'''''Tips and Tricks for Surviving Purdue'''''
In the college world, like the business world, the structure of our government is based on ethics. How we conduct ourselves now in college with our work and study habits will carry on with us for the rest of our lives.
If you choose to cheat and copy the works of others now in life, what are the odds that you will continue with the habit once you are done with school? Imagine if the government worked just the way that you do? Then the entire government would be based on lies and would also only survive based on the success of others instead of its own.
There is nothing wrong with getting help from other people or working together to do homework or study for an exam; but just make sure that you truly understand the material otherwise you would just be cheating yourself. Believe it or not, you’re understanding of your current classes do affect your ability to perform in future classes that have prerequisits. If you are struggling now, chances are you will be struggling in the more advanced classes.
It really helps to keep your engineering and math books for reference instead of just tossing it out the minute that you are done with that class. You would be surprised that how after a summer or winter break how rusty you can easily become with engineering or math. It is nice to have on hand books that you are familiar with that you can easily look through to brush up on your knowledge, plus you never know if you will be needing it for future classes. Personally, I still have all of my lecture notes and previous homeworks incase I need to reference a mathematical/engineering process that the book does not describe in detail. Sure there is always google if you need help, but sometimes there is only so long you can stare at a computer before your eyes get tired; plus with viewing work in your own writing helps with your familiarization of material.
'''''Tips & Tricks to Remember'''''
~Bookmark Important Websites – Teachers may differ in their choice of website to use for homework, it is easiest if you have all the websites that you need to check regularly bookmarked so you don’t forget to check any of them. Websites may include: ~blackboard ~mymail.purdue.edu ~mycourses.purdue.edu ~rhea ~Webassign
~Check your email twice a day – Check once in the morning and once in the afternoon, you wouldn’t want to miss any important last minute announcements from teachers or Purdue.
~Keep your books, notes & hw solutions – you never know when you will be needing to reference them
~Make friends in class & form study groups - Chances are you will have several classes together as you get further into your studies. Having study groups helps when you still have questions when the help office is closed. It also doesn’t hurt to ask to borrow a book if your fellow classmate has already taken the class and no longer needs the book, you’ll save money!
~Read the syllabus thoroughly & mark your motorboard!!!! – you wouldn’t want to miss any important dates, missing an exam or an assignment, like in ECE 400, can greatly impact your grade and cannot always be made up. ALSO, be sure to note class attendance, some classes if you miss up to 3 classes you drop a letter grade, and others may be if you miss 5 classes you fail.
~Your Motorboard is your friend! – note exam and homework dates, and plan your weeks accordingly. If you keep pushing things off, you’re just building the stress and you do not have time as an engineer to have a breakdown. If you are lucky to manage your time, you might be lucky enough to at least enjoy a couple of hours for yourself to have fun.
~Office Hours helps A LOT - just be sure to know what questions you want to ask, the professors and TA are not going to just give you the answer, they will help with making sure that you understand the material so you can work on the problem on your own.
Good Luck and just stick to it! The degree will be worth it in the end.
