind off from stress. I usually watch vlogs, makeup tutorials, gaming videos, and basically a video that isn’t related to what I’m doing and what I’m thinking. Why? For me, watching a video that is related to studying while studying actually makes me feel bad that I’m wasting my time watching other YouTubers that actually studies. Watch a video that makes you feel good/satisfied. I don’t recommend music (gasp, well with lyrics of course), because there are tons of songs about stress, life, and love, so once you start to listen and process the lyrics into your brain, it’s going to trigger memories and oh boy, it’s gonna be an emotional ride honey. This method really distracts me (in a good way), so if you’re studying, do keep track of your time! But if you’re having a break, do it without hesitation. If you want any recommendations of YouTubers, don’t hesitate to ask :)

3. Treat yourself ♥

Who doesn’t love food? Really. Treat yourself to your favourite food, your favourite stationery, a day off, and doing what you love the most. I am guilty of eating potato chips whenever I’m stressed, and I would just play my favourite Disney movie for the entire day (it’s “Princess and the Frog” ;3). Treating yourself well with what you love doing/having can make you feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside because you know that these hobbies/items make the person you are today. You are you because of what you love. You are you because of your passion. And when you are passionate about something, you will enjoy yourself. Well, that’s for hobbies but for food and drinks, there’s no stopping you. Get yourself a bar of chocolate, potato chips, iced teas, a cup of coffee, a bowl of fire noodles, and basically your stress food. But, of course, do take in moderation and not a large serving of french fries. So, be a princess/prince for the day, yeah?