Learn From the Experts: Student guides to help you make the most of university

[dropcap]W[/dropcap]hether it’s excelling in your degree or simply feeding yourself, university life is crawling with challenges. Macmillan has produced a series of guides, written by students for students, to help you make the most of the university experience. 

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Lucy Berkeley on Student Brain Food by Lauren Lucien

This is the newest student cook book on the shelves and the latest to throw around phrases such as ‘cooking made easy’ and ‘cheap food cooked well’. Its aim is to make cooking for students simple and tasty, whilst also attempting to make it healthy and exciting.

Lucien, a Kingston University graduate, gathered her recipes in the final year of her degree, using the creations of her family and friends as well as her own ideas. The book is divided into sections, varying from breakfasts and lunches to fruit smoothies and dinners suitable for groups. The range of choice on offer is almost overwhelming, with everything from scrambled eggs to salmon baked with sweet-chilli. 

If you have never cooked before then this is the book for you. The recipes are clearly laid out with step-by-step instructions. The book starts by giving an introduction to cooking which is broken down into three key parts, covering everything you need in order to cook well and safely. It gives details on food hygiene, an area which is often unclear and can lead to some nasty incidents.

The following two sections are full of tips and advice, including what equipment you will need, how to prepare the basics of any recipe and how to chop an onion. These aspects of cooking may seem simple, but without these key foundations no one would be able to cook anything half decently.

If you are somewhat of an experienced chef, this is not the book for you. Although the recipes are enticing, they are simple and unchallenging. For instance, the fruit salad recipe has one step: add all of your prepared fruit to a bowl and enjoy! I am perhaps selling the book a bit short here because, although simple, the recipes are lovely. It does what it says on the tin by providing you with a simple way to eat well in a world where it is oh so easy to settle for a pizza or pasta for the fourth night in a row.

I decided to choose a recipe that I had never tried before in order to truly test how useful the book was. Poached eggs. These may sound easy, but they are notoriously difficult to cook perfectly, with a myriad of recipes out there, all claiming to have nailed the technique. Lucien’s recipe was easy to follow and her light, breezy tone gave me, as a first-time egg-poacher, confidence to drop my egg into the boiling water irrespective of how dubious I was. It came out beautifully, with the yolk oozing and orange on my toast. 10 out of 10 would cook again.

Lucien used two methods to ensure that her book stands out from the crowd of other student cooking guides. Firstly she claims that her book provides ‘brain food’: a way for us to ‘eat well, study better’. Although I agree that her recipes are healthy and filling, do they really make us study better? They seem to lack this magical edge, with the guide offering up the same array of rice and pasta dishes as the other books out there. Where this book really comes into its own, however, is the distinctive page design.

Throughout the book there are ‘tip’ speech bubbles, predicting your questions before you even ask them, just as if your mum is hovering over your shoulder, guiding you through each step. All of the recipes also come with serving suggestions, enabling you to pull together a whole dinner from just one recipe.  Almost every recipe is adorned with a thought bubble which informs you of the dish’s nutritional value and why it makes such a good choice. This is interesting, but perhaps superfluous since the majority of students would not choose to search through the entire book for the recipe with the highest nutritional value.

Lucien’s book is filled with delicious recipes that will enable you to keep your dinners at university interesting and varied without having to reach for the take-away menu. It is ultimately a book for complete beginners and so if you have a modicum of cooking experience you might need to reach for something a bit meatier.

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Danni Li on Student Procrastination: Seize the Day and Get More Done by Michael Tefula

Procrastination – we all know that feeling. Half an essay left to write before tomorrow, desperately wishing you were anywhere else. But no, today you are going to be focussed, and finish this essay… after a cup of tea. Before you know it, ‘a cup of tea’ has turned into a kitchen catch-up, a Netflix binge, and a quick scan of Kate and Wills’ adventures down under…and the essay still isn’t done.

Approaching undesirable tasks with an ‘I’ll do it later’ mind-set has always been a problem of mine. After reading this book, I began to understand why I procrastinate so much and how my disorganisation often leads to procrastination.

