Create Structure: Spend 10 mins at the beginning of the day and week to create a learning plan. Think of your pre-COVID routine and adapt it as best you can to the current circumstances.

How? Create A Timetable: If in a  full-time course, you should be spending as much time a week as a full-time job, 35-40 hours a week, no more. Use your time wisely and put a variety of activities in your timetable or to-do list to keep your mind engaged.

Create Balance: Now that you have your week planned, take another look and see if it is realistic and kind to you and your needs, to ensure that it is not overwhelming.

How? Schedule in Breaks: Use the Pomodoro technique, this is 25 mins of work to 5 mins of a break. Don’t forget to have time for meals and exercise. Experiment and see what works for you.

3: Keep on Top of Things: Easier said than done, but keep up to date with your lectures and tutorials as well as assessments. A daily and weekly routine is key and a calendar will help massively with this.

4: Check Canvas and Umail: These are the main modes of communication between you, and your tutors/lecturers. Communication is critical. Also, Canvas notifications will remind you when you have assignments due.

5: Keep in Contact: Communication is vital when you aren’t “seeing” people every day, and it can be hard to learn in a bubble. Organise group work sessions or coffee breaks on MS Teams.

6: Use all the tool as your disposal: UCC provides Office 365 and Google suite for free to help with collaboration and keeping on top of your workload. If something isn’t working, try something new. For example, a pen and paper are just as good to keep notes or for rough work.

7: Create your own Study Space: Keep wherever you choose to study well-lit, so your eyes aren’t strained, distraction-free and maintain a clean environment. Have a conversation with your household toensure that internet can be shared effectively.

8: Be Present in Live Online Lectures: Turn your phone and other distractions off and give the lecturer your full attention, make your notes and go over them after the class is over. Participate and ask questions, when appropriate; this will both focus your mind and the minds of everyone around you.

9: Work on your Digital Skills: Take some digital skills courses online or the free ICDL (formally ECDL) and keep practising. At the beginning of the year, you may have more time to practice than when assessments are around the corner.

10: Responsibility: This new age of digital learning will give great power and freedom to the student but also a great responsibility. You must seek out the information you when you are stuck and ask when you need help.

Stay Organised:

• Use your Canvas Calendar to keep track of assignment due dates and scheduled lectures or export it to your calendar app of choice.
• Check your Umail and Canvas regularly to ensure you are up to date with your course. The Canvas Student app will allow you to keep up to date on the go.
• If your lectures are pre-recorded, don’t let them build up for weeks.
• Create a weekly plan to give structure to your online learning. This will ensure you don’t fall behind and know what your week looks like at a glance. Aim to know and understand your timetable so you can plan accordingly.

Keep in Touch:

• Make contact with your lecturers over email or through Canvas. Lecturers are happy to hear from students with any questions you may have, and the details for getting in touch can usually be found on their webpage on UCC’s website, on Canvas or during the first lecture.
• A great way to learn is by making study groups with your friends on MS Teams! Create a team with your classmates, and work together by asking each other questions and having discussions
• Many college courses have full-time workloads so expect to spend 30-40 hours during the week on college work but no more.
• Eat and drink healthily and regularly. Nourishing yourself properly is essential. Don’t forget to drink enough water (and not too much coffee or energy drinks) and stick to a reasonably healthy diet.

Look after yourself:

• Take breaks. We all are somewhat aware that you need to refresh your brain after a certain amount of time. However, when we get lost in the flow, we often forget to take breaks. Try to stick to this and see how you feel: for every 30 minutes you study, take a short 10-15-minute break to recharge. Short study sessions are more effective and help you make the most of your study time.

Set up your space:

• Find a quiet, well-lit space to engage in online learning.
• Use textbooks or a stand to prop up your screen to eye-level to reduce neck strain.
• A change of environment can be beneficial sometimes, and even a trip to the Boole library (if it is safe to do so) can be a refreshing change. Check out the library’s website before making the trip.
• Ensure you have the right technology and https://www.ucc.ie/en/sit is the place to go to for all your tech support needs.

Utilise Technology:

• Research software that can make you more productive, such as applications that block distracting websites while you are trying to study.
• UCC provides Office 365 and Google suite for free to help with collaboration and keeping on top of your workload. Online tools such as Google Docs allow you to share useful notes and resources with fellow students.
• Familiarise yourself with Canvas, Panopto and MS Teams – these are UCC’s learning platforms. Take the Canvas orientation module and reorientate yourself.

