Academic Strategies Workshop Descriptions
All workshops times are Eastern Standard and held virtually.
The join Zoom link will be emailed 24 hours before the workshop to registered participants.
The Princeton Syllabus: How Your Professors Expect You to Use It
(Sep 3 at 5pm RSVP and Sep 4 at 2pm RSVP)
Did you know that a course syllabus is not just list of rules, due dates and expectations, but can be used by students to learn more efficiently? Each syllabus can be decoded by students in order to get in sync with your instructor’s expectations, read more effectively, and study more purposefully. Learn new, innovative strategies in this interactive discussion.
Learning from Virtual Teaching: Strategies for Making the Most of Instruction
(Sept 7 at 5pm RSVP)
Learning from instruction virtually through a screen poses challenges for our attention and engagement. Doing assignments and studying remotely can be harder without the structure of a normal campus, fellow students, and accountability. Develop new strategies and techniques for learning and studying remotely without our usual supports.
Thriving at Princeton: Mapping Your Semester for Balance & Success
(Sep 9 at 5pm RSVP and Sep 11 at 2pm RSVP)
Map out your semester from the very start! Balance academics with everything else Princeton has to offer. Learn about the biggest organizational and time management challenges from Princeton upperclassmen—so you can overcome them. Try out proven practical techniques and tools. Find out about fundamental principles of time management and self-management that allow you to adapt to new, unexpected situations. Prevent procrastination before it prevents you from getting things done!
"Why do I keep putting things off?": Overcoming Procrastination
(Sep 14 at 5pm RSVP)
Is procrastination an obstacle to maintaining balance and achieving academic success? If so, you are not alone. Up to 80% of college students report that procrastination has been a significant issue. Procrastination is not a matter of mere “laziness” and the solution is not simply “better time management”. In order to overcome procrastination, it is vital that you understand its root causes and motivational dynamics. It is also vital to learn an array of (sometimes counter-intuitive) strategies and techniques for dealing with it.
"How does my professor expect me to do all this reading?": Efficient Reading Strategies for Princeton Courses
(Sept 16 at 5 pm RSVP and Sept 18 at 2pm RSVP)
Learn How to Maximize Your Reading Efficiency! To achieve academic success at Princeton it is crucial for students to develop superior strategies for reading and learning from text. In this workshop you will learn an approach that helps you align your learning strategies to instructor objectives, techniques for reading various kinds of academic texts, strategies for enhancing retention and recall, and methods for reading faster and more efficiently.
What to Do When Lectures Aren’t Making Sense
(Sep 21 at 5pm RSVP)
Feel like you could get more out of lectures? Have a class in which it is hard to follow along, keep up and take good notes to use later? Not sure about the best way to prepare for class or use the notes/slides provided by your professor before or after lecture. In this workshop you’ll learn how to get the most out of class, how to take truly useful notes, and ways to use them for p-sets, papers, exam prep, etc.
"So Much to Learn, So Little Time": Deciding What to Study and How
(Sep 25 at 2pm RSVP)
Looking for more effective—and efficient—study strategies? Because of the large amounts of information assigned and the compressed schedule of midterm exam week, you need to prioritize, organize and study course content as the course unfolds. Waiting until exam week to study just doesn’t work. Learn several different study methods applicable to a variety of courses so that you can read, take lecture notes, and study.
Feel Confident for Midterms: Test Prep and Learning Strategies
(Sept 28 at 5pm RSVP and Sept 29 at 5:30pm RSVP)
Ready for your midterms? In this workshop you will learn proven methods for anticipating and preparing for the kind of problems and questions you will be expected to answer on exams., selecting and prioritizing the most important information in your courses, synthesizing and reducing large amounts of information from multiple sources into manageable formats, and organizing your knowledge in ways that promote deep learning, retention, and efficient recall.
Make the Most of the Second Half of the Semester: Understanding & Overcoming Procrastination
(Oct 15 at 5pm RSVP)
Is procrastination an obstacle to maintaining balance and achieving academic success? If so, you are not alone. Up to 80% of college students report that procrastination has been a significant issue. Procrastination is not a matter of mere “laziness” and the solution is not simply “better time management”. In order to overcome procrastination, it is vital that you understand its root causes and motivational dynamics. It is also vital to learn an array of (sometimes counter-intuitive) strategies and techniques for dealing with it.
"That Looked Nothing Like the Homework": How Princeton Exams are Different and How to Prepare for Them
(Oct 16 at 2pm RSVP)
Many students find adjusting to the examination styles of each new course to be challenging, and it is usually around midterm time that this realization sets in. Turn the "shock" of midterms into a successful learning experience by reflecting, evaluating, and strategizing for the future. Join us for this Midterms Reflection Workshop. Together we will reflect on the midterm experience: what you learned, how you felt, what you would like to work on, discuss ways to adjust your mindset and approach to the course, learn how to evaluate your test results in a practical and constructive manner for future success, and develop strategies for academic success in the remainder of the semester.
"I completed my P-set, but I don’t understand the material”: Strategies for learning FROM P-sets
(Oct 21 at 5pm RSVP)
In high school most students focused on completing their math and other problem-solving assignments, and didn’t emphasize learning FROM these problems. Learning how to solve problems happened in class, from exercises, study guides, and exam reviews—and much more practice. At Princeton many of these opportunities to learn are not available, so students must make the most of their p-sets to build mastery and fluency in using techniques for specific problem types.
Time Management for Balance and Success
(Oct 23 at 2pm RSVP)
Map out your semester from the very start! Balance academics with everything else Princeton has to offer. Learn about the biggest organizational and time management challenges from Princeton upperclassmen—so you can overcome them. Try out proven practical techniques and tools. Find out about fundamental principles of time management and self-management that allow you to adapt to new, unexpected situations. Prevent procrastination before it prevents you from getting things done!
What’s Working, What’s Not: Adapting to Succeed in Princeton Courses
(Oct 28 at 2pm RSVP)
Join this roundtable discussion about what’s working—and not— for you in your courses. Midterms and papers provide useful feedback on how to read, learn and study. Build on what’s been effective and get new ideas for how to adapt your approach to achieve your goals on future assignments and finals.
"How will I get it all done?": Planning for Dean's Date & Finals
(Nov 30 at 5pm RSVP and Dec 2 at 2pm RSVP and Dec 4 at 5pm RSVP)
This interactive workshop will focus on successful strategies for how to complete Dean's Date assignments efficiently and prepare for exams effectively. Come get your questions answered about managing one of Princeton's unique challenges. Discussion topics are time management, productivity, and dealing with stress.