The guide explains that procrastination is caused by a multitude of psychiatric, societal and psychological factors but is an issue that can be ‘cured’ (yay!). Tefula stresses the importance of understanding the reasons behind these issues before being able to overcome them. Thus, the book is roughly divided into thirds: an introduction on why it is necessary to understand the factors causing procrastination, an explanation of these factors, and methods to overcome them.

The first section of the book is a brief, engaging read which serves as a good introduction for the second part, which categorises, and then lists, the causes of procrastination. Overall, this section is very well-researched, with solid academic standing. Tefula draws his examples from a wide range of sociological texts, and psychiatric and psychological research studies. I appreciated how the book was based on serious research, covering decades of work by different researchers in different fields. The information is well-presented, and explanations are always made from first principles, allowing a layperson to develop their understanding as well. I would say this chapter of the book would be beneficial for both sufferers of procrastination and anyone interested in the causes of time-wasting.

Although this chapter was an interesting read, I did feel that I was being ‘categorised’ at points. Several examples did apply to me, for instance, the ‘pursuit of pleasure’ instead of being focussed on the task at hand, but I view the reasons for procrastination as a personal issue, rather than something that can be generalised.

The third part of this book is devoted to management methods to target individual issues highlighted in the previous section. I liked how evidence drawn from the root causes was compiled to allow individuals to tailor their solutions to themselves. Again, this was well-researched, with a solid scientific basis, and I found this information both useful and practical. I would also say that this chapter would be very helpful for educators and managers. Several of the tips that it provides are related to creating a more productive environment, which would be relevant to anyone setting up a classroom or office workspace.

One problem with the second and third parts was that key points were repeated over and over again. Whilst this did drive the point home, it also made a few pages redundant. Also I would have preferred a clearer link between reasons for procrastination and the management method to prevent it. I read some case examples which applied to me in the second chapter, but finished the book none-the-wiser as to how I could resolve them. The layout of this book was much more like a scientific journal or textbook, as opposed to a self-help book.

Overall, I found Tefula’s book an interesting, informative guide to procrastination. Has the book ultimately succeeded? Did I ‘seize the day and get more done’? In both cases, the answer is yes. I found applying several of the management methods to my everyday life (such as environmental ‘study cues’) have benefitted me. The only major fault with the book is that it could be organised in a more efficient manner – for example, by having the cause and the management method side-by-side. Despite this, I would recommend it to anyone who wants to reduce the amount of time they waste.

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Anita Chagar on University Life by Lauren Lucien

Having taken a gap year, I had a long time to prepare for Warwick. I asked my friends, who were already at university, about their experiences and listened to their animated recollections of being freshers. Their stories were fun to hear, leaving me anxious yet excited to enter into higher education, but what they told me was usually focused on the parties they had been to or their latest fancy-dress creations. It wasn’t the general advice I needed to prepare for the next stage of my educational career.

In retrospect, I wish I had sought out a book like Lauren Lucien’s to help me whilst I packed up my clothes and kitchen utensils. I don’t think anything beats a well-written, easy read which brings together everything you need to know about living at university. Making ‘university life’ comprehensible and digestible cannot have been an easy task, yet Lucien tackled the challenge head-on by making her words enjoyable yet informative.

Lucien handles the extensive amount of content with ease, by providing a ‘How to Use This Book’ section at the beginning. Explaining what all the boxes in different shades of purple means helps you to choose what you want to read on the page, whether you are seeking general tips from current and past university students or some websites to help you with further research into university life. There are even boxes dedicated to hints on how to make money without detracting from your studies and social life.

The subjects addressed in the book are wide-ranging, making it useful for everyone. If you are preparing to enter into your fresher year, there is plenty to help you in the ‘Getting Ready to Go’ chapter as well as advice to aid your adjustment to the new environment upon your arrival.  For confused and stressed finalists there is a section entitled ‘What Next?’ which covers graduation, postgraduate study and job-hunting. The most useful and interesting chapter for me was ‘Changes’, in which Lucien talks about parts of university life that I had never thought about before, such as changing course or university, or even retaking the year. This discussion makes the book valuable because it offers perspectives and insights on areas of university life that may not affect you, but are good to be aware of.