Prepare for disruption:

• Have a discussion with household members about when you will need the internet for live lectures and ask them to stay off of bandwidth-intensive services during these times.
• Take note of your lecturers' contact details in case you need to get in touch regarding
• It can be tempting to always be on mute during online lectures, but try and contribute when you get the opportunity. This is a great way to ensure you understand the material and have any questions answered. You can also use the chat function if you do not feel comfortable speaking being unable to submit an assignment or attend a lecture.

Try and make things normal:

• If your course offers 'breakout' sessions to have relaxed conversation with fellow students, try and attend regularly to avoid feeling isolated at home.

Planning:

• Find out the when and how for your exams. Keep a note of how you will be assessed, on what date and within what timeframe.
• Make sure you’ve read any exam advice or study guidance your lecturers have given and if you don’t have them, get in touch.
• Put the dates and times into your online calendar and your phone, with reminders before they start!
• Plan out your revision and preparation. Try to do practice examples of the kinds of questions you will be asked. Testing yourself is one of the most effective ways of learning.
• Make a list of all the topics important for your exam and cross them off once you have revised them (it’s good to see progress!). Space out your revision of topics and don’t rely purely on last minute cramming.

Exam Types:

• Know what the format of each of your exams is going to be and try to practice those kinds of questions/tests.
• If you are doing an exam in which you have to handwrite your answers and then scan and upload them, try it out a few times well in advance. There will be time given for you to do this after the scheduled exam time, don’t try and use this time as an extension, because it takes a while to do the scanning/uploading properly.
• MCQs (Multiple Choice) and similar types of tests are very common in online exams. Find out if you can, how the questions are going to be presented (one at a time, all in one go, will you be able to go back and change answers or not?) so that you don’t have any surprises on the day.
• Essays/typed responses - Find out how many questions you have to answer and whether there is choice. Do you have to download an exam paper or use a template? Do you have to upload a Word file, or a PDF, or type your answer into a text box?
• Oral/Aural exams – common in languages, but also some other subjects. For these you need to make sure that you have the technology you need (microphone, speakers/headset, camera). The examiner will know that you will be nervous, just try to do the best you can and practice the scenario if possible.
• Are you allowed to use other information to do the exam or is that not permitted? Make sure you know and if you are allowed to use specific materials, have them to hand before the exam starts.

Preparing Your Space:

• Identify in advance the space in which you are going to take your assessment.
• Ideally it is somewhere that is quiet and private, and tidied and prepared with a clear desk.
• Let your household know when your exam is scheduled and try to get them to minimise any risk of noise or disruption.
• Communicate with the people around you and let them know when you will be taking your test so that you can minimise noise and disruption.
• Put your phone on silent, or turn it off.

Look After Yourself:

• Try to minimise stress this exam season. Take regular breaks leading up to your exams and leave time to do the things you enjoy.
• Prepare your space the night before.
• On the day: Keep water and snacks nearby.
• Don’t hide away! – Keep in touch with friends and family. It is vital to keep contact with people during the exam weeks. It can help keep things in perspective as well as motivate you.
• Most people hate exams and feel anxious about them. Try to channel that nervous energy into revision and practice and that will mean you won’t have to worry in the end. Don’t let it overwhelm you. Seek help if it is getting too much.
• If one exam doesn’t go as well as you hoped, try not to dwell on it. Just move on. Anyway, you might have done better than you think!

Consider Technology:

• Make sure your laptop or other device that you are using is fully charged/plugged in, connected to the network, and is working OK.
• Test out your internet speed, both upload and download speeds, in advance to allow time to raise any queries with your module coordinator/lecturer. You can submit practice assignments in the Success Zone modules on Canvas.
• If there is a problem with your connection during the scheduled exam, let your lecturer know immediately. There should be a ‘plan b’ and make sure you know what it is and don’t panic if something happens on the day.
• Make sure you know whether in the exam you are allowed to use other resources or other rules and regulations. If in doubt, contact your lecturer.

Supports:

• Check your module handbook for information that may answer your questions. This information is probably posted on the module page on Canvas
• If you come across any problems regarding your assessment get in touch with your module coordinator/lecturer.
• If you are registered with the DSS, double-check to ensure how accommodations such as extra time will be applied.
• Don’t forget to get in contact with your Student Union Officers if you are having any issues, education@uccsu.ie