No university guide is good unless it has some food advice! An entire chapter on shopping and cooking has already, excuse the pun, given me food for thought regarding what I could be doing differently with my diet to stay healthy. The list of staple foods was particularly helpful. It took me a while to figure out the key items I needed in my cupboard and fridge to get by on a daily basis, so having a list like Lucien’s, which actually comes as a checklist complete with little square boxes for you to tick off, is really handy.

As I am revising for my exams and completing essays at the moment, it was good timing for me to read the advice given on how best to study. Granted, revision is unique to each individual and what works for some may not work for others, but I find my revision techniques change each time a set of exams come around, so I am all for the recommendations Lucien gives in the book. Her advice on dealing with stress was also useful, especially around exam time.

I think Palgrave Macmillan has done a good job of publishing a study guide that can be used over and over again by all students at university, regardless of what year they are in. I would even recommend the book to younger people who are considering university, even if they are a few years away from applying. At a time when tuition fees could put many students off higher education altogether, reading a book like this will help them make a well-informed decision over the matter, as well as giving them helpful hints on being a student in general. Making university life work for you is paramount, and turning to Lucien and Macmillan can help you do just that.

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Daljinder Johal on  How to Get a First by Michael Tefula

I must admit that I was surprised by Michael Tefula’s How to Get a First.  As someone who has perhaps researched educational psychology more than the average person, I still learnt a significant amount from reading it.  How to Get a First is a clear and well-organized guide to help you excel in your degree, providing you with the up-to-date advice of its recently graduated author.

Michael Tefula chose to start from scratch with the path to academic success. After an introduction presenting the typical benefits of a first-class degree, he enters into a discussion of degree choice and so readers who are already at university may initially be put off by the opening section. Similarly, the advice on creating a strong work ethic, personal happiness and the correct mindset may not interest everyone as Tefula seems to delve unnecessarily into contemporary psychological theory such as the stereotype effect, which causes a decrease in exam performance amongst those who are aware of a stereotype affecting them.  This considered, Tefula succeeds in making a convincing argument for the importance of passion and mental well-being, exemplifying his own experiences as well as using anecdotes from other students and successful figures like J.K Rowling and Will Smith.

This inspirational beginning would ease the worries of any prospective student, as Tefula suggests ways to maintain an essential work-life balance as well as stressing the importance of passion for your subject.  The book acts as an inspiration to current students too. Everything is covered, including the art of conjuring up enthusiasm when disillusioned, the usefulness of finding something to motivate you and the ever-present student dilemma of working with other people. Perhaps the most beneficial piece of advice Tefula gives is not to measure yourself against other people, even if you feel as if you have been plunged into an environment where everyone seems much smarter than you.

The remainder of the book continues to present ideas from current psychology but never feels overly complex. In fact, this balances out the conversational tone which Tefula adopts when he details his own struggles as a student, adding weight to his advice on general learning during lectures and independent revision. In addition to the key discussion on coursework and exams, he talks about beating procrastination and looking after both body and mind, which are arguably the most important hurdles for any student.

The book doesn’t go into massive amounts of detail and, admittedly, some advice is common sense – but the simple truths are often the most easily forgotten. Its principles for achieving success are ideal for dipping in and out of and, whilst this may be problematic for some, for the average busy student this concise style is very practical. Tefula is clearly aware of this as he provides a helpful summary chapter at the end of the book. The effectiveness of the book lies in the fact that its suggestions seem reasonably easy to put into practice.

In short, this book does exactly as intended by providing a broad and thoughtful guide to improving university life in a friendly manner, and Tefula makes it clear that his own first-class degree was a result of making use of these techniques in his final year to pull up his grade. He is never overbearing, freely sharing his own mistakes when approaching familiar student problems and this makes the thought of getting a first seem far less unattainable.

I found that How to Get a First strikes the perfect balance between giving sound, well-researched advice and being a lively, motivational read. The realistic side of this guide, which acknowledges the challenges of balancing academia with an active social life, is refreshing and the book is such a useful tool for everyone, from the incoming fresher to the panicked third-year.